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My approach to getting people to buy into my innovation plan is to appeal to their hearts. From my experience at my current school, parents have not responded well to information being thrown at them. For instance, the state of Louisiana has passed a new act that requires 3rd-5th grade students to score a mastery or advanced on their end-of-year state LEAP test; if students do not meet this requirement, they must attend summer school. Students enrolled in K-2 must be reading on grade level as well or will be required to attend summer school. Many of my students' parents were very upset with this update once they received the letter stating their child was at risk. While I do agree with closing the gaps and having students who are not on grade level in summer classes, in my opinion, this is an instance where appealing to one’s heart would have been a more beneficial route to take.
Maybe by posing a question as they did in the ScienceGuys video instead of presenting parents with a daunting reality of facts, the parents may have been more receptive to the information being presented; for example, “what do you see for your child’s future?” This would have prompted parents to think about where they would like to see their child achieve in life and what tools they would need to get there. It would also encourage them to want their child to receive the remediation that they truly need, while also motivating them to work throughout the school year to prevent their child from needing summer class. Students must know how to read and have their academic gaps closed, and that is the goal of having students attend summer school.
So, as I continue my journey in the ADL program and expand on my initial goal of incorporating blended learning into classrooms, I would like to speak to people’s hearts. Once I have administrators, guardians, and students buy into what I am trying to do, I can then present the facts and we can collaborate to ensure the success of each child.
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