I Wish My Teacher Knew

by Kyle Schwartz

  Teacher Tools

  1. Creating Common Values

  In order to teach our students character, each school community will have to define what character means and what qualities the students in their school should strive to embody. This is the first step.

  Determining the values you want your students to embody might be more difficult than it seems. There are many dimensions to character. It all depends on which lens you want to look through. You could see character in terms of moral character versus performance character. Character.org has broken down aspects of character in this way. Fairness and generosity are both examples of the ethical values that make up moral character, while performance character focuses more on the individual and encompasses traits like effort and diligence.

  Another way to look at character is through relationships. The Institute of Education Sciences categorizes three types of values according to which form of relationship they fit into. First are intrapersonal values, “those characterizing the individual’s behavior and attitudes in a wide range of situations and activities” such as honesty, perseverance, and integrity. There are also interpersonal values, which are “characterizing the individual’s behavior and attitudes toward others” like caring, respect and empathy. Finally there are civic virtues, which are “characterizing the individual’s behavior and attitudes toward the community and society” and include patriotism and justice.

  Even more important than selecting character traits to emphasize in a school community is the selection process itself. An analysis of the efficacy of the Character Education State Pilot Projects found that “perhaps the most important lesson to emerge from the Character Education Pilot Project reports was that successful character education requires the participation of the entire community.” This sentiment was echoed by education advocate Linda McKay: “What I saw emerging in the research grants [was] . . . that in order for character education to be effective, it really has to be a schoolwide process . . . based on faculty, students, and parents.”

  I have realized that any character program that mandates a preselected list of values is missing a vital component. The values of a community reflect the entire community and should be determined by all stakeholders. Yes, this includes teachers and school leaders but also students and families. When beginning or expanding a character education program in your classroom, it is wise to ask for input from the students and the broader community, something I’m working toward at my school. Find out what their ideal classroom community would look like, how your community wants to be treated when they are in school, what character traits students want to see in their classmates, and what vision everyone has for their future.

  Allowing the entire community to play an active role in determining the values of their school serves two purposes. First, it will create more buy-in from students because everyone is more eager to participate in something they’ve had a hand in creating. Second, and even more importantly, our students know more about what it is like to be a kid or adolescent in today’s world than we teachers do. Our students are experts in the challenges they face, and they can be great sources in pinpointing exactly what character traits are needed to overcome those obstacles.

  Students and families have contributions and insights that should be valued when determining the core values of a school community. Schools should keep in mind that these values belong to everyone. As the community grows and changes, the values of a school might need to evolve along with it. I don’t mean that a school will all of a sudden stop valuing respect, but perhaps there might be a renewed need to emphasize innovation or creativity. I can also see school culture shifting focus between values that pertain to individuals, such as personal effort, to values with a focus on the community, like collaboration. In this way a school’s values might be thought of like a mural, which can be carefully added to or amended over time, instead of as words etched in stone.

  2. Common Language

  Once the values of a school community have been clarified, a common language can be formed. Building this common language among teachers, students, and community members is the foundation of developing character, but it is often a neglected step.

  Most research on shared language comes from the business world and the healthcare industry, where ineffective communication can cost profits or even lives. Interestingly, this research suggests the efficacy of shared language depends entirely on empathy. As stated in the Australasian Medical Journal, “Looking [at communication] from the end point of the user helps us to develop empathy, which is a critical factor in building relationships and being able to communicate effectively with others.” Yet another reason to incorporate character education in our schools.

  Our schools can learn important lessons by examining the way we talk about our values. As teachers we help our students understand the concepts behind our values, like what it means to be responsible. But this clarifying work is also necessary for the adults too. We all come with our own perceptions of values, which are heavily influenced by our backgrounds and the realities of our lives.

  The specific words a school uses matter. Think of the nuanced differences between “honesty” and “truth.” At my school, our community places a high value on kindness. You will hear that word repeated all over our school. I say, “Can you show kindness and help us clean up?” And during the morning announcements, our principal praises students who have been kind to others at recess. I frequently hear our students compliment each other for being a kind friend. When our students hear the word “kind” from so many sources and for so many occasions, it is powerful.

  In our school, a shared language around the value of kindness helps us celebrate exceptional character in our students. Students are able to see kindness in themselves and their peers, but they can also recognize its absence. When students make bad decisions, this shared language helps us have discussions with students that go far beyond “getting in trouble.” We can help students understand that a hurtful action is wrong not just because it breaks a rule, but also because being unkind goes against their personal character.

