Expect the Best

It is has said to “expect nothing for you shall never be disappointed.”  That is right off the stable floor!  “Let’s hope for the best” – again, a bunch of mule muffins. Those types of comments are like a huge flashing red light that alerts to impending doom. No one rises to low expectations! Merely hoping for the best won’t work.  The key to a successful venture is to design a process for success.  Larry Galler is a marketing and management consultant for small and mid-size companies.  He recommends telling people what the expected outcomes are first, tell them why the plan is important to them, tell them how you will measure the success of the plan and finally, the steps in bringing it all to fruition.  He calls this the “Managing by Intention” model where you begin with the “intended outcomes” and then figure out what you need to do to reach those outcomes.

Does any of the above sound familiar?  His model is akin to what I have been preaching about in “Lunch & Learns” for the past five months.  For education to work, we have to align three things = desired (intended) outcomes, assessments (how we measure if we got there) and plan how to reach the outcomes (instructional plan).  We should make a mental note to do the following:  Never, and I stress NEVER, go into teaching kids with the mindset of expecting nothing. No one rises to low expectations!  Come with great expectations! Never work with a mindset of hoping for the best.  Rather, go forth with a non-movable attitude of “I am intentionally building for success!”  In teaching, if you align the big three – outcomes, assessments, and instruction, you will be on the right track.  Then add in engaging kids, keeping them engaged, and using formative data to make changes in instruction, well, your expectations should be high.

By adding a “little glass in your nest” you can tweak what you do to get the most out of the kids; you can make them stronger, more productive, and they will have a much better chance of success – if you intentionally plan with purpose and strive to get transfer and retention of learning.  I say EXPECT BIG THINGS AND THEN MAKE IT HAPPEN!  If you aspire to get less, you will.