Every year, I ask three or four students with natural leadership ability to be part of my leadership team.
I meet with them once a week or so.
It’s informal, and the meetings don’t last long. I also don’t mind if others join in. I do this because it gives me a fuller picture of the classroom.
I can better put myself in their shoes and experience learning and being in my own classroom from their perspective. It’s not, however, a vehicle to make whole-sale changes.
Principally, I want to know:
1. The clarity of recent lessons.
2. The interest level of current topics of study.
3. Concerns about their classmates.
While teaching, I’m absorbing feedback based on my observations. I watch facial expressions, body language, reactions to novelty, storytelling, high-detail, and eagerness to begin and finish independent work.
But getting honest feedback from students in a relaxed setting helps me improve my ability to motivate and inspire listening and learning.
It’s important to mention that “leadership” doesn’t necessarily mean the best or most well-behaved students. These traits are irrelevant. I look for those with the most influence with their classmates.
Typically, this will include at least one difficult or challenging student. In fact, the most insightful input often comes from kids with the worst reputations on campus.
Now, a cynic might think I’m being sneaky in choosing them. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. And although I do think they benefit from the experience, I have no ulterior motive.
Valedictorian or Joffrey Baratheon, it doesn’t make a difference to me. I want influence, someone that others naturally follow and confide in.
That last part is important.
Because, if you recall number three above, I want to know if there is anything I should know about one or more of their friends. So, after discussing numbers one and two, I ask about their classmates.
I want to know who if anyone is being bullied. Bullying is rampant everywhere. Although, it’s never out in the open and therefore completely missed by nearly everyone.
There was a time when it was easier to spot, when students were more forthcoming and bullying was mostly physical. Now, it’s a whole new world, on- and offline.
You’re not going to know without student help—which begs the question: Will students actually tell you?
Yes, they will, but only if you’re consistently kind and clam and a stickler about enforcing rules. Do this and they’ll tell you everything.
You’ll know who to keep an eye on, who to follow-up with, and who to place in your bullying accountability protocol.
There is one more benefit of having a leadership team, and it may be the most important one of all. The members of your team will start proactively using their influence for good.
They’ll naturally begin acting as your proxy, representing, modeling, and channeling your kindness, fairness, and high standards during group work, while listening to lessons, and even out on the playground.
PS – If teaching has become stressful for you, check out my new book Unstressed: How to Teach Without Worry, Fear, and Anxiety.
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That sounds interesting! Would you say it works for younger students as well? My class is 7 to 8 years old?
Yes, I have 2nd graders as well!
Absolutely, you can use this with younger kids! I teach second grade. I don’t have a formal leadership team, per se. Instead, I refer to my whole class as school ambassadors. They are part of a community and have a voice for change. Every couple of weeks we do a journal assignment called “What’s on your mind?” with the specific goal of targeting things at school that might need to be improved. Most of the responses are positives, but I get one or two critical comments each time. Students write at the end whether they want their concern read aloud or not. At the beginning of the year, it was almost always no, but as the year progresses more students are willing to share because of the trust that is established through positive feedback and brainstorming. This is a quick way to get constructive feedback and find out whats going on. Even my quietest students have found their voice and contributed through journaling.
Michael is absolutely right about bullying being missed these days. Without some kind of genuine exchange between teachers and students, it will continue to be overlooked.
Thanks for the journal idea, “What’s on your mind.”
This is such an interesting concept. I teach high school and I will end the class early so we can clean up and students are ready to transition. At the door I tend to have conversations like this with whoever is by the door — a healthy mix of students but not everyone.
How could this be adapted? I teach 4 separate sections.
I am curious how the meeting is “structured”. Do you ask certain questions or do you just let them talk? How do you phrase it to the students what the purpose of the meeting is? What do you say to other students who wonder why they are not chosen?
Thank you for asking this, I was wondering the same.
I absolutely agree with this concept. When I became a sergeant in the Army, the best advice I received was to get the informal leaders of any group on your side and the others will fall in line.
I think this is very similar.
Thanks
At what point in the year do you implement this? I feel like I need to have established some kind of relationship with the students to know that they have leadership qualities. Also, does the leadership team ever change? Monthly, quarterly, at semester?
Thank you for all of your strategies and tips. I read your blog each week and I’ve learned a lot from you!
When you discover bullying information, what do you do with it?
Wow! As a reader of your blog for nearly ten years now I feel like I have a really strong grounding and conceptually understanding of your content. This article was fresh and new! Thanks Michael for continuing to be an inspiration in my pedagogic practice!
I think Michael’s books (already read two, busy with the third) and articles are great and absolutely spot on. However, they leave me immensely frustrated. I simply fail to implement so many of his principles. My class (third graders) is still noisy, they don’t give their best effort, look for the easy way out and are rude to each other. I’ve tried all his methods and keep following new tips as I read them, but almost every day ends in frustration. I’m beginning to think some people are just not cut out for teaching.
Hi Ace,
I don’t believe that to be true. Email me and maybe we can chat on the phone.
Just adopt a few principals and procedures at a time so you can really carry them out with fidelity. Add as your radar improves. It’s HARD the first few years when you are thinking of so many things at once. If you love teaching and passionate on learning to improve as a teacher don’t quit. I have always loved teaching, but it took awhile to learn to not take student choices personal and implement all that I knew and read.
This is a great idea with huge benefits.
A quick question though…..How do you ‘elect’ the leadership team?
I love this idea, but my question is, how do you maintain student confidentiality and discuss other students who are not in the meeting?