  It is also helpful to discuss what your school values would look like in the different settings of your school. Our school does just that. We explicitly teach our students what our values look like in the hallway, on the playground, even in the bathroom. We hang posters that make it clear what our expectations are for their behavior. You can recruit your students to help make these. It’s as simple as passing out a few pieces of paper and having groups of students write “Three ways to show gratitude in the lunch line” or “How students can be responsible during study hall.”

  Schools are made up of so many individuals, but a shared language helps build community. It acts as a bridge that ties the community together and gives us a common identity.

  3. Character Rubrics

  Teachers are familiar with rubrics to help students evaluate their academic content, but rubrics can also be powerful tools to help them develop strong character. In academia, rubrics have typically been used for the purpose of scoring. The creator of the rubric, usually the teacher, determines the criteria and the dimensions of the product to be assessed. Then each criterion is described for different levels of performance. Usually there are points connected to each level of performance. But there are some important distinctions between a scoring rubric and a supportive character rubric.

  There are several character rubrics being used in schools that are great resources. Many of these rubrics evaluate character for students based on the frequency a specific trait is demonstrated. Like one from the Character Counts Six Pillar Program that evaluates if a student “respects authority” always, almost always, usually, sometimes, or seldom. There is an implication that the difference between someone with strong character and someone with weak character is how often that individual exhibits a particular trait or behavior. This is a dangerous fallacy, as even a bank robber could “almost always,” for example, “honor people’s property.�
� In addition, this form of rubric is not descriptive enough for students. It provides no information on what “respects authority” looks like.

  For me, the purpose of a character rubric is to give students a clear picture of what a value looks like in real life. It should give students a judgment-free continuum for a particular character trait or value. This allows them to see that traits like honesty and responsibility can grow with effort over time—and that character can change and grow too. It counteracts the detrimental idea that character traits are fixed.

  Another key distinction is that these rubrics are for our students, which means these measures should use language students understand and that is meaningful to them. These rubrics could even be created by students. As teachers we can certainly facilitate the creation of these rubrics to ensure they are accurate and supportive, but the most powerful rubrics will be student directed.

  One last note: if the purpose of a character rubric is for students to be able to reflect on their own character and set goals, then quantifying or awarding points to a value might be counterproductive. There is a strong urge in education to make everything data driven, but we need to ask ourselves if scoring a student’s character strength is yielding the results we want. Personally, I want my students to self-reflect and think, “I need to work on listening to others so I can understand their point of view” not “I need more points on empathy.” The difference between these two thoughts is certainly a result of the way a teacher frames the conversation, but the second we attach numbers to character traits, we are creating a system driven by sums and averages, and that does not always meet our goal of developing strong character.

  Teaching our students good character means teaching them the skills they need right now as students, and also to be strong members of the society we will release them into. As adults, our students will need both academic skills and strong character to succeed, but what good is an education that produces students with perfect grades but little integrity? What impact can our students make on the world if they can analyze data and state facts, but do not possess the curiosity and perseverance to ask difficult questions and struggle to seek answers? What type of change would be made, on a global scale, if our schools gave equal focus to developing critical thinking skills and developing a deep sense of empathy?

  Educators need to remember this basic truth: our students will grow to become our neighbors, our peers, and hopefully even my superiors. The impact our students have on us might, and should, be greater than the impact we have on our students. It is also true that our students, once independent in the world, will carry with them the values they learned both in their homes and in their schools. With this in mind, I choose to intentionally teach character in my classroom. I can’t afford not to.

  I truly believe I am educating the children who will become my bosses, my leaders, and my inspiration one day. That belief impacts the priorities of my teaching. I am not only preparing my students to take tests, but I am preparing my students to lead myself and my city. The goal of my teaching is both to develop problem solving skills and the will to solve difficult problems. I expect greatness from my students and therefore also expect pride, tolerance, and resiliency.

  Many of my students have already learned aspects of a strong character from their families and communities. It is my goal to build upon what my students have already learned. My classroom acts as an incubator that grows and develops even further the values each student begins the school year with. Over the course of the year I see my students become even more compassionate and more dedicated than when we first met. It’s a beautiful thing.

  Yes, I need to teach my students academic skills, and I take that responsibility very seriously, but an equal priority for me is to teach them the values that will help form them into the people my community needs and deserves. To me, this is the purpose of schooling.

  7.

  You Got This!

  Building a Classroom Culture of Self-Efficacy

  My Classroom Community

  I had the pleasure of being the third-grade teacher to an immensely kind and extremely shy girl named Adah. There was no way around it: Adah entered our third-grade classroom with significant academic needs. At home she spoke Spanish with a severe lisp, which her family could understand, but at school the anxiety of not being understood kept her silent most of the time. She almost never raised her hand to answer a question and hardly interacted with the other children in meaningful ways. Adah did not say a single word to me for the first three weeks of school.

