Take Action: 11th Grade Launch Curriculum - 101

unit 2: 11th GrAde Action PlAn

best practices for academic check-ins
how can academic check-ins help you help students?
ACADEMIC CHECK-INS CAN HIGHLIGHT PREVIOUSLY UNREALIZED STRENGTHS.

Dialogue about strengths and accomplishments encourages students to reflect on these areas and generate
ideas that will help them on college applications and in job interviews. Educators are encouraged to interpret
student responses to questions explicitly as strengths. See the suggested conversation starters below for ideas
on how to frame your discussions.
ACADEMIC CHECK-INS ARE AN EXCELLENT TOOL FOR IDENTIFYING AND MONITORING RED FLAGS AND ACTION STEPS.

if students are doing well, ask them about their habits that are allowing them to be successful. Praise them for
a job well done. if students are struggling, ask questions that will bring out why they are having difficulty. if red
flags are identified, you should work to develop a plan of action steps to help the student remedy the problem.
Then you can follow up on those items later in the year to coach the student back on to the right path. Here is a
case study from an actual coaching conversation (names have been changed).
Victoria was chronically late to school. The data on her first period attendance showed that she had been late 17 times in the first
quarter alone. In addition, Victoria had English 1st period, and her grades were in the 70s. Since GPA in English and attendance rates
are two leading indicators of college enrollment, this was an immediate red flag. Ms. Frizzle, Victoria's teacher, explored with her the
reason Victoria was not arriving at school on time. It turned out that she was simply not setting an alarm, and no one at home woke
her up. Ms. Frizzle then asked Victoria to take out her cell phone during the meeting and set her alarm. Ms. Frizzle noted an action item
of setting the alarm and waking up to arrive at school on time.
During the second session in December, Ms. Frizzle was able to see the noted action item from the previous meeting. She was able to ask
Victoria if she had been waking up on time. Then she was able to cross-check Victoria's response with the updated attendance record.
Having notes on previous meetings and relevant data allowed Ms. Frizzle to see measurable progress on a key barrier for Victoria.
ACADEMIC CHECK-INS CAN SERVE AS A CONDUIT FOR RELATIONSHIP BUILDING WITH YOUR STUDENTS.

Beginning the conversation with strengths, interests, and aspirations opens the dialogue positively. Students
should be asked to tell stories of what they have accomplished or done in the intervening time, and their list
of skills and ambitions should grow or become more detailed as the year wears on. This approach conveys to
students that their teacher or educator believes in them and is there to support them.
in addition, when conversations start with a student's aspirations, present action can be explicitly linked to
aspirations. For instance, let's say a student indicates that he aspires to be a doctor. A failing grade in biology
seriously threatens that dream. Students must be aware of this reality. The idea is to motivate students to improve
based on their own self-identified goals. if a student does not have explicitly stated aspirations, a conversation
about interests and strengths may help lead students to aspirations. if he/she is good at math, you can offer some
suggestions about a career in economics, banking, or education that might appeal to the student.

suggested conversation starters

When discussing interests, strengths, and aspirations...
* Have you thought about your plans for after high school since the last time we met? Have your interests
or plans changed at all? if so, what made you change your mind?
* if you could have any job in the world, what would it be? What interests you about that career? Do you
know what training/experience/skills you need to obtain a career in your field of interest?

LESSon 10: PSAT/ASPiRE DEBRiEF AnD SAT/ACT ACTion PLAn

101

Take Action: 11th Grade Launch Curriculum

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