High Expectations

          As the old adage says, the cream always rises to the top. Your students will rise to the expectations that you set for them. Harry K. Wong (2009) states in his book The First Days of School, “Give your students more than they expect, and you will get back more than you ever expected” (p. 40). It is important to never underestimate your students because they will rise to the potential that you set for them. If you set your expectations too low, you run the risk of your students losing interest in your class, which can decrease participation, homework completion, and their class grade. Set high expectations and, as Wong said, you will be pleasantly surprised. “Student success is limited only by adult expectations” (Wong, 2009, p. 40). Do not underestimate your students, challenge them, within reason. During adolescence your students are developing cognitively; they are learning to think differently, to reason and inference (Dolgin, 2011, p. 132). Stay aware of these developing changes and help your students understand and utilize their new thinking skills. Remember to adjust your expectations as students reach the original ones. Students will learn as little or as much as their teachers expect (Wong, 2009, p. 42). Research shows that students acquire a more developed academic performance when their teachers set and communicate high expectations than students whose teachers set low expectations (Wong, 2009, p. 42). Show an interest in your students’ learning, show an interest in your students. Their achievement in your class will carry them through to adulthood.

For more information on teacher expectations and student achievement, or TESA program, visit http://streamer.lacoe.edu/tesa/.

References

Dolgin, K.G. (2011) The adolescent: Development, relationships, and culture (13thed.). Boston, MA: Pearson. 

Wong, Harry K., Wong, Romsemary T. (2009). The first days of school: How to be an effective teacher. Mountain View, CA: Harry K. Wong Publications, Inc.