Wounded by Friendly Fire

Monday morning’s report revealed a truckload of failing freshmen. It’s winter. It’s South Dakota. It’s the middle of February. It’s cold. But we still had a problem.

I met with each team on The Freshman Academy to talk through the data. All of the above descriptors also applied to us. Teachers were making a valiant effort to secure missing assignments, foster relationships, and teach their content.

One team rolled out their present actions, and I responded by saying they weren’t working. And then the room changed. The target of my words was the students, but I tagged a teacher in the effort.

Jump with me to a group that teach Biology. They wrestle with data as well. They look at their formative assessments. Sometimes one teacher’s scores are much stronger. It’s possible in those discussions others may feel unconformable if that discussion is not navigated well.

When working with Freshman Academy teams the danger is similar and yet different. As a team we are seeking to bring about academic success in all classes. When a large chunk of our students are failing those classes, we need to take stock in what we are doing. The goal is not to do more but rather to do something different.

Our freshmen need our support. They may need new approaches to find the focus, the time, and the motivation to return to the world of passing.

I needed to make that clear as I engaged the Freshman Academy team. The target was the freshmen. As a team we needed to digest the data, evaluate our actions, and plan our next steps without one of us getting hit by friendly fire.