After making progress on the habits and skills that are relatively easy for the client to adopt, like using MyHomework App to track assignments or seamlessly maintaining a routine with binders, notebooks, and folders so handouts are not misplaced, clients find that it's now time for the hard work and real motivation is needed if effective progress is to made in adopting new learning strategies and new metacognitive skills. 

What starts to happen, as clients successfully remove the larger, more visible, challenges of general organization issues that manifest in incomplete HW, missing assignments, messy book bag, late nights, stressful last minute overload, is they start to uncover some underlying gaps in learning, gaps in study habits, and gaps in metacognitive skills. It's at this point that the hard work begins. 

One cases that I reflect on

Chris is a Sophomore and failed most of Freshman year. An EEC coach was brought in during his 4th quarter of Freshman year and Chris quickly found success. His grades improved, his relationship with his parents improved, and his confidence improved. However, he started to plateau in his progress as the EEC sessions started to get harder. Outcomes from these EEC sessions began targeting underlying needs regarding active study habits, in tracking long term assignments, and knowing when extra help is needed and when it's not needed. It became apparent that Chris struggles with homework, that is not something that needs to be passed in, but is required for the next class or a future class. Every week he required to read 3 chapters in a book, called Siddhartha. No one will deny that this is a challenging book for any student to read, but what Chris learned during the session, even after defending his position that he was 'doing the HW and reading the chapters for the first time, ever', was the difference between between his perception of reading and the actual purpose of reading. You see, Chris would read the chapters and then fail weekly quizzes. The good news is that he is frustrated about this, which not only shows he cares out his grade, but he actually feels that his efforts to read should be paying off. 

What Chris did not realize on his own is that he was not actually reading the book. When asked what percentage of the text he actually understood, be said somewhere between 20 - 30 percent. And he is after already reading half the book. After asking to see the quizzes and digger deeper into his metacognitive process of reading, it became clear that Chris would read page after page without really understanding what's going on. Chris did not see this as an issue, and this is common to many students with EFD. After realizing that Chris is not grasping the purpose of reading and is not using critical active reading skills and strategies, he was engaged in a series of questions. 

1. What does reading mean to you?
2. How that you know, based on your quiz grades, that your approach to reading this book is not work, what are some strategies that you can use to overcome this?
3. What type of time commitment is needed in order to change your approach and practice these new habits?

As an outcome to these questions, Chris learned that if he is not understanding what he is reading then he is actually not reading as all and needs to stop. Since we read for understanding, students with EFD needs to approach reading with the realization that understanding is critical and fundamental in reading. He could not deny that he was not reading the book, since his quiz grades clearly reflected his understanding. We also discussed and made a list of active reading strategies that he could start to use in order to effectively read this book. 

• Why would note-taking help and what would this look like as you read?
• How can using web-based resources help and what type of resources do you look for?
• How is time management important to overcoming this challenge and what kind of time management is needed in order to manage this new way of reading?

Now let's back up and consider that the sessions could never get to this level of understanding without removing some of the larger obstacles that prevented Chris from getting homework done in the first place. However, how the hard work begins and student, like Chris, not only struggle with these skills but struggle with the required motivation in order to consistently adopt these new strategies as new habits in their student behavior.  This is hard challenge to overcome because it no longer is an immediate solution or quick fix, it takes time, practice, and patiences. This requires planning and the constant checking for understanding, which are both deficits in executive function. 


This gets to the most important work we do at EEC and that's the use of motivation theory in supporting any student's progress and effort in overcoming hard work and difficult learning challenges. 


See my blog on this ----- Motivation Theory and EFD

Grades, after all, are not the endgame of education. It is the beliefs, values, and traits that foster the development of independence and self-determination that surpass whatever value grades can offer. As parents and educators, we have a major role in developing the right beliefs that define and shape one's perspectives. It is these perspectives or mindsets about the world, about abilities, and about our own weaknesses, that shape the thoughts and actions regarding what we view as possible and impossible. 

