Shaping the Perception of Expectations By Steve McClard

About the Author: Stephen McClard has been the Director of Bands at Bolivar High School since 2002. Mr. McClard graduated from Southeast Missouri State University in 1990. In 2006, Mr. McClard was named by SBO Magazine as one of the 50 Directors Who Make a Difference. In 2006, 2008 and 2009, Bolivar RI School district was named one of the "Best 100 Communities for Music Education" in America by the American Music Conference. Mr. McClard was previously featured on the cover of the 2003 issue of SBO Magazine for his work with music technology. In addition to his career in education, Mr. McClard maintains an online woodworking business (http://www.pianodesk.com) and is a 3rd generation piano technician. His woodworking creations include custom bass guitars, which have sold all over the world and one-of-a-kind computer desks made from old pianos. His piano desks have been featured in magazines such as Business 2.0 and Piano Technicians Journal and in many other newspapers and television news features. He is an iSchoolband Power User and is also on the Board of Advisors.

Many studies show us that expectations are based on perception. If a student is told that a highly complex task is difficult, failure will be a statistical certainty. If a student is told that a hard task is easy, research shows that the student is likely to succeed with ease. Perception is the key ingredient in the outcome.

When I started my career as a band director, one of my main challenges with beginning clarinet players was teaching them to cross the break. Crossing the break, or middle of the clarinet, involves the use of ten fingers on eleven keys. It is the single most difficult aspect of learning to play clarinet. My mistake came by telling the students that it was a difficult task. I said that we could work it out over time and get better. That is exactly what happened. It took too much time.

By changing my approach and telling them that it was as easy as pie, I found out that the students learned to do it much more quickly. I was creating a mental roadblock for them by saying that it was hard. A simple change in approach made all the difference.

Expectations are shaped by a student's previous successes or failures. Being successful in a task will breed the desire for more success and increase optimism in the activity. Failing at a set of tasks will ultimately breed fear of failure.

Many of the intricacies with motivation are tied to needs that may or may not be met at home by the family. Giving careful attention to a student's background can help you decide which tools to use to motivate in a given direction. Using the incorrect tools or making tasks too difficult, however, can be costly.

A more effective approach with a non-motivated student is to give him one easy task to complete that is related to the larger picture. After he completes that task, he has now gained momentum. Give him a push again and, before long, he is doing the entire multi-step task.

I had a trumpet player one year who was having trouble with a solo he was going to take to contest. We had just passed the new music out, and this student, last chair in his section, just sat there doing nothing. Other students were struggling through the first reading of the solo, but he sat there with an apathetic look on his face.

When I noticed this, my first reaction was to treat this situation as a discipline problem. He was, after all, just sitting there doing nothing. Upon questioning the student after class, I found out that his main concern was a high note in the first measure that he had never played. The fear of that note caused him to put the horn down on his lap and pout. While other students were playing the solo well, this student refused to get past the first measure.

I kept him for a few minutes after class and asked him if he would do something over the weekend. I simply asked him to play the note one octave lower from where it was written and even marked the note in the music for him. In the next rehearsal, not only was he playing the solo with the other students, he had managed to overcome his fear of the original note and was playing it as well as the others. One simple change made it possible for him to take the first step forward.

The most effective tool that you possess as an educator is the ability to shape perception. This ability is the driving force for shaping a student's thoughts and expectations about you, your classroom, and your program. This type of positive perception leads to desire, with desire leading to seeking, and seeking finally leading to an increased velocity of movement toward success. (See the chapter on Understanding the Underlying Causes of Misbehavior.)

On the flip side, by creating a negatively charged atmosphere, you create the same feelings and expectations among your students. This situation will lead to failure avoidance and can slow a student's momentum to a standstill. Constantly yelling, creating more rules to follow, pointing out students' flaws, and parading your negative perceptions around will only create an atmosphere of pessimism and give the students a reason to change direction away from where you want them to head.

You may be thinking that your classroom is so out of control that nothing will help. You may say that I have no clue when it comes to the kids in your classroom. That may or may not be true. I have taught in some tough situations and know first hand the fear that is generated by a harsh environment. The fact remains that you will succeed or fail by the choices you make, so make the best choices available. Creating a negative atmosphere can never help your unique situation, no matter how bad it is.

When I taught in southeast Missouri, I was in a school district that had a rough moral climate. I was in charge of ISS (in school suspension) for two hours a day with the worst of the worst. The kids in the room would intentionally serve out their time without bathing just to drive the supervisors crazy. To make matters worse, the room did not have a window. I normally sat my chair in the hall and looked into the room from there.

My first year as ISS supervisor was rough but improved greatly over the next two years. I was very negative and sour the first year, and I let it show to the students. I noticed there were days when I came in the room smiling from some great thing that had happened in my class the hour before, and the students in ISS responded with a more positive tone. Those days brought far less discipline issues to my attention. I was more inclined to joke with the kids and be less serious on those days.

It didn't take me long to figure out that if I was like this everyday, I would have a better time making it through to the second bell. I decided at this point to do an experiment. I came in one day very happy and tried to joke around with the kids as much as possible. I used humor, positive reinforcement in my reactions, and genuinely tried to find out what these kids were up to outside the walls of the school.

I learned more from my positive conversations in that room than I ever would have by being negative. We discussed their families, friends, and interests in a meaningful way. I used this information to lead the conversation toward their actions at school and their chances of success later in life. I made a point to get on the positive side of these students, and ISS became a place of personal growth for all of us.

When students come to crossroads in their lives, they have the following options: move ahead, go back, turn right or turn left to another activity, or simply stand still. By showing your positive optimism, you can help them continue forward. By being a negative pessimist, you give your students an option to change direction: move backwards or just stand still. If you want them to move forward with you, there is only one thing you can do: be positive and constantly optimistic. Your positive energy will show the way and might even reveal the hidden direction-up.

Reprinted by permission from the book, The Superior Educator, A Calm and Assertive Approach to Classroom Management and Large Group Motivation by Stephen T. McClard

Chapter - 8
Shaping the Perception of Expectations