04/14/2000

The Power of Expectations

A parent sent me the following unforgettable letter:

"I have been outraged by the low expectations for success that seem to be prevalent for students who struggle to learn. I have been driven by my rejection of those low expectations.

"I am not employed as a Special Educator, nor do I hold a degree in Special Education, but I am a "special educator" as my son's mother and committed advocate.

"After years of struggle in the elementary and middle schools, a comment made by a school psychologist when our son was in the 8th grade has been burned into my memory. "I think we can all agree," this specialist said, "that your son will not attend a competitive college." "I fought to keep him in college prep courses; I fought to get him speech services; I fought to get him access to assistive technology; and twice I have enlisted the help of attorneys to make it happen.

"Well, he's a high school senior now. Things are not perfect, but they are much better than they would have been if I had just gone along to get along. He has chosen to seek a degree in soil science and has been accepted at Michigan State University, the University of Rhode Island and the University of Massachusetts. He is still waiting to hear from four other schools. We know there is a long way to go, but we've made it our business to be aware of the rights and responsibilities that go along with being a post-secondary student with a learning disability."

This mother's letter reminds me of a research study I read about many years ago. As I recall, it was conducted at an elementary school in California. Three teachers were assigned to classes of average students, but each teacher was told something different about their students. One teacher was told the students were "slow learners," another that the students were "average" and the third that the students were "high achievers." At the end of the school year, the students performed according to the expectations, not according to their abilities! The class of so-called "slow learners" got poor grades, the "average" students got average grades and the "high achievers" got high grades, even though each group had started out as equal.

The power of expectations can work even more strongly against students with special needs, because these students carry labels derived from test scores that some teachers and parents might think "justify" reduced expectations. But that same information might also lead parents and educators to develop compensatory strategies to help a child set and meet high expectations by an alternate route.

The process of setting expectations for children is tricky, because teachers and parents don't want to push a child to achieve beyond his or her capabilities and then see that child stop trying due to fear of failure. Best practices dictate that teachers and parents take the time to get to know each child as an individual, so that all three - the parent, the teacher and the child -- can set realistic expectations by adjusting to individual needs during the learning process.

Yes, we educate our children in schools and in groups, but we must never let any child become so anonymous in a group that we lose track of that child's individual needs and aspirations.

LINKS:

Self-fulfilling Prophecy: The Pygmalion Effect

Raising expectations to improve student learning

Successful detracking in middle and senior high schools

Please send questions or comments to bbruno@snet.net.