It is important to provide opportunities for success for all students. Imagine it’s December. Class work has progressed from review to new material. Homework is getting harder. Some of your students may be struggling. Our mission is to empower students through their teachers. Landmark Outreach shares thinking and strategies that support all students’ efforts to become independent learners and develop a strong sense of self-efficacy.
At the heart of Landmark’s instructional strategies and programs are Landmark’s Six Teaching Principles™. In a series of separate resources, will highlight one Principle and share an example of how it can guide teaching practice.
LANDMARK TEACHING PRINCIPLE™ #1: Provide Opportunities for Success
Providing students with opportunities for success is key. Failure and poor self-esteem often result when teachers challenge students beyond their ability. Landmark begins teaching students at their current level of ability. This approach improves basic skills and enhances confidence. As Landmark teachers introduce each new skill, they provide basic examples and assignments to build confidence and keep students from becoming overwhelmed. As the information becomes more challenging, teachers assign students easier problems to supplement the more difficult ones. In this way, those students who are having trouble with the material complete at least part of the assignment while they work at understanding and learning to apply new information. Teachers give themselves permission to provide students with whatever structure is necessary to help students be successful, such as study guides for tests, templates for writing, and guidelines for projects. Only with a solid foundation of basic skills and confidence can students make progress.
