Content -- I've seen students who were pushed along "because we don't want to hurt their feelings and they need to be with their friends in that grade" fall further and further behind, have low self-esteem, and really hate schoolwork (not school necessarily) all because the content was over their heads. We really need to address this, especially as teachers in smaller private schools.
I've also seen students who were a year or two behind in a subject spend one year (or part of a year) in a lower level class or on content of a lower level catch on to the concept because the content was attainable, and then quickly catch up to grade level. Isn't it worth back-tracking a few months or a year for the student to catch up and be able to understand and achieve? This is certainly better than pushing them along for years and having them lag behind, wasting time, not understanding the content and developing more of a dislike for school.
If the content is on a level that students can understand and comprehend, the work will be accessible and attainable; they will understand it and do well. Then they feel accomplished, not discouraged. This is HUGE. It's either a morale booster or a huge deterrent for the student.
Workload -- The other component to the content aspect is the amount of work we as teachers or the curriculum gives them. Sometimes the content is very good (I have one publisher especially in mind here), but the amount is just overkill. Too much material thrown at students too quickly can have the same effect as inaccessible content -- the students get bogged down and frustrated with the sheer volume of work presented to them. Morale and grades both go down, even though the students are bright and capable of doing the work.
Throw in motivated vs. unmotivated students, and we've got brownies instead of pie.
So, what's the solution?
1. If a student is sinking and not swimming because the subject content is beyond their understanding, that student should be moved to a lower class or at least given easier material where he or she can truly understand the content and thus continue to learn. (In a small private school this means getting a tutor to come in and teach Susie a lower level of math, or give her the book for a grade level below and let her do that. There are even ways to disguise this so that none of the other students will ever know.)
This works. I've seen it time and time again.
2. If the students are all capable of understanding the content, but some are motivated and some are not, we can just have two options. Everyone should be expected to do X amount, and the over-achiever, eager beavers can be challenged to do more, and will be rewarded for it. Example: "You must do all the odds for your homework assignment. If you do all the evens too, I'll add an extra 10 points to your grade."
"You must have five sources for your research paper, but I challenge you to find seven or eight. I require six written pages, but if you really want to get an A, nine or ten would be nice, but your content better be great -- no filler!"
This works. I've seen it time and time again.
The content that we are teaching must be within our students' grasps, and we cannot bog them down with unnecessary, busy work just because the books include it. (Those books are probably geared toward college-bound, motivated, middle-class suburbanites; many of our students are not that. If we offer a "you must do this but I challenge you do do this," everyone wins. The motivated students are challenged, and the unmotivated students still get great content -- just not so much of the tediousness and overkill. I'd rather grade a four-page "A" paper than an eight-page "D" paper; although there are times for eight page papers.
BONUS PRIZE: Guess what happens when you give those capable, unmotivated students a little bit less of a workload? They often become more motivated, have a better attitude about school, and their grades go up. THAT is a win-win situation for everyone. Yay for brownies. And pie.
The next post will discuss how teachers can make the content more attainable-- more cherry pie.
More on this topic:
"W" is for Writing: 10 Ways to Get Your Students to Enjoy Writing
"W" is for Writing: 10 Ways to Get Your Students to Enjoy Writing