Kennedy Road Middle School Vision Statement

Introduction

Kennedy Road Middle School’s vision statement states:

“We will empower all students to emerge as self-directed, future-ready learners within a caring community.” (Kennedy Road Middle School, 2017)

While this may be the school's mental vision, it is certainly not an observable one. To walk through the hallways of this school, one can not only feel but observe the disdain a majority of the students have towards school. Students are tired and bored to the point where they no longer see education as a value. Teachers are frustrated with the students’ attitudes and have lost their excitement towards teaching. Kennedy Road lacks student academic motivation. Students take no effort in completing tasks assigned, and teachers make no effort

Identifying the need for academic motivation at Kennedy Road was the initial step of this analysis. However, merely stating the need does not address it. Teachers at Kennedy Road have to be taught how to recognize that all students learn and retain information in their way. That being said, about increasing classroom motivation and engagement, specific learning characteristics have to be analyzed first. In initiating this learner analysis, the important task to consider is identifying the characteristics most critical to increasing classroom motivation. Part of growing classroom motivation relies on how engaging the curriculum is. Are teachers grasping their students’ attention and keeping them engaged in the material? Are students participating in class or asking questions for better understanding? Are students staring off into space and teachers lecturing on without a care of who is and who is not paying

To focus the student’s attention on a lesson the teacher is about to give by employing an activity, event, object or person that relates directly to student interest or previous experience.

2. To provide a structure of framework that enables the student to visualize the content or activities of the presentation.

3. To aid in clarifying the goals of the lesson presentation.

4. To provide a smooth transition from known or already covered material to new or unknown material by capitalizing on the use of examples (either verbal or nonverbal), analogies and student activities which students have an interest in or experience with.

5. To evaluate previously learned material before moving on to the new material or skill-building activities by employing student-centered activities or student-developed examples or analogies that demonstrate an understanding of previously acquired