A Radical Intervention for the Middle of a Semester
The end of the first quarter was two weeks away. The most recent grade report of students reluctant to do homework revealed many below 50%. I did the math in my head. These students would need 80% or higher during the second quarter in order to pass the semester. For some classes it was mathematically impossible to pass with their present grade.
A sudden sense of urgency emerged. We needed to do something now or the idea of a successful transition to 10th grade was over, and it was only the seventh week of school.
Kidnapping sounds a bit strong, but that’s what we did that first year. We developed a list of 25 freshmen who were failing classes. Then on a Friday morning we kidnapped them. We plucked them from their first period class and brought them to the auditorium stage.
The stage was set with tables all around the perimeter with chairs on the inside so that all eyes were pointing outward. Some looked at the wall while others looked into an empty auditorium.
I had notified all the teachers ahead of time. Teachers who wanted their students in their class period received their wish. Otherwise, it was a day of working. A sheet with the student’s name printed large was hanging on the back a chair in front of a six-foot table. Students entered the stage, found their chairs, and sat down. The Freshman Academy teachers compiled work that was waiting on each student’s table when they arrived.
The opening conversation was tense. Unhappiness was very present. How could I convince them this was a good thing. They were being given the gift of time to complete work and make-up tests. Selling it in those first few moments was critical.
We hired a substitute teacher to join me in running what we called Git R’ Done. It was a time to do just that: Get the homework done, find the missing worksheets, polish the unfinished projects, and take the missing tests. The goal was not so much to pass every class but to move every class to what we called a “healthy F,” meaning that it was above 55% so that the necessary grade for second quarter was more reasonable.
We learned that first year that students who were failing everything emerged from Git R’ Done still failing everything, but students that were passing at least two classes did very well. That became one of the criteria for selecting students: They must be passing at least two of their six classes in order to be selected for this intervention.
We now do this intervention differently. We invite students rather than kidnap them. Two or three days before Git R’ Done, teams select seven students that fit the criteria. (With four teams, that’s 28 students total.) The students sign a contract and come the day of Git R’ Done knowing that they will be working independently on school work for as long as is needed.
We also invite strong freshmen to sit alongside these freshmen and tutor them. These freshman tutors come to the stage for the morning or the afternoon. They have changed the dynamic in ways that cannot be overstated. What used to be a frenzied first 45-minutes is now immediate calm and the hum of conversation centered on learning. These freshman tutors are our new anchor for this event. Now a lost and frustrated freshman has a partner that can look at a backpack full of bent papers and wadded up worksheets and grab just the right piece of paper and say, “This is what we need!”
Students work hard on this day. It is quiet. There are no earbuds, no listening to music. Students put completed work in a crate on a table in the center of the stage that has a hanging file for each teacher. After freshmen place a piece of paper in the file, they press a Staples “That Was Easy” button. It’s cheesy and they know it, but most press it with a smirk and walk away with a smile.
Some students finish early and return to class. Others plow through the entire day with amazing focus and tenacity. At the debrief at the end of the day, I usually open with “You have been sitting in this room for over six hours with no music and very few breaks. Nice job!”
Freshman rank the event as beneficial and are proud of their work..
The work they produce is as varied as each student. On average 15 to 20 of the 28 make decisive gains, putting credit for the semester within reach.
We have learned that students who are struggling in school sometimes need the adults in their lives to structure a time for them to Git R’ Done.
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