Change the Mindset

(Eradicate Deficit Thinking)

Strategies to try...

Figure out How to Coach Struggling Teachers Into a Growth Mindset

• Determine what drives/motivates a teacher and then use strategies specific to those will drivers. Here are some helpful resources:
  1. Strategies for Coaching Struggling Teachers
  2. Strategies for Coaching New and Master Teachers

Find Out What Parents Want For Their Children

• Find out what parents hope and dream for their children. Explore their goals and figure out ways to make that potential a reality. Make sure each family has an entry point for engagement regardless of language, culture, socioeconomic status, or time constraints. Focus on face-to-face exchanges when possible. Offer translations. Family engagement should neither be a burden nor a challenge, but instead an opportunity to learn more about our students.

Talk to Children

• Schedule times to gather with specific children (lunch, book clubs during recess, before or after school clubs, play gams, talk, connect). Personal conversations can happen informally in the hallway, lunchroom, or playground. Children feel like they can accomplish anything when educators show sincere interest in them. Try the 2X10 strategy - - spend 2 minutes with an individual child talking to them about non-academic, personal things for 10 straight days.

Seek to Understand What Children Can Do

• Start noticing what children are capable of doing instead of their deficits. This allows us to shift our thinking and reframe the problems as opportunities. Access the talents and gifts in every child to maximize his or her school experience.

Use Data to Identify Strengths

• Instead of using data to target needs only, take a second look to see how you might be able to target strengths. Empowers students to feel successful and we can use this as a foundation for improving other skills.

Build Capacity

• Ask educators to find 2 strengths for every weakness exhibited by a student. Focus on actions and process rather than qualities such as intelligence or comments such as "good job" to reinforce the students sense of agency rather than traits over which they have no control. Provide feedback that facilitates the learning for students and doesn't bring it to a screeching halt by focusing on weaknesses only.

Model, Model, Model

• Model mindset by ensuring that you validate the strong work of both teachers and students. Your voice and actions are both important. What you value with set the tone for what others value as well. Ensure that your comments are specific and sincere, and that you validate excellent, not merely adequate, work so that those around you find aspirational goals.

Encourage Educators to Learn Something Different

• Encourage educators to learn something new, just like we expect of students. You can even have students facilitate PD sessions for teachers during faculty meetings. (tech tools are great examples)

Give Kids Access to Diverse Learning Opportunities

• This ensures that they can all be successful in their own way with their own strengths. Lead them to discover aptitudes and abilities across many subjects.

Celebrate the Awesome Things Happening in Your School

• Continue to broaden the focus from individual to community as you highlight strengths. Use a weekly staff newsletter so teachers can see what their colleagues are doing. Spotlight all the amazing work of individuals. You could do #EduWins where you spotlight 3 amazing things you saw happening in specific classrooms for the week.