Teaching With the Brain in Mind

Teaching with the Brain in Mind
on the way to school, threats on the way to class).
The transition time might include something physical:
stretching, dance, manipulatives, a game, or a
walk. It could be interpersonal, such as discussion
with a small or large group or a neighbor. Finally,
it might be personal, including journal writing,
reflection, and creative writing.
Reduce threats from other students in class by
setting up clear expectations about classroom
behavior. Role model appropriate emotional intelligence.
Discuss and use conflict resolution strategies.
Follow through and enforce classroom rules.
Never tolerate students threatening or hurting one
another. Talk about what language is appropriate
to use in school. Let students role play acceptable
and inappropriate behaviors. Encourage the use of
partners, work groups, and teams. Change them
every three to six weeks to ensure everyone has a
chance to meet and work with others in a variety
of leadership and support roles.
It takes special vigilance to reduce threats.
Avoid maintaining unrealistic deadlines by simply
asking partway through an activity, “How many
could use another few minutes?” Or, “How many
of you think the one week due date is realistic?”
Ask for what you want without adding a threat on
the end. Instead of saying, “Kenny, keep it down,
or I’ll have to ask you to stay after,” say, “Kenny,
we’re short on time today. Can you keep it down,
please?” Never threaten misbehaviors with trips to
the office. Either send someone or don’t. Involve
students in the class disciplining so that peers can
help with the process.
Also avoid finger-pointing. Help students
locate key resources like materials and work partners.
Help students set specific, realistic, and measurable
goals. Finally, ask students what is getting
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in their way of learning. Sometimes it’s a second
language, a learning style, or even the student sitting
next to them. As the teacher and adult, you’re
not saying to students you’ll do anything they ask.
However, it’s important to show a willingness to
listen and learn from them. As you include them in
your planning, their participation and morale goes
up and their requests for change will become more
reasonable.
Several strategies are effective for reducing the
impact of learned helplessness. Fortunately, the
destructive effects often go away with time, say
Young and Allin (1986). How much time depends
on many factors including how often the stressor is
retriggered and if any intervening “therapy” is
administered. It can vary from a few days to several
years. It’s critical that educators recognize the
situation early. Why? Surprisingly, students can be
“immunized” against the possibility of learned
helplessness (Altmaier and Happ 1985). The
process is simple, but not easy.
Help students see the connections between
their actions and the outcomes. Simply provide
them with rich experiences of choice in school, particularly
under stressful situations. If an impending
test is becoming paralyzing, turn it into a “teachable”
moment. Explain to the students how our
bodies often react to stress. Give them ways to destress
as well as options and resources for reaching
their academic objectives. Visualization, managing
negative self-talk, and test-taking strategies can be
helpful. Students might need to know how to better
manage their time, find information in the media
center, or arrange to spend time with a study buddy.
Also, encourage students to explore alternative
possibilities to explain a seemingly simple failure.
Finally, put them in situations where they can liter-