7.3: Forthrightness
Forthrightness finds its way into education in several ways. As teachers, this characteristic is impressionable upon students, parents and colleagues alike.
For teachers the school is a professional environment which requires patience, tolerance, understanding, communication, and honesty among peers. Teachers should both offer and expect genuine interaction and truthful responses among fellow teachers. They should understand that no single teacher has all of the answers and each creates a unique culture and rapport within his own style and classroom. Finally, teachers should express willingness and appreciation for truthful but uninformative responses to questions. We can rely upon experience and research for advice, but in the classroom, we are sometimes at a loss. “I don’t know” moments are often the foundation for creative thought and breakthroughs in relationships, connections, or even education reform, because we are not confined to the parameters of experience, tradition, data, etc.
Teachers must express this characteristic when communicating with parents as well. In this day and age, most communication with parents is in the form of e-mail correspondence and commentary within online gradebooks. Building trust, credibility, and common ground with parents is difficult, but we can minimize that by making first contact, describing positive student behavior and attributes, and showing genuine concern for student successes and opportunities. Sugar-coating student potential and performance only leads to mistrust and disengagement for both students and parents. We must communicate meaningfully and effectively by choosing words that are descriptive (whether critical or not) of a particular behavior and not necessarily reflective of the student as a person. Identifying behaviors and engaging in open, honest and reflective examinations with parents can go a long way toward building allies for our students at home. See expectation 10.1: Families as Allies for more information on cultivating positive relationships with parents.
Most importantly, teachers must maintain an open and honest relationship with their students that is both genuine yet challenging. Students should be encouraged to ask any question and expect to get a sincere response. The teacher’s response and intent together define that teacher’s forthrightness.
Prompt, Honest, Accurate
Being attentive to how you respond to questions from students is difficult, because it requires a quick analysis of their intent as well. A prompt, honest and accurate response is generally regarded as best, and certainly what most students expect. I typically will address questions during a lesson or demonstration in this manner, because they will often clarify something for the entire class. But I have found that some students rapidly turn into Pavlovian dogs when the teacher sets a precedent of immediately addressing questions accurately. In just about each class I have taught, there is one student who takes advantage of my expertise and willingness to help. As soon as my marker is capped to end a demonstration or lesson, they suddenly awaken from whatever dreamland they were in and wave their hand in the air to begin dominating the individualized instructional time. It takes tens of alternative responses like the more challenging ones below to undo the conditioning and expectation that some students have of teachers to “just answer the question.”
Prompt, Honest, “I don’t know.”
Teachers do not always have the answer that a student seeks. In this case, the learning opportunities open up for both student and teacher. A truthful “I don’t know” helps students understand that teachers may not always know or recall everything about…well, whatever. Together, teachers and students can develop approaches to finding and testing the answer (see expectation 1.2: Teacher as Learner).
Prompt, Dishonest, “I don’t know.”
But don’t teachers have an obligation to remain teachers in some situations as well? They do so in more situations than not, I think. I much prefer to respond to student’s questions with an inquisitive approach. Of course I know the answer, because I stated it over and over again in the demonstration or lesson. This approach to student questions helps enhance my use of multiple representations. It develops problem-solving capabilities for students (see expectation 4.1: Teaching for Problem-Solving) and deters them from rushing into question mode. When they anticipate their questions being met with another question, students are more likely to put some thought into developing and attempting a solution of their own or seeking advice from a classmate. In many instances, those later, deeper questions can be met with a pat on the back instead of a challenge, because the student’s efforts have paid off in a way more valuable to them than getting the answer or method re-explained or handed out.
Prompt, Honest, No Response
By developing relationships with students, teachers can identify situations where students require clarification, explanation or definition, and teachers must evaluate the appropriateness of not responding at all. Especially during a testing situation, questions that simply clarify a statement or diagram for a particular student may not be essentially harmful. However, should the entire class then have the benefit of the same clarification? Where is the line between a simple clarification and a slightly more detailed explanation drawn? Teachers must be perfectly clear, especially with themselves, about the purpose of an assessment. This will determine what information is appropriate for students to have and what information enhances their understanding and therefore their performance on the test more advantageously. “I can’t tell you that,” is a response teachers must become comfortable with as well.
As do so many other expectations about character, teachers must realize their roles as models of social conduct and citizenship--teachers of both content and life skills. Forthrightness describes the genuineness of your relationship with your students. It creates a culture of openness, honesty, integrity, respect, trust, support, and fairness, all of which are conducive to learning. Teachers and students confront mistakes with the perspective that mistakes are learning opportunities and not bad omens. Mistakes do not call for defensive measures. I openly correct and discuss my mistakes with students. Students should have the opportunity to learn from interactions with adults that are not confrontational, haughty, arrogant, aggressive or know-it-all. If I have made a mistake on the board, I always reinforce how easily it can happen. Simple mistakes with big consequences cause much of the unnecessary math anxiety students carry through high school. My mistakes are met next with a concerted effort to be certain that corrections are made in students notes and minds. My students know my expectation is not perfection. Perfection is impossible. They know that if they show their work on a test that I will grade it accordingly. If they use the correct method, a sound approach, and organized technique, the correct answer matters less to me. Most of them are not heading off to engineering school next year, so my goal is to help point out what they did right, not what they did wrong, then help them redirect themselves.
In short, I believe I have demonstrated to students, mentors, parents and colleagues that I possess a high level of forthrightness, and that I convey a genuine and honest style of teaching. My hope is that, in being true to myself, that I inspire the same in my students.
