Expect a Miracle:How Educators Can Help America’s “Stepchildren”

Gail L. Thompson, Ph.D.Professor

The Claremont Graduate UniversityWebsite: www.drgailthompson.com

Agenda

1. A question2. The title’s origins3. Theme4. Who are America’s “Stepchildren”?5. Why America’s “Stepchildren” Need Your Help6. How You Can Help America’s “Stepchildren”7. Conclusion

A Question

When you look at your African American students, Latino students, low-income students, students in the foster care system, Special Education students, and students whose parents are incarcerated, do you see pathology or do you see potential?

From The Power of One: How You Can Help or Harm African American Students

Beliefs are powerful.

I asked you this question because researchers have found that our beliefs can become a self-fulfilling prophecy in the classroom.

Our beliefs can affect the ways in which we view, and treat students, the quality of education we provide them, and our expectations of their potential.

The Origins of the Title

“I’m Looking for a Miracle” by the Clark Sisters

I’m looking for a miracle.I expect the impossible.

I feel the intangible.I see the invisible.

I’m looking for a miracle.I expect the impossible.

I feel the intangible.I see the invisible.

The sky is the limit to what I can have.The sky is the limit to what I can have.

Theme

I believe that there is brilliance and great potential in all children, even the lowest-performing students and America’s “stepchildren.”

As educators, when we have the right mindset and use

effective strategies, we can empower students to reach their maximum potential in school and in life.

In other words, the “sky is the limit” to the lasting impact that we can have on students, especially America’s “stepchildren.”

Who are America’s “Stepchildren”?

low-income studentslow-income studentsAfrican American studentsAfrican American studentsLatino studentsLatino studentsAmerican Indian studentsAmerican Indian studentsSoutheast Asian studentsSoutheast Asian studentsstudents in the foster care systemstudents in the foster care systemstudents whose parents are incarceratedstudents whose parents are incarceratedSpecial Education studentsSpecial Education students

Why America’s “Stepchildren” Need Your Help

• On average, African American, Latino, and low-income students have lower standardized test scores than other students.National Center for Education Statistics: Digest of Education Statistics. http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d07/tables/dt07_116.asp

• African American, American Indian, and Latino students have lower high school graduation rates than Whites and Asian Americans.

• African American, American Indian, and Latino students have higher drop-out rates than Whites and Asian Americans.

(National Summary “Ready for What? Preparing Students for College, Careers, and Life After High School.” The Graduation Project 2007. Educational Projects in Education Research Center. http://www.edweek.org/media/ew/dc/2007/40national_SGB07.pdf.)

The 4th Grade Achievement Gapsin Public Schools in Four Midwestern States

2009 NAEP 4th Grade Mathematics Gaps

White-Black White-Hispanic High-Low- Income

Iowa 19 22 17Kansas 27 18 18Missouri 24 8 21Nebraska 32 21 20

2009 NAEP 4th Grade Reading Gaps

Iowa 21 16 21Kansas 19 19 22Missouri 24 12 24Nebraska 25 21 22

The 8th Grade Achievement Gaps in Public Schools in Four Midwestern States

2009 NAEP 8th Grade Mathematics Gaps

White-Black White-Hispanic High-Low Income

Iowa 28 21 23Kansas 30 20 23Missouri 30 6 22Nebraska 38 29 27

2009 NAEP 8th Grade Reading Gaps

Iowa 27 18 17Kansas 24 22 21Missouri 24 10 21Nebraska 30 19 23

The 2009 Achievement Gaps cont’d

In terms of the White-Black, White-Hispanic, and high-low income achievement gaps, only the White-Black mathematics and reading achievement gaps were larger for 8th graders than for 4th graders in all four Midwestern states.

Missouri, whose 4th grade and 8th grade White-Black reading achievement gaps were identical (24 points), was the only exception.

Racial Disparities Exist in School Suspension Rates

from “Test, Punish, and Push Out: How ‘Zero Tolerance’ and High Stakes-Testing Funnel Youth into the School to Prison Pipeline”

How You Can Help America’s “Stepchildren”

① Make a commitment to become a “turnaround” teacher.

① Focus on the alterable variables.

① Deal with your mental baggage.

① Make the curriculum interesting, relevant, and comprehensible.

