This week, educator Kathleen Modenbach reflects on her summer vacation. Like most teachers, Modenbach uses summer as a time to reflect on the school year just ended and come up with new ideas for improving learning in the year ahead. Modenbach has been thinking a lot about how she might do a better job of reaching her hard-to-reach students.
All teachers remember their best and brightest students. Recently, however, I spent some time reflecting on some of my harder-to-reach students -- the ones who, for a wide variety of reasons, and in spite of the fact that they try hard, might not be as successful as the others. By evaluating some of the problems those hard-to-reach kids face, I hope to better equip myself to help students like them in the future.
One day I discovered 11th grader Jamie laboring over every word in a required novel. A poor reader, he hadn't developed the skill of scanning for important information. He had not learned a skill that is crucial to proficient readers.
Eric had difficulty writing and editing. He couldnt get past the first paragraph of his essay. "I keep stopping to fix mistakes," he explained to me. I advised him to write the first draft without stopping. Eric knew what to say, but he hadn't learned to edit his work after all of his ideas were written down.
"It's smothering cold in here," Sean said one day as he entered class. The other students laughed. The words made no sense to his classmates. Sean, you see, had remembered an example of an oxymoron, but he didn't understand the concept enough to explain to his classmates what he was trying to do.
School is a daily battle for students like Jamie, Eric, and Sean. They are usually in classes with students whose skills are on level or above, so they feel all the more lost.
Ive done a lot of thinking this summer about what I might do to help hard-to-reach students like Jamie, Eric, and Sean. Following are a few of my thoughts:
REFLECTING ON JAMIE, ERIC, AND SEAN
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READY TO REACH OUT
All of those ideas are simple ways in which I can help my struggling students.
My brightest students always will shine with success; but success for those who struggle is a bigger prize for which to strive. I approach the new school year with a new outlook -- and some new ideas -- for reaching my hard-to-reach students. I will make an extra effort to advocate for at-risk students because sometimes they have no one else on their sides.
With this new focus on helping at-risk students succeed, I look forward to celebrating some real success stories in the months ahead!
Kathleen Modenbach is an English teacher in Louisianas St. Tammany Parish Schools. She teaches at Northshore High School and writes for The Times Picayune in New Orleans.