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Five Superpowers We Can Employ Every Day

The routines and seeming predictability of this time of the year can lead us to ignore the power and opportunities we have each day to shape the experiences of our students. The decisions we make, the lessons we design, the strategies we employ, and even the assessments we administer determine how our students will experience their day, how they’ll engage in learning, and what they’ll do with the learning they gain. We can either create an exciting learning challenge and opportunity or assign students to an experience of repetition, compliance, and boredom. Here are at least five superpowers we can access every day in our work with learners. How we choose to use our superpowers determines not only what students experience, but also shapes how students view the learning we offer and shapes their value of it. Let’s explore these five superpowers and how we can leverage them to open possibilities and shift the learning trajectories of our students. Our first superpower is choosing the tempo, mood, and expectations for learning. Our attitude, energy, and excitement aren’t just one of the influences on the temperament of the class, it’s the driving force establishing the daily climate. When we expect an energetic, exciting, uplifting day, chances are high our students will respond in kind. The opposite also is true. When we project low energy, frustration, or boredom, students pick up our signals and respond accordingly. In fact, students typically spend the first minutes of class tuning in to the mood and energy of the teacher to determine what lies ahead. A second daily superpower is the design and structure we create to support the intended learning. If our design is an interactive investigation of an important learning concept, the exploration of an empowering skill, or expansion of an emerging area of competence and we invite students to be partners in their learning, we create spaces for inquiry, ownership, and sense-making. If the day features information sharing, students listening, and notetaking, we create conditions more likely to generate quiet compliance and fought-for attention. The structure we establish and the design we create drive how students engage in and respond to the learning we present. A third superpower resides in how we choose to listen and respond to our students’ interests, questions, and confusion. When we treat questions as interruptions and distractions to be handled quickly and efficiently, we signal to students that they should confine their questions to cleaning up confusion and clarifying expectations. On the other hand, if we use our attention and responsiveness superpower to invite inquiry, explore implications and possibilities of questions, and even open new paths for learning, students are more likely to think, reflect, and imagine in response to what they’re learning. Of course, when questions are honored, respected, and explored they invite additional questions and even more learning. Still another superpower available to us daily is the focus, depth, and purpose we bring to the learning we plan. When we choose to treat learning as information to be absorbed and skills to be practiced and demonstrated, our students are likely to respond by focusing on what they'll be responsible for and how to meet our expectations. Conversely, we can use our superpower to inquire and examine, press for deeper learning and application, and support students to generate their own insights and generate new learning. When we do, we open the door to an unlimited quest for learning that’s not fully dependent on our knowledge and interpretation of what’s significant. Our fifth superpower is how we choose to approach assessment of learning. If our focus is on determining whether students can repeat what they’ve been told and demonstrate that they can do what they have been shown, we can expect students to give their attention to what’ll be on the test, what type of questions they’ll be asked, and what sort of problems they’ll have to solve. Alternatively, we can treat assessment as an opportunity for students to integrate what they’ve learned, demonstrate their understanding and capacity to use new skills, and even push beyond what we taught to gain new insights and make additional observations. When we do, students shift from being consumers of information to appliers of skills and from repositories of adult knowledge to generators of new ideas and possibilities. An additional observation about these superpowers: The more we use them to open learning doors, inspire inquiry, build confidence, and learning ownership, the more power they possess. Of course, they also enrich and expand our influence on our students and our relationships with them.

Communication, In Your Corner, Student Learning

February 16, 2023

A Dozen Ways to Motivate Lazy Students

There appears to be a consensus that today’s students are lazier than students in the past. Certainly, it may seem that there are more students who are unmotivated and less committed to learning than in the past. It’s also true that almost every generation in history has claimed that the generation coming after them is lazier than they were. Regardless, many students aren’t making the effort or showing the persistence we’d like to see from them. The question is, what can we do about it? Let’s start with what we mean when we say “lazy.” Generally, researchers and experts describe lazy students as learners capable of learning what’s asked, but for one or more reasons don’t consistently give the effort necessary for success. However, there are many reasons why a student may demonstrate this type of behavior. Laziness in most cases is about motivation. When a student isn’t motivated, laziness is a predictable choice. However, motivation can be complicated, and lack of motivation can be the result of many factors: Fear of failure: “I want to avoid the pain and embarrassment of failing.” Lack of confidence: “I don’t believe that I can do it.” Discouragement: “My past attempts haven’t been successful.” Overwhelmed: “I don’t know where to start. The number and scope of what must be done is too great.” Absence of relevance: “I don’t see a connection between the task or learning and what’s important to me.” Self-concept: “I don’t deserve to be successful.” Hopelessness: “Why bother?” Each of these factors and others suggest differing approaches to motivating students who appear lazy. However, we can’t know what to do unless we get to know them. Before we can intervene, we need to know what interests them, what excites them, what troubles them, and how they think about the tasks and challenges they face. One thing is certain, punishing a student for laziness almost never works. Similarly, attempting to shame a student into not being lazy more likely backfires than succeeds. The best choice is to focus on what'll motivate the student. Our first step in motivating this type of student is taking time to know them. Engaging them in conversation, listening carefully, and watching them are good places to start. The better we know the student and what matters to them, the better we're able to design an approach to help them change their behavior and become more engaged and successful. In many ways, laziness involves making choices. Our goal is to create conditions that’ll lead the student to make a different, more productive set of choices they can sustain over time. When we have information about and understand a student engaged in "lazy" behavior, we have several actions to take. However, we need to be careful and choose steps that respond to the student, not what would motivate us or other students. Here are a dozen strategies to consider: Reassure the student of our belief in and commitment to them. Convey appreciation and valuing of the student. Give students responsibility and allow them to feel needed and important. Notice and positively reinforce effort and progress. Help students set reasonable goals, set progress markers, and take ownership of their learning. Connect what students are asked to learn with things that are important, interesting, and meaningful to them. Celebrate small wins. Make frequent check-ins to understand their current mindset and to encourage their effort. Be persistent with reminders, steps to take, and strategies to try. Maintain high, but realistic expectations. Encourage friendships with students who are motivated or who have struggled with and overcome motivational challenges. Find ways to make learning enjoyable through games, activities, and challenges the student finds motivating. Of course, some strategies will work with some students and not others. And some things we think will work won’t, so we need to adjust. Some students can tell us what's blocking their motivation; others may be confused or oblivious to the reasons. We need to remain curious, flexible, and creative. Above all, we must resolve never to give up on the student. Helping a student to uncover and leverage what motivates them can be their key to lifelong success.

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Share Your Tips & Stories

Share your story and the tips you have for getting through this challenging time. It can remind a fellow school leader of something they forgot, or your example can make a difficult task much easier and allow them to get more done in less time. We may publish your comments.

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