Job Performance and Employee Satisfaction

I was talking with a 2nd grade teacher at my school about children who chronically perform below average in school. These children, often at a very young age, become disgruntled and bitter about education, school, and learning altogether. They often become the students who give up quickly or who quite trying because of constant failure. After all, why try it if there's a really good chance you won't be good at it?

We were talking about how awful it must feel to go to school for seven hours a day, five days a week and be constantly bombarded with things that you are just average or below average at. That must be tiring!

Think about that in our lives as teachers. What if we tried being a teacher for an entire year. Throughout the year we were told we were below average or we were struggling. How would we feel even after ONE year of not being that good at something? Then, we had to go and do it another year. And that year, we weren't so hot, either. But we still had to go back for a third year. And guess what? That year we were even worse than the first two years. How long would we last? Two years, maybe? Three years max.

So, think about the student who struggles year after year after year. They have a right to be disgruntled and feel a sense of disenchantment toward school, toward learning, and maybe even toward teachers.

So, here are some tips to get those kids excited about learning again:

1. Start with what the student is good at or likes to do. Working with students' strengths and interests is the best way to make them feel successful.

2. Start with what the student DOES know, and go from there.

3. Give specific and sincere praise. Go beyond, "Good job!"

4. Praise effort and not "smarts". For example, instead of saying, "Wow, look how you solved that math problem. You're so smart." Say, "Wow, look how your hard work and effort paid off! You figured out the answer!"

5. Get excited when students learn or you see "aha" moments!

It's important to empathize (avoid sympathy) with struggling students. It's important to remember the struggles they have been through to get to you!