Failure Was an Option

"Failure is not an option." We've heard it many times, in all different contexts. I myself have said it as a teacher.

So, when I heard Doug Fisher say it last Thursday during a day of learning at "Creating a Culture of Achievement," I nodded right along in agreement. Yep. That was me. No failure option in my class. But then Doug shook me to the core -- "then why was an E displayed in your syllabus grading scale?" Failure was an option. He was right, and I felt like the failure.

Right there, in black and white, in every syllabus I handed out, in every class, was this section:

The grading scale is as follows:

A         93-100%                                             C         73-76

 A-        90-92                                                  C-        70-72

 B+       87-89                                                   D+       67-69

 B          83-86                                                  D         63-66

 B-        80-82                                                   D-        60-62

C+       77-79                                                   E          0-59

My written words did not match what I said I believed. On the syllabus, I told every single student that failure was, in fact, an option.

In the last few days, I've given thought to how I might do it differently if given the chance. I know I would change the syllabus language, maybe to something like this:

Grading Scale

Our school has a percentage scale to assign letter grades for your transcript,

and you will find it in your student handbook. For purposes of this class,

know that no one will drop below a 70% in meeting the essential learning

outcomes for this class. It is not option, You and I will work together, and

do whatever it takes to ensure that you are learning. That means we may

 both have to commit to time together outside of our regular class time, and

 perhaps to different types of teaching and learning, but you are worth it.

A good first step, perhaps, but what else would I do to back it up? Words are not enough. Here is a list of ideas I brainstormed in 10 minutes. I have neither edited nor ordered them; this is my raw list:

• revise my summative assessments to be more than mere regurgitation, and share the learning expectations at the beginning of the unit by having the assessment already drafted (backward design)
• utilize formative assessments a lot more often so that both my students and I know exactly where the learning is and is not for each individual student
• less "sage on the stage" and more "guide on the side"
• sit side-by-side more often
• stand "over" students that need it
• build a relationship with every student
• call home more often, especially with good news, and stop using email so much
• encourage students to join parents at conferences, and even let students run the conference
• explain the "what" of the curriculum and the "how" of instruction to parents at every opportunity
• expand the daily learning topics I used to post to align with standards and learning expectations, and be in student-friendly language (i.e., the Instructional Framework)
• do what I tell kids is good for them: take risks, collaborate with peers, and ask for help

I don't know if it would make a difference, but it sure couldn't hurt. What ideas do you have?

I also thought about a book I recently read, entitled "The Art of Possibility." It was written by a husband and wife team, Rosamund and Benjamin Zander. She is a psychotherapist and he is a university professor/conductor of the Boston Philharmonic. As an experiment, Professor Zander gave all of his students an A at the beginning of the class. Each student had to draft a letter to him that explained what they would do over the course of the class to earn their A. He met with them at regular intervals to check on progress. If you read the book, you will see that many of the students were troubled by this process -- some did not believe him, some could not fathom a class that did not rank students against each other, and some had a hard time coming up with expectations for themselves because they were so used to others doing it for them. Interestingly, once the pressure for a letter grade was removed and students embraced the process, the students really focused on learning and meeting (or exceeding) the expectations they set for themselves. Now, I'm not advocating every teacher take the Zander approach, but it does offer a different perspective on the concept of "failure is not an option."

I truly look forward to the next opportunity that allows me a "do-over" on "failure is not an option." Not only will I hold that true for my students, but for myself as well.

-- J. Walton