What I CAN do...

As a teacher who works with at-risk youth, I realize there’s a lot that I CAN’T do. I can’t change the socioeconomic backgrounds of my students, rid them of learning disabilities, prevent questionable parenting practices, or alleviate the negative impacts of the things they experience on a daily basis out in their communities or society at large. These all impact the education process to varying degrees.

On the other hand, there are things that a teacher CAN do to make the time spent in the classroom more beneficial for students, even students who have some or perhaps all of the risk factors mentioned above. These are a few of them:

I CAN make whatever we’re learning more meaningful and relevant to my students. To the extent possible, I can use curriculum in ways that the students perceive as bringing something relevant to their lives, making it far more likely that their time in class will be spent learning something that’s likely to be remembered after the bell rings.

I CAN maintain a positive social environment. “…School climate has a far greater impact on personality development than we ever realized.” I can’t control the social environment “out there”, but in MY room, I can have a classroom culture that is healthy and affirming—regardless of what is happening outside these walls. I CAN incorporate movement and physical activity into my lessons. “The typical classroom setting where students just "sit and get" was challenged by research findings showing that the brain is much more active when learners are moving around. Movement brings additional fuel-carrying blood to the brain… thereby helping students make meaningful connections between new and past learnings.” There are lots of ways to do this, and they can be applied in all subject areas, and all grades. (Adult learners even enjoy it.)

I CAN leave room in my teaching practices, the curriculum, and in my classroom procedures to deal proactively with my students' emotional development. (After all, they’re still developing, and I can assume it’s as likely to happen in my classroom as anywhere). I can do this by communicating through both my words and actions that I respect them and actually care about their success.

I CAN encourage creativity in my subject area. Creativity lowers stress, encourages divergent thinking, and connects concepts across multiple fields of knowledge. Music, art, and dance have a place in any content area as they encourage visual and spatial abilities, opportunities for collaboration, and complement a variety of learning styles.

I CAN educate myself about the learning differences that my students have. I can be more aware of how dyslexia, ADD/ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, and other disabilities impact learning. I can try a variety of interventions with children who have these conditions instead of lowering my expectations, or assuming they can’t learn.

(Quoted and paraphrased material from Larry Ferlazzo: http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/classroom_qa_with_larry_ferlazzo)