What is rigor?

In the October 2008 issue of Educational Leadership, Tony Wagner described the skills students will need to be successful in the 21^st century in an article titled “Rigor Redefined.” Here's my response (originally posted over on Tales from a Teacher's Heart) and I offer practical ideas for rigorous projects for your students.

In his article “Rigor Redefined,” Tony Wagner describes the skills students will need in the future in order to have successful careers and be good citizens. The skills move beyond memorization of content for a test and shift the focus to a higher level of learning.

As I reviewed his list, which includes critical thinking, problem solving, initiative, collaboration, adaptability, accessing information, and effective communication, I was reminded of a comment my dad made several years ago. He said, “The purpose of education is for students to be able to figure out what to do when they don’t know what to do.” Most of the skills Dr. Wagner describes are needed to achieve that.

Many teachers I talk with agree with his recommendations. We all know we should not limit our instruction to “the test.” I firmly believe preparation for a standardized test should be the floor of our instruction, not the ceiling. And we can incorporate these skills as we teach content.

As you can see from the sample projects below, these activities provide the opportunity for students to engage in critical thinking and problem solving, to demonstrate collaboration, leadership, initiative, entrepreneurialism, and curiosity, to access and analyze information, and to effectively communicate with others.

Excerpted from Chapter 4 of Rigor is NOT a Four-Letter Word:

Sample Projects
Language Arts	“Shakespeare Incarnate” Create and perform a skit as a follow-up to a novel or short story. The skit can be an adaptation, a continuation, or written from a different point of view. Each group has to advertise their play, use costumes that the school owns or create their own, and stick to a time limit. Students then perform the play for peers and/or an audience.
Math	Create objects incorporating Pascal’s Triangle or certain shapes (such as a rhombus). As an alternative, create a game that incorporates the use of graphing (such as Battleship).
Science	“Green Plan” Each group must construct a plan to save the environment and live more “green.” Language arts skills are also incorporated as students plan speeches to convince the population that living green is the way to go. Students must decide on recycling programs (keeping in mind effectiveness and cost). Students will create charts and graphic organizers showing the efficiency of their plans.
Social Studies	“Mr./Madam President” Create media campaign for the ideal presidential candidate. Each group is a campaign with one candidate, a campaign manager, etc. The candidate must give speeches, have a plan, take a stand on current issues, and win the votes of the population.
Band	“Music to My Ears” Each person writes their own piece of music, incorporating knowledge gained through their studies. Students can then perform in front of peers in an “American Idol” type of setting.
Career/ Technology	“Future Creations” Students design robots to perform a specific function in the workplace. They draw a draft design and create a model. They also write a resume for their robot, detailing qualifications.

Click here for a printable pdf of this chart.

Dr. Wagner’s list adds to our knowledge base of expectations for success for each student. But I would caution you that rigor is more that what we expect students to do. Rigor is creating an environment in which each student is expected to learn at high levels, each student is supported so he or she can learn at high levels, and each student demonstrates learning at high levels. Only by creating a culture of high expectations and providing support so students can truly succeed do you have a rigorous classroom.

Click here for more information, sample chapters, and selected templates from Rigor is NOT a Four-Letter Word.

Promoting Community in the Classroom

-“How should you arrange classroom (ie-teacher’s desk) to promote community…or does it matter?”

I'm not a big believer in "one" right way to do something, but it does make a difference. For example, the standard room with desks in a row and the teacher's desk front and center sends a message that the teacher is in charge, and the students are simply recipients of information. However, I was in a classroom set up like this, and it was a community, mainly because the teacher was never at his desk; he was always in the middle of his students, who also had flexibility to rearrange the desks. That's what is more important--do students feel like they are a part of things, or separate from the teacher? In my classroom, I tend to find that clustering desks/tables works better for me so I can facilitate groups. In my grad classes, though, if I have a small group (8-12), I tend to do a large, square U so everyone is together. In that instance, clusters of tables actually breaks community rather than building it.

Encouraging Teachers

This video from Eye on Education shares my story of working with teachers in a high-poverty school. One of my struggles is when I see teachers who feel disheartened and disempowered. Here's what happened during my visit! http://blog.talesfromateachersheart.com/2009/06/09/from-the-archive-season-1-episode-9--their-best-hope.aspx

Any Principals Reading?

My latest book was written with Dr. Ron Williamson of Eastern Michigan University. For resources and a sneak peek, head over to my site.

