Praising Students Into Excellence
Danielle Warner, Nagasaki City
Have you ever noticed how good some teachers are at praising people? Whether it’s other teachers or students, they can always genuinely find something wonderful to shine a light on. Of course, they tend to be popular with the students, too!
Unfortunately, perhaps because I am shy (and maybe a tad pessimistic!) praising people is not something that comes naturally to me. I have so much respect for and envy of my coworkers to whom it seems to be automatic.
This year, I decided it was time for a change. I headed up to the big bookstore, spent almost an hour combing through activity manuals, self-improvement books for teachers, and instruction guides until my eyes were rolling back in my head. Finally, I settled on a thick book called 言葉かけ大全 written by Shinji Miyoshi, which loosley translates as “The Encyclopedia of Speaking to Others.” I’ve found it useful, so I hope you will too! I’ve summarized what I though would be most helpful for ALTs below.
1. Interaction is what makes students grow
Humans thrive on positive interactions with other humans. Children are no different. They need positive interactions to help them grow into healthy adults. Teachers don’t just teach, they also chide, discipline, guide, and, most importantly, encourage students and celebrate their successes. Even small successes become significant when someone takes a second to stop and say “Good job!”. It doesn’t feel like you’ve done much, but it encourages students to continue growing in a positive direction.
2.The Pygmalian Effect
This refers to the phenomenon in which high expectations lead to high results. According to this phenomena, if you convince yourself that your students are highly capable, they will improve at a faster rate than if you are convinced they are incapable. Have realisticly high expectations and students will rise to meet them!
3. The most effective praise
The most effective praise relies on three points. One, it should be immediate. Praise is most effective if given within a minute of the action being praised. Two, praise should be given a lot. The more praise you give, the more natural it is and the more receptive students are to it. Three, according to studies the most effective praise includes verbal praise, a physical touch, and a reward. For example, a “Good job!” accompanied by a high-five and a sticker. (Of course, stick to high-fives or fist bumps as physical touch, and skip this if the student doesn’t like it).
Verbal praise will also be more effective if it is specific. While “Good job!” is encouraging, specific praise like “Good job remembering the capital letter!” or “Wow, your letters are so easy to read!” feel a lot more genuine and personal.
4. Praise the effort, not the result
It is easy to get stuck praising the results students put out. The problem is, only the proficient students end up getting praised. Try to focus on the effort and growth students have made. Everyone is trying hard in their own way, even if it’s hard to see. While one student can have a whole conversation, another may need a lot of effort just to say “hello”. Use encouraging words and praise the amount they were able to do. For example, I have some students that struggle with writing. I make sure to praise how clear they’ve written, how carefully they are writing, or that they’ve remembered to use a capital letter. For students I’ve taught longer, I’ll comment on how much better their letters have gotten, or how much faster they can write.
5. Keep student shyness in mind
Especially as students get older, being praised in front of the class can become embarassing, and even make them feel guilty toward other students. If you are going to praise one student for something, try praising multiple students at once or do it while walking past their desk.
Sometimes it is better to praise them in groups. If a whole row has done something well, praise the row. If the whole class has done their best in the lesson, make sure they know how much you appreciate it!
In conclusion, being good at praise is a skill that can be learned. Keep these tips in mind and you are on the way to being a natural yourself!
Praise is vital to helping your students stay motivated and improve. Of course, growth is not steady and has it’s mountains and valleys. Sometimes it feels like my students completely ignore the encouragement I give them! But have faith. Even if they don’t react they are still happy inside. Even if they don’t understand exactly what you are telling them, your smile and encouraging tone will get the message across.
I hope these ideas will help you continue to praise your students and help them enjoy and improve on their English-learning journey! You can do it!