The child that struggles to gets B's is the one that is developing the right mindset needed to overcome challenges and obstacles later in life. While the child that gets easy A's is not developing in quite the same way. JESSICA LAHEY wrote a great blog on this point, One Works for B's; One gets easy A's. 

Recent research has proven just how powerful the right mindset is in determining one's success in overcoming challenges and accomplishing goals. Research by Carol Dweck has highlighted the important difference between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset, and the importance of praising the process of learning the not the outcome. 

Replace  "you must be smart at this" with "you must have really worked hard". A fixed mindset child develops a belief that talent is innate and there is no room for growth, but a growth mindset child develops a belief that talent comes from work and is charged with limitless potential. 

See what Carol Dweck has to say about Praise and Mindset and listen to what Derek Sivers says about the importance of struggling and Why you need to fail. 

This is a visual summary of Dweck's findings. 

To start developing a growth mindset in yourself and your children, start with these suggestions:

 Praise risk-taking and setbacks
 Focus on effort, struggle, persistence 
 Look for difficult tasks - and set your mind on the reward of failure 
 Focus on Strategies to overcome challenges
 Reflect and adapt to what's working and remove what is not
 Focus on the process NOT the outcome. Be passionate about the Learning and the act of improving
 Seek challenges that redefine who you are - "I am an early riser"
 Choose to work hard 

This Powerpoint is a quick overview on the differences between Growth Mindset and Fixed Mindset. 

?EFD is a cognitive-based disability impacting both short and long-term success and cannot be overcome without the utilization of effective intrinsic and extrinsic motivating factors.

EFD has wide reaching effects on metacognitive skills and behavioral skills in adolescence and young adults. If the deficits are not addressed at an early age then patterns of thought and behavior can become more entrenched and harder to rewire.  Furthermore, without direct consequences to help shape patterns of thoughts and behaviors, children will continue to perpetuate the same cycle of poor metacognitive skills and poor coping strategies.

EFD can be sectioned into two dimensions, behavioral regulation and meta-cognition. Children who struggle with behavioral regulation tend to react, or over-react to their environment in a negative way. They tend to appear stubborn, moody, over-reactant, and/or impulsive.  Their coping strategies are the bi-product of poor self-regulation skills and an inability to think about their own reaction beforehand.  These behavioral challenges are exacerbated and perpetuated by the metacognitive challenges that hinder effective decision-making, regulation, and planning.

Meta-cognition is the internal thought process of thinking about thinking. It is what happens with we turn on our internal ‘filter’ and refrain from doing or saying something, and when we say ‘I better start my homework because I know I have a lot to do’.  Therefore, children with EFD struggle with monitoring their own activity, such as checking their work or reviewing their mistakes. They struggle with organization of their personal items. They struggle with goal setting and following an action plan to achieve a long-term outcome. They can be absent-minded and struggle with managing multi-step tasks. Finally, they also struggle with initiation, which can result in procrastination and a ‘couch potato’ behavior. 

Metacognitive skills are developmental and evolve as the brain becomes more mature. That being said, there are essential skills that every young adult needs to demonstrate as they mature through high school and prepare for post-secondary education.  Many children and young adults with EFD will find themselves lost and without a purpose or plan for after high school, if they go through high school without the proper training and tools.

Overcoming these challenges is not easy, but it can be done. Motivation to change is a critical aspect of the change process. Without a child’s motivation to change and work on effective skills to compensate for these challenges, there is little hope.  There are two types of motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic.  All of us possess variations of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation because we all have our own wants and needs that guide us to act and behave.

One’s personal or internal interests and desires define intrinsic motivation, and just like external motivation, can ebb and flow based on one’s desire to achieve or prevent a certain outcome. For example, a student can have a high level of intrinsic motivation to learn math or be a good person, because they value their education and they believe in being a decent human being. Intrinsic motivation comes from a child’s internal drive and desire to meet their own expectations. With higher levels of intrinsic motivation, students will persevere in learning a tough math concept, asks a parent to edit a paper, stay after school for extra help, or simply double-check their assignments for accuracy.  Unfortunately, for children with EFD, overcoming their cognitive and behavioral challenges requires such a high level of intrinsic motivation, coupled with a belief that they can do it, that many don’t even try. Or if they try, it is intermittent and does not form lasting habits of thought or behavior. If left alone, they tend to establish lower expectations, and meet those expectations with as little effort as possible.   

