Rigor

From the desk of Carol C…

Let’s be honest- why do we suddenly care about rigor?  Most of us would say “because it’s in the new Common Core”.  Understandable.  After all, how often was that word mentioned before the introduction of the CC?  Almost never.  So are there reasons besides the CC that we should care about rigor?  The answer is “yes”.

Rigor is important because current research shows that students need to be able to think critically, communicate (written and oral) effectively, and analyze accurately.  (There are more reasons, but I’ll stick with these three right now.)  Business leaders agree with this research.  The demands of college and the future workforce will require these skills in order to be successful.  The world is changing quickly.

There have been lots of definitions of rigor, and I think I’ve written about some in this blog.  I’ve found one recently though that applies just to education and states the meaning quite clearly.

Rigor is each student:

• being expected to learn at high levels.
• supported so she can learn at high levels.
• must demonstrate her learning at high levels.

Now an important question that needs to be asked is “What does rigor look like in a classroom?”.  Should we be asking high level questions?  Absolutely.  However, we have to make sure that we only accept high level answers.  We cannot let students get by with weak answers.  High level questions serve little purpose if we don’t expect the same type of answers.

What should we do if students give us less than satisfactory responses or don’t understand what we’re asking?  That’s where the second part of the definition comes in…support all students so they are able to learn at high levels.  We have to continue asking questions.  Sometimes this means moving on to higher level questions, but sometimes it means backing up and asking lower level questions and scaffolding up to high level ones.  No matter where a student is academically, it is our job to raise the level of our questions and their thinking.  Are you wondering if  AG/HAG and AP teachers have it easier because their students already think at a high level?  Whatever the level of the students, it is our challenge to raise their thinking to a more complex level.  The same type of teaching should be going on in every classroom to meet the needs of the diverse learners.

The last part of the definition of rigor is giving students the time and opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.  One of the best opportunities comes through increased student interaction with us and with their peers.  Teamwork is one of the seven skills business leaders have identified as necessary to become a contributing member of society, succeed in the work world, and help solve the problems of this 21st century.  Through teamwork students have the opportunity to communicate with partners, write what they learned/understood through, provide the class with their findings, or take a test .  These tests should have free response questions that require students to analyze and/or synthesize information.

Now let’s see what rigor looks like in an actual classroom.  In an Algebra II class the teacher gives the students a type of problem they have never seen before.  He states that the class will work in groups to find two solutions to the problem.   Then after every group finished, one person (teacher’s choice) from each group would present the solutions the group found.

The problem the teacher gave was complex and multi-stepped.  It required the use of critical thinking  and problem solving skills.  Additionally, solving the problem necessitated using information from previous courses.  Students had to communicate both in oral and written form with the groups they were in.  Since the students didn’t know who would have to present, all of the student were held accountable for their learning.

Look at the underlined parts in the scenario above.  These are the elements that make this lesson rigorous.  How did this teacher give support to his students?  By asking questions.  Questions to help them think through their roadblocks.  When students asked questions the teacher answered with questions of his own aimed at helping his students figure out on their own how to remove the roadblocks.

Finally rigor is more than the lessons you plan, the educational strategies you use, or the curriculum you teach.  Rigor encompasses the atmosphere you create in your classroom.  This atmosphere must be one where students know high levels of thinking are required, support is provided, and demonstration of learning is expected.  The classroom has to be a place where we not only expect high levels of thinking from our students but also from ourselves.

(Math classroom lesson was observed and reported by Tony Wagner, Harvard Graduate School of Education.)