Putting The Pieces Together!
Welcome
to Columbia High
School's teachers edition of
Ninth
Grade Academy 101!
This year will be rewarding if you help students accept the challenge to take
responsibility for their learning. The expectations teachers have for their
students and the assumptions they make about their potential have a tangible
effect on student achievement. Research "clearly establishes that teacher
expectations do play a significant role in determining how well and how many
students learn" (Bamburg, 1994). Students tend to internalize the beliefs
teachers have about their ability. Generally, they "rise or fall to the
level of expectation of their teachers.... When teachers believe in students,
students believe in themselves. When those you respect think you can, YOU think
you can" (Raffini, 1993). Conversely, when students are viewed as lacking
in ability or motivation and are not expected to make significant progress,
they tend to adopt this perception of themselves. Regrettably, some students,
particularly those from certain social, economic, or ethnic groups, discover
that their teachers consider them "incapable of handling demanding
work" (Gonder, 1991). Teachers' expectations for students-whether high or
low-can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. That is, students tend to give to
teachers as much or as little as teachers expect of them. A characteristic
shared by most highly effective teachers is their adherence to uniformly high
expectations. They "refuse to alter their attitudes or expectations for
their students-regardless of the students' race or ethnicity, life experiences
and interests, and family wealth or stability" (Omotani, 1996).
By Completing this WebQuest for Ninth Grade Academy 101 you will be more apt to increase student interest in thier own learning, increase student achievement in classes, increase student attendance and decrease student discipline problems. It is my belief that you will find this activity helpful in increasing your knowledge on ways to help students transition into high school.
