Well Being of the Learner: High Expectations
Below is another excerpt from a timeless article written by Kay Toliver describing her practical and successful education ideas. Amongst many awards and recognitions, Kay Toliver, was awarded "Presidential Awardee Secondary Mathematics, State and National Levels" for her work as an educator.
HIGH EXPECTATIONS:
"High expectations are vital to success, especially for students who are regularly told they are "disadvantaged" and who, by the time they reach my junior high school class, may have the impression that mathematics in particular is a subject beyond their abilities. That is why I tell each and every one of my students, from the first day of class, that anyone can learn math. I put them on notice that if they approach the subject with an attitude of "I can’t do it" or "I don’t like it," then their prophecies will probably come true. I believe every student can succeed in mathematics, even if they have never before been successful. "Forget what has happened in the past," I tell them at the beginning of the school year, "This is a new day and we will work from here." I do not believe in failure. Mathematics may be hard to learn – it takes dedication and hard work–but I let my students know two things from the beginning: (1) I am with them to teach, and (2) I expect to be met halfway. |
Some children enter my seventh-grade mathematics classes unprepared. Factors such as unstable households, crime, and drug-infested communities as well as poverty help to create students with uneven educational backgrounds. These situations can make it very easy for children to do poorly in school. However, I believe I would be doing a disservice to my students if I let them use their problems as excuses for failure or for not reaching their potential. On the other side of the coin, our school system does not always have money for the supplies, equipment, and other resources that would make teaching a little easier, but I never use this as an excuse for poor teaching nor do I allow my students to use it as an excuse for poor studenting. Despite these "disadvantages," I seek to provide them with the best schooling possible. I do not pity my students’ school or home situations because doing so simply will not achieve my objective, which is to make them more successful and able students. This may seem coldhearted, and perhaps it is, but I believe it is far more coldhearted to allow these children to "fall back" on their troubles and miss the opportunity to succeed.
This does not mean I am oblivious to their difficulties; I myself grew up in the South Bronx and East Harlem. I also realize that often my students lack money for paper and pencils and other essentials, but these are not reasons for failure. I can and do get them many of the supplies they need and I help where I can with their other problems because I believe the greater the problems surrounding the students, the more important it is that they triumph in their education and thus receive the key to a better life."
This does not mean I am oblivious to their difficulties; I myself grew up in the South Bronx and East Harlem. I also realize that often my students lack money for paper and pencils and other essentials, but these are not reasons for failure. I can and do get them many of the supplies they need and I help where I can with their other problems because I believe the greater the problems surrounding the students, the more important it is that they triumph in their education and thus receive the key to a better life."