On the other side of the motivation continuum is extrinsic motivation. This type of motivation comes from the external factors in life, such as grades, parents, or social pressures. For example, an extrinsic motivator for working adults is the desire to produce money. The possibility of earning more money is what motivates many adults to work harder and longer hours, and take on more duties and responsibilities. For students and young adults, the external expectations from parents and society can be a powerful extrinsic motivator in pushing students with EFD to overcome their challenges, learn to compensate for their deficits, and develop better patterns and habits. 

Typically, children and young adults with EFD require far more extrinsic motivation in order to effectively overcome their learning challenges. Since it is easier and safer to settle for the way things are, most children and young adults with EFD will not persevere long enough to instill better habits of thoughts and behavior, without increased levels of extrinsic support.

So what can parents do to support their child?

What if the fear of failure is not enough?

This parent training video delves into effective strategies to support children with EFDs. 

Chart developed by Erin K. Avirett, Execute Function: From Assessment to Intervention 

I have fallen in love with Khan Academy and use it regularly with students who need support in Math, science, and SAT prep. It's a powerful tool that can empower students to take control of their own learning. Sal, the founder of Kkan Academy, appears to be working tirelessly to transform access to learning and also transform our beliefs around learning and the power of effective effort. 

He has launched an initiative called #YouCanLearnAnything movement and it discusses cutting edge neurological research into the mind, the brain, and the power of one's mindset. 

https://www.khanacademy.org/youcanlearnanything?already_clicked=true. 

In the above link there is a video that introduces Carol Dweck who pioneered the research differentiating between a growth mindset and a fixed mindset.  I use her survey all the time as I help my clients understand the important role their beliefs play in transforming their learning potential. 

See for yourself - what mindset are you?   pdf  or webpage

Her book is called Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. It should be on every shelf of every person who have children or works with kids - ORDER HERE

If are like what Carol and Sal are doing then you will also like Eduardo Briceno in this Tedx Talk - The Power of Beliefs: Mindset and Success

 

Did you know there is a difference between the mind and the brain?  In an effort to overcome learning challenges, it is important to discuss the difference between the brain and the mind.  The brain is the hardware that is made up of neurons.  The mind is made up of thoughts, attitudes, beliefs, and free will. Establishing this distinction helps build awareness on what is the brain and what is the mind and the relationship between the two as they relate to learning, motivation, and effective effort.  It also helps to focus the client's attention to their learning challenge and the neurological and cognitive factors associated with the brain and just how separate the brain is from a person's true identity. 

Once a clear separation is made between the mind and the brain then time and attention is placed on learning how to use the mind to overcome learning challenges, or a perceived brain-based disability.  Jeff Schwartz, the author of  The Mind and the Brain: Neuroplasticity and the Power of Mental Force and You Are Not Your Brain states “The mind is the software running on the brain's hardware” (Schwartz, 2002, p.25) and one's mental state can contribute even more powerfully to an outcome then the stimulus itself.  What this means, from an academic coaching perspective, is that effective results are achieved when one's mind is in the right mental state. The student must perceive themselves capable of overcoming whatever challenge is in front of them, whether that challenge is reading, writing, planning, attention, organization, honor role. etc. 

Does Self Control Matter? Research says that it does. 

Building awareness is a critical step in helping your child improve self-control and regain success inside and outside the classroom. Start a conversation with your son or daughter and use the checklist below of target behaviors as important milestones in one’s development of self-control. Once awareness is established then reinforcement measures can be employed in order to help students manage their progress.

This chart below is adopted from research done by Duckworth, Gendler, and Gross (2014). 



