Topic 5: School and work
Being aware of implicit expectations and the attributions I make for my student's behaviour will help me be a better teacher because the way I view students will effect how I treat them, how they feel about themselves and how others view them which will ultimately effecting their overall success as a student.
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In our textbook, McMahan and Thompson (2015) stated that "teachers whose students have already been labelled as low in ability... tend to hold lower expectations and set lower goals. The system also effects the kind of friends and adolescent makes." (p.197) (as cited in Ansalone, 2010; Crosnoe, 2002)
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If a preconceived notion is formed about someone's abilities, they can get stuck on a certain educational track that does not actually help the student but puts limits and low expectations on what they can achieve. Conversely, a student "tracked" on the high intellect path, might feel an obligation to be perfect. If this performance approach is internalized by the student it can also lead to the student "self-handicapping" (McMahan and Thompson, 2015, p.196). Either way the teachers perception of a student can lead them on a path that is not ideal for them. The wrong stage-environment fit will effect how the students view their abilities.
Ansalone, G. (2010). Tracking: Educational differentiation or defective strategy. Educational Research Quarterly, 34(2), 3-17.
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Crosnoe, R. (2002). High school curriculum track and adolescent association with delinquent friends. Journal of Adolescent Research, 17, 143-167.
McMahan, I. & Thompson, S. (2015). Adolescence: Canadian Edition. Toronto: Pearson.
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Our implicit expectations and attributions to a student's behaviour may also effect the way that other teachers and peers relate to the student. Kids naturally socialize with kids in the same level that they are placed within the "tracking" system and the attitudes of peers influence each other, and how that is collectively expressed makes up the social norm McMahan and Thompson (2015) explained that a students behaviour and attitude is strongly influenced by those around him or her. (.p.200). How a teacher treats a student can effect how other student t School climate is built from how staff and students generally behave and believe. A teacher should be cognoscente of implicit attributions they make, because it effects how the teacher views the student, how the student views themselves, how other peers view the student, and thus the overall learning environment and experience for the student.
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