In modern times, school’s primary responsibilities are varied and multi-faceted. Not only must they ensure every child matures academically and socially but there is also a significant demand on schools to produce respectable exam results; this performance is often the basis by which schools are measured.
For independent schools – like my placement school for my research – there is extra imperative to attain top exam results to ensure it can attract prospective parents. Schools are increasingly aware that their students will face stiffer competition to achieve in higher education and exam grades are thus imperative to any comparison that these institutions will make of their candidates.
Subsequently, children in today’s educational program undergo a significant amount of testing as they develop and as students get older their lessons contain increasing proportions of exam preparation and technique. Thus, as grades become more important and require more effort for high performance, a participant’s attitude towards them is a key factor in their success.
An essential tool schools have to communicate the expectation they have on their pupils is with grade-specific, unambiguous and progressive targeting. How these target grades and expectations affect academic drive and ultimately performance formed the inspiration for my research.
My research set out to probe the goal-performance relationship to see how targets of varying difficulty would impact schoolchildren’s attainment in an academic situation. Test scores in a comprehensive and challenging homework booklet were compared to see what (if any) effect a range of target scores would have on the participating students. There were four mixed ability study groups whose targets ranged from no target for group 1 and the hardest targets for group 4.
Amongst the test results, there were some unsurprising and surprising data. Predictably, the group with no grade expectations returned the poorest average test score and had 6 of the worst 10 grades in the year group. Perhaps more surprisingly, the next-to-worst performing group on average were the students with the highest expectations (Group 4), with just 1 student in the top 10 scores falling into this bracket as well the worst score in the year. It was Group 2 (Given a moderate target grade) and Group 3 (given an above average target grade) that had the best mean scores and the majority of high-achievers across Year 10.
What was clear from the results was that target grades did improve not only empirical performance but also a number of questions answered; these students also reported having spent longer on their homework than others. However, the study exhibited a risk in setting expectations inappropriately high. It was clear that for many, an inaccessible target grade acted as a demotivating factor and while it was better than nothing, these children did not achieve their peaks.
It is always important to outline your expectations to schoolchildren in a concise and well thought through manner. We give lesson aims and SMART targets and target grades because the removal of ambiguity really helps shape a child’s understanding of their own aims. However, parents and educators alike must consider what is appropriate for each child and adapt expectations properly as children develop. We tread a fine line when trying to optimise what children can achieve while at school and must always make sure we achieve the correct balance.
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