Getting Struggling High-School Students Back on Track 

In this Kappan article, Michael Nakkula (University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education) describes three “A”s that off-track students need to become motivated to be successful in high school, college, and life:

• Attitude – Students can turn around a record of academic failure if they come to believe that intelligence is not fixed but can be developed by hard, focused work. When teachers deliver this message day by day, says Nakkula, students begin to “see themselves as capable learners rather than unintelligent or inherently unsuccessful.” 

• Action – When the curriculum involves students in meaningful community projects – for example, immigration rights or homelessness – turned-off students can see the relevance of learning.

• Authentic voice – “Students must feel that they are in control of their goals and work challenges,” says Nakkula, “including goals and challenges related to high achievement.” They must become independent of direction, structuring, and support from others and feel directly responsible for their own success. 

Students who acquire the three As have a sense of agency; they believe, “I am in charge of my learning and academic success, that whether I succeed or fail is largely a matter of my own effort, my own engagement in meaningful activities, and my own expression of what I need.” 

Nakkula cites three programs that have been successful in fostering these attributes and getting off-track students on the path to success: Early College High Schools (www.earlycolleges.org); the Second Chance High School Study; and the Facing History School in New York City. He offers the following suggestions for supporting struggling students:

• When a student shows a motivational spark, teachers must “ignite it by openly acknowledging the related successes, interests, or inspiration.”
• Develop a series of learning projects inside and outside school that give students a wide range of options for active engagement.
• Strengthen student voice by validating classroom contributions whenever they happen and encouraging leadership roles.
• Give students increasing autonomy in seeking and pursuing their own direction.

“R&D: A Crooked Path to Success” by Michael Nakkula in Phi Delta Kappan, March 2013 (Vol. 94, #6, p. 60-63), www.kappanmagazine.org; Nakkula is at mnakkula@gse.upenn.edu.

From the Marshall Memo #479