Lots of Resources...

Check out my website (www.barbarablackburnonline.com). In addition to the materials on rigor, you'll find activities related to student motivation and student engagement. Click on each book and look for the activity templates!

Group Work at a Higher Level

A new and higher standard of rigor is emerging that focuses on increasing skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, and collaboration. But when your students do group work, do they work together or just sit together? I use a cooperative learning rubric to help define and assess effective group work. Here's an excerpt from my book Classroom Instruction from A to Z and two printable pdfs of the rubric.

Group work is one of the most effective ways to help students learn. It can increase student motivation and is an important life skill. When I was teaching, some of my students didn’t like to work in groups. They complained every day until I brought in a newspaper article that said the number one reason people were fired from their jobs was that they couldn’t get along with their coworkers. That was an eye-opener for my students.

Recently, I was talking with a project manager, and I asked him about the importance of teamwork. He pointed out that knowing how to work with other people is critical. “The more successful you are, the more important it is to influence, motivate, and work with others. If you think about successful people, working with people becomes your job; that is what you do.”

That’s pretty insightful. For people who have achieved high levels of success in the workplace, no matter what the setting, teamwork isn’t part of their job, it is their job. As a teacher, this reminds me that if I believe I should prepare my students for life after school, then I need to teach them to work together.

Recently, I was in a classroom in which the teacher bragged to me that her students worked in groups all the time. When I asked her students, they told me that the desks are placed in groups, but they just read the book silently and answer questions individually. After thinking for a minute, one student said, “We can ask each other for help if we need to.” That’s not really group work. Effective group activities provide opportunities for your students to work together, either with a partner, a small group, or the entire class, to accomplish a task. In these instances, everyone has a specific role, and there are clear individual and shared responsibilities. Missy Miles uses a rubric for assessing each GROUP in her classroom.

	You're a Team Player!	You're Working on It…	You're Flying Solo
G Group dedication	The student is totally dedicated to his or her group, offering all of his or her attention by actively listening to peers and responding with ideas.	The student is partially dedicated to his or her group though sometimes becomes distracted by students or issues outside the group.	The student spends most of his or her time focusing on things outside the group; he or she is not available for discussion or group work.
R Responsibility	The student shares responsibility equally with other group members and accepts his or her role in the group.	The student takes on responsibility but does not completely fulfill his or her obligations.	The student either tries to take over the group and does not share responsibilities or takes no part at all in the group work assigned.
O Open communication	The student gives polite and constructive criticism to group members when necessary, welcomes feedback from peers, resolves conflict peacefully, and asks questions when a group goal is unclear.	The student gives criticism, though often in a blunt manner, reluctantly accepts criticism from peers, and may not resolve conflict peacefully all of the time.	The student is quick to point out the faults of other group members yet is unwilling to take any criticism in return; often, the students argues with peers rather than calmly coming to a consensus.
U Utilization of Work Time	The student is always on task, working with group members to achieve goals, objectives, and deadlines.	The student is on task most of the time but occasionally takes time off from working with the group.	The student does not pay attention to the task at hand and frustrates other group members because of his or her inability to complete work in a timely fashion.
P Participation	The student is observed sharing ideas, reporting research findings to the group, taking notes from other members, and offering assistance to his or her peers as needed.	The student sometimes shares ideas or reports findings openly but rarely takes notes from other group members.	This student does not openly share ideas or findings with the group, nor does he or she take notes on peers'

You can find a PDF of the rubric by visiting   http://www.barbarablackburnonline.com/classroominstruction.htm   and using the drop down menu to choose the rubric.  (Excerpted from Classroom Instruction from A to Z, by Barbara R. Blackburn)

Next, choose the book Literacy from A to Z and use the drop down menu for a student cooperative learning rubric for grades K-2. (Excerpted from Literacy from A to Z, by Barbara R. Blackburn)

Primer of Resources on Rigor

The Hechinger Institute’s report, “Understanding and Reporting on Academic Rigor”was released on June 3, 2009, the 28-page report offers journalists an objective primer on the concept of rigor in education. I'm referenced in several places in the report.

The Hechinger Institute on Education and the Media is an effort built out of the Teacher’s College at Columbia University. Launched in 1996, the institute has since hosted 63 informational seminars for members of the media who cover educational topics.

Click here to read the full report.