Helping Quiet Children Get the Most Out of School

From the Marshall Memo #438

In this thoughtful Education Week article, Sarah Sparks reports on new research about quiet students. “Whoever designed the context of the modern classroom was certainly not thinking of the shy or quiet kids,” says Robert Coplan of Carleton University in Canada. “[I]n many ways, the modern classroom is the quiet kid’s worst nightmare.” Why? Because many classrooms are crowded, highly stimulating, put a premium on oral performance, and tacitly assume that being an extrovert is the norm. Teachers may believe that it’s their job to help introverted students come out of their shells and turn them into extroverts. 

Rapid-fire question-and-answer sessions are an example of this, says Susan Cain, author of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking (Random House, 2012): “So if a teacher asks a question and the person doesn’t answer right away, the most common thing is the teacher doesn’t have time to sit and wait, but has to go on to someone else – and in the back of their head might think that child is not as intelligent or didn’t do his homework.” 

According to one study, as many as half of Americans are introverts, defined as being uncomfortable with a high level of stimulation and drawing energy from working or learning in an environment with less social stimulation. Introversion is not the same as shyness – being fearful or anxious about social contact. Shy people, once they overcome their fears, can turn out to be extroverts, reveling with being the center of attention. The distinction between introversion and shyness can be observed in children as young as four: shy kids stand anxiously on the periphery of a group of unfamiliar children, whereas introverted kids play happily on their own. “It seems clear,” say Coplan and Cain, “that ‘solitude’ is an insufficient criterion for characterizing children as ‘socially withdrawn.’” 

Introverted students usually get less attention from teachers than their extroverted classmates. “The kids who are bouncing around the room and punching people in the face need to be addressed right away,” says Coplan. “In a classroom of limited resources, that’s where the resources go.” Interestingly, the tradeoff isn’t entirely one-sided:

• Not participating in class discussions and oral interactions means that quiet students get less value from this kind of instruction.
• On the other hand, quiet students often do better on standardized tests because they spend more time and get more practice working independently. 
• On the third hand, if quiet students don’t work with other students on projects, they’re unprepared for workplaces where teamwork is essential. 

In the outside world, scientists, engineers, and other technical workers must be able to collaborate with colleagues and work quietly by themselves. Schools need to prepare all students for both modalities.

Studies of college classrooms have found that in large groups, vocal students tend to dominate, even when they don’t know the right answer. “There are many situations in which so much talk is not helpful, and if there is so much talk, there is less time to sit back and think,” says Diana Senechal, a former New York City teacher and author of Republic of Noise: The Loss of Solitude in Schools and Culture (Rowman & Littlefield Education, 2011). “Those times of not entering the conversation – listening to what other say, thinking about it – can be very important.” Time for listening and contemplation is especially important in history classes, says Senechal, and she urges teachers to keep discussions going after the initial contributions by highly verbal students and invite quiet students to chime in. Clickers and online discussions are another way to allow these students to participate.

The City Neighbors Charter School in Baltimore is intentional about creating an introvert-friendly environment. “We start with play-based kindergarten and give increased independence and autonomy each year that you are in school,” says executive director Bobbi MacDonald. “It used to be everyone is seated at their desks in a row, and everyone is supposed to be thinking the same thing at the same time. Those days are gone. When an individual needs a minute, it’s not unusual for that student to find a space.” Classrooms in the school have a mix of desks, tables, and small reading nooks with soft chairs and students often work on projects in small groups. The school makes a point of keeping groups small (two or three students) and assigning roles (team leader, time-keeper, note-taker) so quiet students make a contribution. 

City Neighbors requires all students to read 25 books a year and conference one-on-one with a teacher after finishing each book. “Somewhere in that 25 the child will find that one book that they love,” says MacDonald, “and when that happens, the teacher is right there waiting for them.”

“Studies Highlight Classroom Plight of Quiet Students” by Sarah Sparks in Education Week, May 23, 2012 (Vol. 31, #32, p. 1, 16), www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2012/05/23/32introvert_ep.h31.html