Improving Student Achievement

Testimony to the House Public Education Committee

Students need more than mastery of academic subjects to be successful in school and prepared for adulthood. All students do best when they have clear and consistent expectations of how to behave, and it helps to have adults in their schools not only teach those behaviors, but role model them, too. All students need to develop and cultivate non-cognitive skills and abilities like self-control, the ability to stick to a task, the ability to calm themselves when upset, and to manage their frustrations in healthy, productive ways. Many students have personal barriers that make succeeding in school more difficult, such as a history of trauma or mental illness. Without effective interventions and supports, these students are at risk of being pushed out of school. These non-cognitive and behavioral factors that impact student learning must be included in efforts to improve student achievement.

Read and download the whole testimony here.