Best Practice

Expectations explained: The key role high expectations play in student outcomes

Pedagogy
If you think your expectations are high enough, they’re not. Caroline Sherwood draws on a wealth of research evidence to look at how our expectations of students affect our teaching and their outcomes

Our expectations need to grow and be challenged every day, every lesson, every encounter with the human beings we teach.

Our expectations shouldn’t just dare to survive in a school, in a classroom – but should transform, balloon, reconstruct in a process of metamorphosis until they become unrecognisable.

Do we believe we have high enough expectations of the students in front of us? They’ll never be high enough.

Our expectations shouldn’t be based on test results or target grades, they should be forged on student potential – and who can predict that?

Human beings have walked on the moon, mastered flight, domesticated fire. We will never expect enough from our students – and that is both thrilling and terrifying in equal measure.

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