Lost for Words

As I write this, I am struggling to put into words what I saw yesterday.  I felt like I stepped into the textbook version of a culturally responsive environment that had high expectations for students, and where the achievement gap was closing.

I was visiting a local elementary school that is making gains in student achievement.  Every where I looked, I saw evidence of what kids were thinking and creating.  There was data on the wall.  When I asked the teacher, she said they keep data posted so that students remember why they are working so hard.  Any child could tell you what their goal was in a certain content area.  All of this gave the feeling of students were in charge of the learning.  As they should be.  Those of us working in schools are working to serve our students.  It is about them.  Their growth.  Their path to their future.

I couldn't help but to be in awe of what I saw and heard.  The students were talking about their growth on their assessments, noting specific actions they took to get better.  This was coming from a fifth grader, and as young as first grade.  The best part about it, was the confidence the kids had in talking about their growth.  They own that data.  They were empowered, and owned their actions they took that affected their performance.

All I kept thinking was what was the path to get the teachers to be able to create this kind of environment for students?  I heard the teachers say things like "we focus on personal growth", "we teach how to make realistic goals", "we celebrate goals".  More than anything, these teachers BELIEVED that the students CAN learn.  I felt it.  I saw it.  I heard it.

As I returned to my middle school, I can all but hope that we can be that someday.  That every adult will believe in our students.  If we don't believe in our kids, then who will?  How will they learn to believe in themselves?  How will they have hope?

I feel like I am just getting ready for a long journey.