Student Voice in the Classroom

Having a student centered classroom is far from a new idea in the realm of pedagogically sound instructional practices.  I would go so far as to say that if you're reading this blog post, you pride yourself in having a mostly student centered classroom, or at least strive to have one.

But let me ask you this...

At the end of any given school day, even in your student centered classroom, do your students talk more than you do?

What is Student Voice

This week's post is all about student voice, knowing what is student voice, and even considering some student voice examples.

There are so many meanings for student voice, so it's important to consider from the start which type of student voice I'll be focusing on this week and in the near future.

Student voice in the student centered classroom doesn't have to be the super formal kind, the kind where students are developing their unique style or even standing at the front of the room delivering a well-planned speech.  It CAN be those things, but that's not where I'll be focused in this post.

It also doesn't have to be synonymous with student agency, where students are creating a voice that speaks up for their needs and the needs of the student body - or even beyond that in speaking up for local, national, or even global issues.  Again, it CAN be those things, but that's not where I'll be focused in this post.

What I mean by student voice is in the very literal sense.  Let me paint the picture for you.

A teacher, like you, has made some tweaks and renovations, so to speak, in her classroom that she knows is going to take her off the stage (no more sage-on-the-stage), and put her students front and center.  These changes will make sure that students have choice, that they are exploring and discovering more than they are sitting-and-getting.  All good things.

As she's implementing her new, student centered classroom, she poses a question to the class.  Or, maybe she gives a prompt, in a more structured setting, that students need to discuss at their tables.

And... crickets.

Nothing.

Here's another image for you.  You're preparing students for a big test (or even just a run-of-the-mill summative test or common assessment).  The students, and you, have been on this one topic for a couple weeks and now it's time to review and prepare for the test.  You ask... "Who has questions?"

Again... crickets.

Now, the latter example is indicative of more than just a lack of student voice - there are some layers involving lacking metacognition which I could write about for days, but we'll save that for another time.

Both of these stories end with NO ONE talking except the teacher because of a few telling reasons.

1. They've never been in a class where they are expected to think for themselves, let alone talk OUT LOUD.  I don't say this to harp on other teachers.  NOT at all.  When we live in a world of high stakes testing shoved down the throats of students and teachers alike, sitting-and-getting will be the status quo - it's faster, and let's face it, it's efficient.
2. Students lack the confidence and the practice.  Just compared to 2012, the preferred method of communication for teens has shifted from in-person to texting (or social media, or video chat), according to a 2018 Common Sense survey.  This makes sense given that our classrooms are either filled with one extreme or the other - conversation only about what's going on this weekend, or complete silence.  We need to find the middle ground; the one where students are confidently talking to each other about relevant topics other than who's hosting the party Friday and who's driving.

Why Students Should Talk More Than You

We've covered the what, so now let's get to the why.

Some of you may have read the title of this post and thought, "Why in the world do I want to encourage them to talk MORE when I can barely get them to shut up and be productive in class???"

That's a good clarification we should make as we approach the why.

Student talking that poses a classroom management problem is not what we're going for... you're like, Duh, Mandy, I get that.

Ok, good.

So, what if channeling their desire to be chatty socially allowed them to be even more skillful conversationalists in your classroom?  What if giving them the space to talk, just on YOUR terms, turns out to be the classroom management tool you've needed all along?

I should say, the strategies I talk about to increase student voice are not the silver bullet to managing a classroom of teenagers, but, hey, it could be a step in the right direction.

Back to the why.  Why in the world would we want them to talk MORE?

It all comes down to this one truth...

When they are talking, they are thinking. 

And when they are thinking, they are improving their metacognitive skills.

And when they are improving their metacognitive skills, they know what they know and they know what they don't know, and that sets them up for success in preparing for assessments and other measures of their performance for the rest of their lives.

It was a regular mantra I used in my classroom when I said, "I want you talking about this OUT LOUD, to other people."  Seems a bit obvious right?  Talk. Out loud.  To other people.  Hey - they never questioned what I expected of them.

I would have them do this in class, and I encouraged them to do this at home too, especially as we got closer to a test.

Ok, I was kind of lying when I said it comes down to ONE simple truth.  The one simple truth is the big ONE (so I'm not really lying), but there are some other, related reasons I'd like to share.

