Setting expectations

- Setting high expectations for your students results in…students having high expectations for themselves.…Both your spoken and unspoken expectations shape…what students believe they can accomplish.…Your goal should be to have a rigorous but achievable…set of expectations.…You want your students to wrestle with ideas, concepts,…and theories that may at times confuse, confound,…or disorient them.…That's okay.…If they already knew the subject matter,…they wouldn't need to be in your class.…

Maintaining rigor and high standards pushes students…to their maximum potential and allows them to discover…that even with difficult subject matter,…learning is possible and even rewarding.…A lack of rigor or the perception of low standards…makes a class more difficult to manage,…encourages more goofing off…and offers a disincentive for students to learn.…The trick is to balance rigor with compassion…and the right hints to lead students to their own answers.…

You need to consistently convey the academic standards…and not back down even when students are frustrated…