① Keep the “Big Picture” in mind.

Make a commitment to become a “turnaround” teacher.

Resiliency Research

“Resilience is a capacity all youth have for healthy development

and successful learning .”

Resiliency: What We Have Learned by Bonnie Bernard

Resiliency Research cont’d

The most powerful conclusion drawn from decades of resiliency research is that most children from challenging backgrounds turn out well as adults. This includes children who:

• were placed in foster care, • were members of gangs,• were born to teen mothers,• were sexually abused,• had substance-abusing or mentally ill families, • and grew up in poverty.

From Resiliency: What We Have Learned by Bonnie Benard

Resiliency Research cont’d

“In absolute worst case scenarios, when children experience

multiple and persistent risks, still half of them overcome adversity

and achieve good developmental outcomes. . . .”

Bonnie Benard Resiliency: What We Have Learned

Resiliency Research cont’d

However, the main difference between individuals from challenging backgrounds who turned out well as adults, and those who didn’t, was that those who turned out well had at least one “turnaround” person in their lives.

Often, this “turnaround” person was an educator.

Bonnie Benard Resiliency: What We Have Learned

Gail L. Thompson Predictors of Resilience Among African American Adults

Influential Teachers

In Teaching Children to Read and Write: Becoming an Influential Teacher, Robert Ruddell said:

“An influential teacher is one whom you recall in a vivid and positive way . . .

and who had a major influence on your personal or academic success.”

Influential Teachers cont’d

Sadly, Ruddell also found that throughout their K-12 schooling, most students have few, if any, influential teachers. He said:

“Between kindergarten and grade twelve, high achievers have an average of

3.2 influential teachers, while low achievers have only

1.5 such teachers.”

My “Turnaround” Teacher: Mrs. Susan Tessem

• “Doing a good job has always been my motivation.”• “Teaching is a very noble profession.”• “I think that I would have been exactly the same if I had

been at an all white school because I was at an all white school in Upland, and I did exactly the same thing.”

• “I never had any fear; it was just part of me.”• “I think that when I first started, I decided I wanted to

be a good teacher.” • “I decided if I couldn’t be a good teacher, I wouldn’t be

worth the powder to blow me up with.”From The Power of One: How You Can Help or Harm African American Students

Mrs. Tessem and Dr. ThompsonCarlsbad, CA September 2008

Focus on the alterable variables.

Don’t waste time obsessing over, and complaining about the inalterable variables—

the circumstances that you can’t control (students’ home lives,

problems in the community, etc.).

Alterable Variables cont’d

Instead, make a decision to focus on the alterable variables—

the things that you can control:

• the curriculum, • the ways in which you treat, view, and interact with

students, • your expectations of students,• the amount of help that you are willing to give to

students, etc.

Deal with your mental baggage.

What I’ve learned about mindsets:

Each of us is human, and we all have mental baggage, including stereotypes.

Although negative stereotypes about African Americans, Latinos, and students from low-income backgrounds are common in the U.S. most people will deny that they hold these stereotypes.

But we can’t work as effectively as possible with America’s “stepchildren” until we become honest with ourselves about our mindsets.

Mental Baggage cont’d

In order to truly become more effective with America’s “stepchildren”:

you must be willing to face your mental baggage about them,

you must be honest with yourself, and you must be courageous enough to get rid of

your negative beliefs.

Doing this isn’t as easy as it sounds.

The “Mindset Study” (N = 237)

Eighty percent said that most teachers don’t believe that most African American parents are very concerned about their children’s education.

Seventy-five percent said that most principals don’t believe that African American parents are very concerned about their children’s education.

Seventy-seven percent said that most teachers don’t treat and view African American students in the same ways as they treat and view non-Black students.

from The Power of One: How You Can Help or Harm African American Students

The “Mindset Study” cont’d

Sixty percent said that most teachers, and 55 percent said that most principals don’t believe that most African American students are capable of doing outstanding academic work.

Fifty-four percent said that most teachers don’t believe that African American students are as intelligent as non-Black students.

When asked why many African American K-12 students underperform at school, the most frequently-cited answer

that the respondents gave was “low expectations from adults on campus.”

from The Power of One: How You Can Help or Harm African American Students

Each of us must continue to work on our mental baggage—the negative mindsets—that are detrimental

to America’s “stepchildren” on an ongoing basis.

