Honey, I shrunk the change! (And, hopefully, I’m blowing up the pupils!)

I know, the title shows my age, but indulge me – it’s a film that makes me smile and shows teamwork overcoming adversity!

I started this journey determined to set in action positive change – for both myself and my classroom. I can see a difference. It can feel like one step forward and three steps back, but I need to remind myself to focus on the positives, (just as I’m telling my pupils). There is no magic wand and I need to keep digging my heels in; the small wins matter.

Interestingly, it seems to be proving easier to make progress in boosting buy-in and effort with my KS3 classes than with my exam classes, where you would think the motivation would be naturally higher. Admittedly, this year, some of these classes are fairly adverse to school and the lockdowns have not helped. Rather than rising to the challenge and wanting to achieve their best, many seem to feel overwhelmed, apathetic or even completely lost. Their mindsets are not tuned in to learning, and attendance has become a real problem. For some of them, this has been reflected in external marks and this has further compounded the problem. It is very difficult to break through the barriers that have been raised.

I’ve blogged previously about my decision to focus on sharing positivity. For pupils who are struggling with effort in subjects across the board, I can imagine you get sucked into a whirlpool of negativity and frustration very quickly. School soon becomes a nightmare. It is likely a self-induced nightmare, but I think I need to accept that this is the situation we are in. I can only fully control my own behaviour. Me persistently “nagging” or shouting will likely either be ignored or create volatility. Neither is going to be helpful. 

So far, my change in tact appears to be showing some benefits. There is less conflict and even very reluctant pupils have shown some better engagement with exam tasks, on some days. We still have a long way to go, but I think it’s important to pick the correct battles. 

Heath and Heath have really made me reflect on this with their recount of a study into self control and college students. Participants were taken to a room that smelled of freshly baked chocolate-chip cookies. On a table were two bowls – one held the cookies and the other held radishes. Half of the students were told to eat a couple of cookies but no radishes, and the other half vice versa. I know which I’d rather eat! The researchers left the room to increase the temptation felt to eat the cookies, but all of the participants maintained the appropriate will power. When then given (unsolvable) puzzles to solve, the students who had been allowed to eat the cookies persisted for much longer. The researchers concluded that the others had run out of self-control! They likened self-control to a supervisor. Much of our behaviour is automatic and easy; supervised behaviour is draining. We can only maintain this for so long. Our self-control is finite and quickly exhausted – even when we wish to exercise it. 

Now, other than providing cookies on demand, what does this mean? It’s made me consider more carefully where I wish this finite self control to be directed. Clearly, I only have limited ability to direct someone else’s self control but I can certainly consider where it would have most effect. I now understand that their self control, to stay focused on work is limited, so what is my absolute priority each lesson? It needs to be crystal clear, or I am fighting a losing battle, especially by the end of the day, the end of the week, the end of the term! 

Heath and Heath also reference Steve Booth-Butterfield and Bill Reger’s research into persuading people to eat a healthier diet. From past research, they knew that people were more likely to change when expectations were clear and precise. But healthy eating is full of endless possibilities and often conflicting advice. 

They decided that they needed to pick one clear focus, and chose milk. They worked out that: “If Americans switched from whole milk to skim or 1% milk, the average diet would immediately attain the USDA recommended levels of saturated fat.” They needed to get Americans to buy 1% milk, and this became their focus. 

‘If you want people to change, you don’t ask them to “act healthier.” You say, “Next time you’re in the dairy aisle of the grocery store, reach for a jug of 1% milk instead of whole milk.”’

(You can read more about both studies here: https://heathbrothers.com/switch-chapter-1/ ). 

So, these students have limited self-control and need one clear focus if they are to achieve in their exams. I must shrink the change – it has to look and feel manageable. I started to really think: what is the main priority for success in GCSE Literature, and in GCSE Language? After discussion, I’ve decided upon the following:

• Literature: know the characters and context.
• Language: find the evidence in the reading response, show accuracy in the writing section.

I may not have got it down to one focus, but I feel it is much more refined. Currently, in one lesson each week, we now practise one Language 10 mark reading question. The focus is on reading the text independently and highlighting 6-10 pieces of evidence. Pupils are given 5 minutes with a countdown timer on the board. We then discuss what they have found, and they get 15 minutes to record their answer. In a second lesson, we focus on Language writing skills. We start with a shared paragraph that has to use three simple, three compound and three complex sentences. Then pupils can aim to finish the task. My aim is to give a short focused task, with a clear end goal. 

The final lesson of the week is for Literature, where we look at character, character, character. Literature is my passion and I could speak for hours about the levels of meaning and connection in a text! Unfortunately, this is not what these pupils, this year, need. They need me to strip it back, right back. I have to take away the obstacles and shrink the way the difficulty is perceived.

On this basis, I’ve carefully redesigned my Literature booklets. What do we have to know? What must be the standout features? The booklets now look thin and manageable – we just have to learn this! We can achieve this, can’t we? Look, it’s really not that much! Like starting with the easiest job on the to-do list to build a sense of momentum, I want to be able to get pupils confident about completing and ticking this unit off. Show up, physically and mentally, and you will achieve this.

We will aim to complete ten exam questions. At the back of the booklet is a grid where we will mark this off to monitor our success – not only will it be visible but also hopefully mimic a sense of pride achieved in exercise programmes such as coach 2 5K. We know where we’re going and we can see if we’re getting there. We can always build on the knowledge once this foundation is secure, and, importantly, we feel successful. I’m hoping to “blow up” their feeling of winning! As Heath and Heath recommend, shrink the change and grow the people! 

This feels different to me. I have to curb my enthusiasm for diving head first into the texts; this year, my pupils need a life raft that guides them directly from A to B. We likely cannot visit all the sightseeing stops. Their self control is being stretched. They need a clear direction to keep them on the path to success. Steve Jobs said that “focus means saying no to the hundred other good ideas”. You have to pick carefully. I need to keep reflecting and making sure I have picked correctly, but also have confidence in my decisions. 

This year, I have to curate. The change has to seem small, they have to feel empowered (through completion of work, praise and feedback) and I will do my best to keep them progressing to that result slip of which they can be proud.