Sometimes, things happen at school, and I realize that there are students that I teach or have taught that I didn’t really know. Sure, I know they are “good” students, often they are quiet, and never do they cause a problem. Yet if you asked me something about them as people, what could I tell you?
How many of our good, quiet, no problem students do we overlook? How often do I spend time redirecting students who need more assistance expecting those “good” students to continue doing what I expect from them? And, really, how well do I know each and everyone of my students? With 125 plus students each year, is it even possible to really know every student?
My school is addressing this problem by restructuring our advisement program. Now, every teacher in the building will have an advisement group. Previously, only academic teachers had advisement groups. As such, our groups were large – often 30 or more students. We only meet once a week, so making real connections was difficult. This year, our advisement group will have 18 students making it much easier to develop relationships. Additionally, the students in my advisement group will not have me as one of their academic teachers. I will serve as a mentor and friendly adult in the building they can come talk to. I am very excited about these changes!
Yesterday and today I made phone calls to the parents of my advisement students to introduce myself and explain my role. This was a big deal for me. I do not like making phone calls; it’s so bad, sometimes I have some reall anxiety about it. It’s not such calling parents; it’s all phone calls (except calls to my husband) that fill me with fear. However, contacting these parents was invigorating. They were so pleased to hear from someone – especially as their student makes the transition from elementary to middle school. They were happy about the advisement program, and I was able to answer questions for them. I made connections. What a great impression this makes. It shows that kids matter to us. They are important.
I am so excited for this shift in culture at my school. I have always made it a point to connect with my students, but I know there are students each year that I miss. What an incredible thing to think that this year, that won’t happen. Every student in our school will have at least one adult in the building who really knows them. And at the end of the day, the most important thing to remember is that we are here for the kids, our students are important to us, and they matter!