  But I soon realized these barriers did not stop Adah from working hard. She was rarely absent from school and never missed a single homework assignment during the entire school year. When I worked with her I deliberately and consistently praised her efforts. Each time, I made sure to find an incremental improvement, no matter how small, to show her. I used these successes as evidence to prove to her that she had the ability to learn and grow, no matter how big the challenges seemed to be.

  One day, all the students in my class were looking at graphs of their reading achievements over the course of the year. Students were sharing with each other how much their reading had improved and explaining what their new goals would be. I showed the class a student’s graph on our projection screen. “Look at how steep this line is!” I said. “This student’s reading has shot way up!” The other students looked at it, astounded. One boy shouted, “Whoa! That’s crazy!” Others said, “I can’t believe it!” With her permission, I finally revealed whose graph it was. “This is a graph of Adah’s reading.” The class erupted in applause.

  Adah beamed silently.

  I made it a point in my class to celebrate Adah’s growth and her ability to improve instead of focusing on her skill level, which remained significantly below grade-level standards. Through their own hard work and effort, my students prove to themselves that no matter where they start they have the ability to grow and improve. That’s how I build and foster a culture of self-efficacy, where every student believes it’s within their ability to reach their academic and life goals.

  By the end of the school year, the shy little girl who wouldn’t speak to me had tripled the rate of her previous academic progress. But even more importantly, Adah demonstrated a huge leap in bravery and confidence when she walked across the stage in front of an audience of thousands to receive the Denver mayor’s Mile High Scholar Award.

  My teaching philosophy is characterized by the belief that where a student starts does not dictate where they will end up. I don’t say this just because it is a nice fluffy thought or because it is what a teacher should say. I could not get up and go to work each morning if I did not see tangible evidence every day that all children can learn, improve, and grow. That word “grow” is at the epicenter of every little thing in my classroom. While I, their teacher, believe in each student’s ability to learn, I recognize the need for them to cultivate that belief in themselves.

  Just like a plant, there are many requirements that need to be met before a seed can be coaxed to set out roots and a shoot. The belief that one can grow, and that change is possible, is essential to the learning process. Before a student can learn, a sense of self-efficacy must be nurtured within themselves. The American Psychological Association says, “Self-efficacy refers to an individual’s belief in his or her capacity to execute behaviors necessary to produce specific performance attainments.”

  In order to find success in the classrooms, students need to believe they can be successful. Developing a sense of self-efficacy in our students cannot be skipped over or thought of as just another skill that would be nice to teach in the classroom, if only we had enough time in the day. It is an absolute requirement of learning.

  Mindsets in the Classroom

  I have been immensely encouraged by research from Stanford professor Carol Dweck. Dweck’s research has defined two distinct mindsets that contribute to the way people, and especially students, interact with the world: the fixed
mindset and the growth mindset. In the fixed mindset, students believe their abilities and intelligence are stagnant: they have it or they don’t. In the growth mindset, however, students realize all people have the ability to improve not only their abilities, but also their intelligence.

  So many organizations and industries have latched onto the growth mindset movement. Education is no exception. Schools and teachers have embraced it so enthusiastically because we see students replicate the research every day. We see our students learn, grow, adapt, and become smarter throughout a given academic year, down to each week and month, even in a given day.

  The best teachers know intelligence and critical thinking skills are built through effort and rigorous work over long periods of time. More importantly, it is imperative teachers help students see that as well.

  One way to help students develop the growth mindset is to change the language of a student’s self-talk, the voice of their mindset. Dweck recommends four steps:

  1. Learn to hear how your mindset is expressed in your thoughts. Do your thoughts encourage taking on a challenge or are they overly critical and demoralizing? In our classroom, I use the phrase “Catch that thought, what is it saying to you?” to help students articulate self-talk.

  2. Acknowledging that you always have a choice. It is so empowering for students to realize they are actually in control of their self-talk and can choose how they think about their abilities as well as how they approach a challenge.

  3. Actively use the growth mindset to talk to yourself. Instead of students thinking of their failures as proof they are not skilled or competent, coach students to see failures as an opportunity to learn. Helping students understand the way to talk to themselves is key. At our school we even have a bulletin board with fixed mindset thoughts such as “I’m not good at reading” paired with growth mindset thoughts such as “What am I not understanding? How can I work on this?”