This baggage may consist of:

deficit mindsets,low expectations,behaviors that constitute cultural insensitivity, cultural biases,colorblind racism, a failure to face and improve our pedagogical

weaknesses, andfear of African American males

We must face our fears about Black males.

From the cradle to the grave, most Americans are socialized to view Black males as dangerous.

We all know that this is true, but most of us will not admit it.

Even though many educators claim that they are “colorblind,” and are in denial about their fear of Black males, children detect this fear very early, and students can sense how you really feel about them.

Some Components of the “Right Mindset”:

the belief that all students can learn the belief that most students want to learn the belief that academic problems can be eliminated the belief that every student is gifted and talented in at least one

area that should be identified and used to build that student’s confidence in other areas

the belief that you can develop the skills and gain the knowledge that are necessary to improve students’ academic skills

the belief that most Black boys are not dangerous, evil, or a threat to you

Recommended Reading

Through Ebony Eyes. . . .(Gail L. Thompson) Up Where We Belong. . .(Gail L. Thompson) The Power of One. . . (Gail L. Thompson) A Brighter Day: How Parents Can Help. . . (Gail L. Thompson) Overcoming Our Racism. . .(Derald Wing Sue) The Trouble With Black Boys. . . (Pedro Noguera) Keeping Black Boys Out of Special Education (Jawanza Kunjufu) We Can’t Teach What We Don’t Know. . .(Gary Howard) Black Students/Middle Class Teachers (Jawanza Kunjufu) Courageous Conversations About Race. . .(Glenn Singleton & Curtis Linton) White Teachers/Diverse Classrooms. . .(Julie Landsman & Chance Lewis) Growing Up White: A Veteran Teacher Reflects on Racism (Julie Landsman) The Shame of the Nation. . .(Jonathan Kozol) The DreamKeepers. . . (Gloria Ladson-Billings) When She Was White: The True Story of a Family Divided by Race (Judith Stone) Racism: A Short History (George Fredrickson)

Make the curriculum interesting, relevant, and comprehensible.

From Up Where We Belong: What Students Said About Their Teachers

Blacks and Latinos were less likely than Whites to label their teachers as “good” teachers, but Black males were the least likely to do so.

More than half of the students said they wanted better teachers, but Latinas and Black females were more likely than others to say this.

Black students were the least likely to agree that their teachers were willing to answer questions when they didn’t understand an assignment.

Black students were the least likely to agree that their teachers were patient with them.

Blacks and Latinos were less likely than White students to believe that their teachers cared about them, and Latinas were the least likely to believe this.

Up Where We Belong. . .What students said about the curriculum

Black students were more likely than Whites and Latinos to say their classes were boring.

Blacks and Latinos were more likely to say their classes weren’t teaching them what they needed to know to survive in their communities.

Sixty percent of Blacks and 61 percent of Latinos said that most of their classes weren’t preparing them for the real world.

Seventy-five percent of Blacks, nearly 60 percent of Latinos, and 36 percent of Whites said they wanted to learn more about their culture in class.

Qualities of Outstanding Educatorsfrom African American Teens

Discuss Their Schooling Experiences ( N=271)

Quality Percent

1. Explain Things Well 74

2. Make the Course Work Interesting 74

3. Give Extra Help 67

4. Patience 66

5. Fairness 62

6. Friendliness 58

7. Humor 57

8. Challenge Students Academically 50

9. Intelligence 49

10. Make the Course Work Relevant 42

Keep the “Big Picture” in mind.

The “Big Picture” comprises

what really matters most

in life.

Two Questions

At your retirement party, what do you want your former students, especially America’s “stepchildren,” to say about you?

What are you willing to do, starting today, to increase your efficacy with America’s “stepchildren”?

Conclusion

As educators, we wield a tremendous

amount of power and influence over students that can determine if they

will have a bright future or a bleak one.

Theme

I believe that there is brilliance and great potential in all children, even the lowest-performing students and America’s “stepchildren.”

As educators, when we have the right mindset and use

effective strategies, we can empower students to reach their maximum potential in school and in life.

In other words, the “sky is the limit” to the lasting impact that we can have on students.