Outside factors related to a person's living situation can and do have an impact on a person's educational progress (Tach, Jacoby, Wiebec, Guerrad, & Richmond, 2016), so it is important that educators understand how such factors might mean students require particular support in their personalized learning plans.
Students come from all walks of life and “it is important that teachers learn about the lives and experiences of other groups in order to understand how different historical experiences have shaped attitudes and perspectives of various groups” (Kozleski, n.d.).
Students come from all walks of life and “it is important that teachers learn about the lives and experiences of other groups in order to understand how different historical experiences have shaped attitudes and perspectives of various groups” (Kozleski, n.d.).
In the Ted Talk Let’s Teach for Mastery-Not Test scores, Sal Khan describes the way traditional schools group students together by age and perceived ability, teach and test the material, then move on. He uses an analogy about building houses and compares that to how students build knowledge, expressing that if contractors were given some of the same criteria and time limits as we give teachers, it would lead to a shaky foundation (Khan, 2016).
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In order to be successful, we need to shift our approach so that the focus is no longer on the score/grade but rather on the skills and knowledge that a student obtains. This requires you need to understand the students in your classroom. This can be achieved through a series of methods consisting of getting to know your class. The delivery of a survey day one of a course can yield two positive effects
If a student does not self-identify, do not make assumptions; however, pay attention to the student's performance and be cognizant in discussions with the students of disclosures about personal living situations that might necessitate additional support (LEAP Innovations, 2019).
- The teacher gains perspective on the abilities as well as a general comprehension of their feelings towards school
- Students gain the understanding that their opinions and feelings are valued and that the environment in which they are moving into is safe.
If a student does not self-identify, do not make assumptions; however, pay attention to the student's performance and be cognizant in discussions with the students of disclosures about personal living situations that might necessitate additional support (LEAP Innovations, 2019).
Strategies for Support
Students in low-income housings statistically require more time for learning because their home life arrests so much of their time (Tach, Jacoby, Wiebec, Guerrad, & Richmond, 2016). This is where the Learner Demonstrated component of the LEAP Framework might show the most benefit, as its key element recommends self-pacing for learning (LEAP Innovations, 2019). While the pacing of a course might not be within your power to change, awareness of such situations might help you become an agent of change for students in similar situations. Work with the student to the best of your ability and then keep a detailed record of the situation to present to administrators for future consideration.
Similarly, if a student's socioeconomic status poses a concern for completing necessary work (i.e. affording materials to complete an assigned subject), assist the student in identifying alternate means of demonstrating acquired competencies from the class wherever possible (LEAP Innovations, 2019).
Again, if you are limited in how you can help, continue to help the student but also keep record of the situations and the ultimate success of the student based on those limitations.
Communication is Key
Communication over the expectations of the class and how we are assessing them is vital to establishing a strong connection between school and home. This can accomplished through 8th Grade Open Houses (for incoming freshmen and their parents to get a feel for the school, Meet the Teacher/Back to School events at the beginning of the school year, Parent/Teacher conferences and providing all parents with the Parent Access code to a Learning Management Platform such as Schoology that allows them to see what their student sees, including but not limited to resources, deadlines and materials provided in class.