When they are talking, you aren't.

That sounds like something I say to my own children when I'm teaching them about group dynamics and being respectful to someone when they are speaking.  But that's not what I mean here.

What I mean is that in your classroom, when your students are talking, you're not.  You're sitting, mouth shut; just listening and observing.  When's the last time you did that and it wasn't because you were trying to see if Johnny over in the corner was up to something?

What this means is that you're actually putting to practice the idea that your students should be working harder than you.  OF COURSE they should be.  (P.s. That's still one of my favorite teaching books. An oldie but a goodie.)

And that brings us back to that ONE simple truth (so maybe I wasn't lying after all).  If your students are working harder than you in the classroom, it means they are thinking (probably not more than you are thinking, but you get the idea).

And speaking of thinking; it's all coming full circle back to the one simple truth (here I go still not lying)...

When they are talking, they are testing themselves.

Have you ever heard that the best way to prepare for a test is to take a test? 

Well it is.

If you're a sports person, this will resonate with you.  What's the more efficient and effective way for a team to get better?  It's to play the game.  The team who has overall, played more games has more experience, has had more opportunities to learn from one's mistakes, and is generally the better team.

The same is true in the classroom.  If students want to prepare for a test in more efficient ways (and I bet you do too), they should be taking a test.

But, wait, talking isn't equivalent to taking a test.

True.

But talking out loud with peers in a safe, we-all-make-mistakes-and-learn-from-them classroom environment.... that is a form of testing oneself.

If students are talking to each other about concepts they are learning in your classroom, they will learn better ways to communicate their understanding, and therefore get better at letting someone know what they know... that's all a test is, am I right?

When students are talking out loud about content-specific topics, they are learning from their mistakes.  And, would you look at that, all they did was talk about it, so it's not like they now have to go back and correct their answer, they just need to get it right the next time.  Which brings me to the last reason why.

When they are talking, they are making mistakes.

My type-A personality never really allowed me to enjoy the very true statement, "learning is messy."  I get it.  Of course it is, and should be.  But I don't like messy things, so let's look at it another way, shall we?

Rick Wormeli describes it best in this video (around minute 3:40) where he explains that failure in the classroom is actually preferred.  Hold your horses, though, not failing as in a failing grade in the course.  Instead, mistakes in the process of learning are preferred.

A clear, smooth path to understanding is actually less effective than one where we've made mistakes along the way.  The mistakes we make allow our learning to be more fundamental, more foundational in our understanding than if we hadn't made any mistakes at all.

I guess it's true to say then that lessons are best learned the hard way - phew, hopefully not all lessons.  But in the safety of my classroom, I hope so.  And, guess what... when they're talking, they're making mistakes, and that is fine by me.

What about the HOW

Yes, the how.  

I've got something for you that I'm so excited to announce to my teacher friends.

My first ever LIVE Workshop training will be all about the HOW of Student Voice, and it's coming soon...

You're Invited!

On Saturday, February 1st, 1pm EST I will dive deeply into the HOW of student voice... steps you can take to get students talking MORE in your class!

It will be a fun, strategies-focused, 2-hour workshop full of actionable steps you can take in your classroom TOMORROW!

After the workshop, I'll send you the pdf guide to keep so you can be sure you don't miss a thing.  AND, I'll even reveal some resources I'll be giving you when we're LIVE during the training.

The workshop is open for enrollment now with Early Bird Pricing, which will go away in less than a week, so don't miss this chance for a good price.  

As always, I encourage you to reach out to your administration for support with this professional development.  Likewise, I'll be sending you a certificate of completion when it's all said and done.

Getting your students to talk more than you isn't a selfish desire you have just so you can kick your feet up and binge some Netflix at your desk.  It's the desire you have to remain in the classroom longer, which means you can't maintain the current pace you're at - getting students to talk more is a must.  And it's not just about you.  THEY need these skills for the rest of their lives - just turn on the news and see how awful we are at having civil conversations with one another.

Not to mention, your students MUST start taking more accountability for their learning, and it starts by helping them speak up - know what they know - make mistakes - and learn from them.

I got you.

And I hope to see you LIVE on February 1st.

See you there,