Improving Achievement at No Cost

Did you know there’s a way to pretty much guarantee improved student achievement at no additional cost to the school or district? And I’m guessing this change will also improve morale of teachers, students, and families. The world’s highest-achieving schools, in Finland and Estonia, are already using this approach. It’s this simple: Students have the same teacher for more than one year.
 
I’m sharing this with you now, while I hope there’s still time to consider scheduling and teacher assignments for next year. Research shows that this approach doesn’t just work in countries afar off: It’s been confirmed by research with millions of students in North Carolina and Indiana.
 
Although in Finland and Estonia students often have the same teachers for multiple years, in US elementary schools, “looping” – having a teacher move up to the next grade with their students – is more common. In secondary schools, when students are fortunate enough to have the same subject-area teacher more than once, achievement improves.
 
As an experienced educator, you can see why this would be true. Teaching and learning are relational processes. If the relationship is already built, learning moves forward. Additionally, teachers repeating with students already know their students’ idiosyncrasies, interests, and needs. They hit the ground running in the new year. Hopefully, they’ve also already established a positive relationship with families.
 
I didn’t have the chance to repeat with my secondary students or loop with my elementary students, but when I became an interventionist, I often saw the same students for multiple years. I loved that ongoing relationship – I wasn’t saying a sad goodbye to my students at the end of the year, I was watching them grow, little by little. I knew them; they knew me. We worked well together.
 
One of my own children blossomed as a reader when his long-term sub in 3^rd grade became his 4^th grade teacher. I will be forever grateful for Mr. Johnston’s impact. He knew my son’s interests and matched him with books that made him an avid reader.
 
My teacher friends who have looped love the beginning of the new year. Even when students have been a challenge the previous year, they know where to start. Every class will have students with challenging behaviors. Understanding them, knowing their needs from day one makes a difference. Better the known than the new.
 
If you’re an elementary school leader, I hope you’ll advocate for looping. If you lead in a secondary school, I hope you’ll encourage creative scheduling. Yes, a teacher who knows 7^th grade ELA like the back of their hand may need to learn expectations for 8^th grade ELA. There are many benefits to understanding where your students are going, so they’ll be growing their teacher knowledge even as they welcome familiar students.
 
Rather than purchasing a new, expensive program or requiring a scripted approach, it’s my hope that schools will invest in a well-researched approach that costs nothing. When faces are familiar and students have a teacher who knows them, learning accelerates.
 
This week, you might want to take a look at:

Vocabulary activities fun enough for the end of the year:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/quick-vocabulary-practice-and-assessment/
 
 
7 AI tools to support teachers’ productivity:
 
https://www.edutopia.org/article/7-ai-tools-that-help-teachers-work-more-efficiently/
 
 
TedEd Videos for mathematical problem-solving:
 
https://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/2017/03/07/three-fun-riddles-filled-with-math-problem-solving/
 
Sharpen your coaching skills with this microcredential from NEA – designed for cooperating teachers, but helpful for supporting all adult teacher-learners (must  create a free account):
 
https://nea.certificationbank.com/NEA/CandidatePortal/CategoryDetail.aspx?Stack=CT
 
This oldie-but-goodie about being optimistic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qEhj-rQSAU
 
That’s it for this week.  Happy Coaching!
 
Want more coaching tips? Check out my book, Differentiated Mentoring & Coaching in Education: From Preservice Teacher to Expert Practitioner, available from Teachers College Press!  I’m so excited to share it with you! TODAY you can still use the code: MAY2024 for 20% off. Click  here  and I’ll email you the free Book Group Study Guide that includes questions, prompts, and activities you can use as you share the book with colleagues.  I hope you’ll love this book as much as I loved making it for you!
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