This and That:

• I know that the end of a school year is near when high school graduations start occurring.  That is exactly the case for BLS high schools next week, with MVHS kicking things off Thursday evening, Friday evening in La Pine, followed by SHS and BSH on Saturday and finishing with Marshall on Monday.  Although these students are being (mainly) recognized for their accomplishments in high school, I wanted to shine a light on the work you have done with them during their years in middle school.  Every day you encourage, spur on and motivate students to keep going, try harder and strive for more – often not seeing the fruits of your labor.  Although it isn’t the only milestone, high school graduation is one street sign of success along a student’s journey.  So as seniors walk across the stage next week and earn his/her diploma be proud of the fact that you helped them get there.
• A May article out of The Atlantic magazine, How Kids Learn Resilience by Paul Tough is definitely worth reading.  An excerpt was highlighted in a recent Marshall Memo, but it did not include the entire article. Mr. Tough has packed this article full of golden nuggets that you will want to reflect upon, share with others (e.g. ICCL or other leadership teams), save for later, or begin implementing right away as you have need in your building. Don’t be in a hurry to get through the pages, but rather enjoy the journey of the message.  This message includes topics such as: academic achievement gap, how to teach grit, toxic stress, executive functions, ACE score, zero tolerance, behaviorism, non-cognitive ability, classroom environment, acting gritty, mind-sets, EL Education, and more.  Here is an excerpt from page 16:

  • They identified three key human needs—our need for competence, our need for autonomy, and our need for relatedness, meaning personal connection—and they posited that intrinsic motivation can be sustained only when we feel that those needs are being satisfied.

    In their writing on education, Deci and Ryan acknowledge that many of the tasks that teachers ask students to complete each day are not inherently fun or satisfying; learning anything, be it painting or computer programming or algebra, involves a lot of repetitive practice. It is at these moments, they write, that extrinsic motivation becomes important: when tasks must be performed not for the inherent satisfaction of completing them, but for some separate outcome. When teachers are able to create an environment that fosters competence, autonomy, and relatedness, Deci and Ryan say, students are much more likely to feel motivated to do that hard work.

    The problem is that when disadvantaged children run into trouble in school, either academically or behaviorally, most schools respond by imposing more control on them, not less. This diminishes their fragile sense of autonomy.  As these students fall behind their peers academically, they feel less and less competent. And if their relationships with their teachers are wary or even contentious, they are less likely to experience the kind of relatedness that Deci and Ryan describe as being so powerfully motivating for young people in the classroom. Once students reach that point, no collection of material incentives or punishments is going to motivate them, at least not in a deep or sustained way.

Reminders:

• Wednesday, June 15, is a regular length day (non early release).  The last day for students, Thursday, June 16, is an early release day – with students dismissed at the normal SIW time. If you haven’t already, please begin communicating this with your parents/community.
• Friday, June 17, is a staff work day and last day for certified folks.  (Based on job title, classified employees may/may not have this as a work day.)
• We will be having our end of year Leadership BBQ on Monday, June 20 at noon here at the Ed Center.