Expectations: Pygmalion in the Classroom
Do you agree with the study?
I agree with Rosenthal and Jacobson in their study done on the power of teacher expectations. There can be a lot of bias in the classroom, but we, as future teachers, must go above those bias and set high expectations for all our students.
What does the study suggest about the importance of having high expectations of our students?
If we, as teachers have high expectations of all our students, then all our students will perform up to those expectations. The study suggest that no matter a student’s background, every child can learn and improve with a positive teacher that set high expectations and maintains a positive classroom environment.
Should teachers review cumulative files and/or conference with former teachers about their students? Would this aid them in preparing for their classes or cause them to lower their expectations if grades, test scores, and/or other reports are low?
I believe it is important to look at student’s past data, but with the mentality that the data is not the whole picture. Student’s are not just test scores and grades on a paper, but the data can give teachers a place to start and an idea of what materials or subjects particular students might need some scaffolding in. Talking to student’s former teachers can also help teachers with how to plan for the first couple of weeks, but that can be a double edge sword. If the former teacher had a bad experience with the student, she/he will express that to you in one form or another. It’s important to keep in mind that each new day is a fresh start and that high expectations are for the whole class, not reserved of particular students.
I agree with Rosenthal and Jacobson in their study done on the power of teacher expectations. There can be a lot of bias in the classroom, but we, as future teachers, must go above those bias and set high expectations for all our students.
What does the study suggest about the importance of having high expectations of our students?
If we, as teachers have high expectations of all our students, then all our students will perform up to those expectations. The study suggest that no matter a student’s background, every child can learn and improve with a positive teacher that set high expectations and maintains a positive classroom environment.
Should teachers review cumulative files and/or conference with former teachers about their students? Would this aid them in preparing for their classes or cause them to lower their expectations if grades, test scores, and/or other reports are low?
I believe it is important to look at student’s past data, but with the mentality that the data is not the whole picture. Student’s are not just test scores and grades on a paper, but the data can give teachers a place to start and an idea of what materials or subjects particular students might need some scaffolding in. Talking to student’s former teachers can also help teachers with how to plan for the first couple of weeks, but that can be a double edge sword. If the former teacher had a bad experience with the student, she/he will express that to you in one form or another. It’s important to keep in mind that each new day is a fresh start and that high expectations are for the whole class, not reserved of particular students.