Situation Selection

• Studying in the library rather than at home to avoid distraction

• Spending time with more self-controlled (vs. more impulsive) classmates

• Joining a sports team with a strict and demanding coach

  
• Choosing a route to walk home, which bypasses the mall, or other venues that trigger impulsive behaviors
  

Situation modification

• Sitting closer to the teacher and/or farther from more talkative students Placing cell phone out of reach or out of sight (e.g., in a desk drawer) 
• Taking batteries out of the television remote control

• Choosing due dates for projects that evenly space work over time 
• Turning off wireless connection if using laptop in class
• Using an app that limits use of Internet or blocks tempting sites

Attentional deployment

• Tracking the speaker (i.e., looking directly at the teacher or the student who is speaking)
• Counting backwards from 100 during heated conflicts (e.g., after getting pushed on the playground or in the hallway) 
  
• Imagining the aftermath (e.g., afterschool detention) of indulging in temptation (e.g., texting in class)
  

Cognitive changes

• Appraising physiological arousal (e.g., elevated heart rate) as excitement rather than anxiety during a test 
• Framing mistakes as information rather than criticism
Framing mental effort as an opportunity to exercise willpower

• Breaking a large, seemingly insurmountable project into smaller, more feasible chunks

Response modulation

• Engaging in previously planned behaviors 
  
• Deep breathing
  

full copy of the study  

DOWNLOAD A .PDF OF THIS CHECKLIST AND START USING

We all want our children to attend college and to pursue a career that meets our highest expectations for them as young professionals. Now with college costs exceeding the average income parents are choosing to mortgage their homes and/or take out large student loans in order to afford the price of a four-year degree. Given these costly decisions we must be more realistic, as parents-investors, to the return on such investments. We need to be more thoughtful about our child's strengths, personality, short and long term goals as we 'invest' in their course of higher learning. 

Some guiding questions to ask when your student is still in high school. 
1. What careers interest your child?
2. What are your expectations for your child's future career choices? 
3. How do they feel about school?
4. What supports have been given to get your child through high school and will these continue?
5. What concerns do you have that may impact your child's success in College?

Since a masters degree is the new undergraduate degree, there are some additional considerations that must be made as you support your child's 4-6 year higher learning track. 

1. Do you plan to pay for college or whatever higher education is necessary to support your child's career ambitions?
2. How does your child's personality, values, and skills match his/her long term goals for employment, income and standard of living?
3. What is the chance that college will not work out and your investment in their higher learning is wasted?

Manage the risk of your college investment
If you look at college as an investment then you should also manage the risk of that investment. 
1. Start taking college courses before high school ends. Don't wait to see how your child will handle the independence, course work, and other factors that can impact a successful investment. Senior year can be a wasted year for many high school student.  It is seen as a time to sit back and wait to receive college acceptances or rejections.
2. Have a clear investment plan. Every college credit has a cost associated with it. Investigate all the credit options per career and then decide what makes the most sense. Don't be a fool and just throw your money into the college market without weighing the cost/credit options in relation to the career path. Furthermore, since most degrees require a masters (or two), there is a need to consider the long term financial investments in supporting your child's career plan. 
3. Get your child involved as early as possible. If you are investing in their future then they should be accountable for the return on your investment. Many children go to college blind of the cost and parental commitments involved in such an experience. Given the overwhelming costs associated with such an investment, your young adult must be involved. 

Don’t think that success is a natural thing. It is based, not only on effort, but the repeated application of the right effort. A key to success is knowing the right strategies, knowing the desired results, and knowing the right skills of effective effort and hard work.

8 DOMAINS OF LEARNING SUCCESS

1. Clear goals – What we expect is what we experience. Therefore, defining clear short and long-term goals sets the framework for what’s expected.

2. Organization and structure: effective learning takes place when there is structure and routine – both at home and at school.

3. Time to learn the new skills: Everything we do repeatedly is hardwired to the brain. It takes time to develop the new thought patters and practice the new skills. This entails developing and strengthening the new neurological connections and rewiring the brain.

4. Focus and Concentration – changing thoughts, attitude and beliefs around learning and struggling to overcome learning challenges takes focus and concentration. Overcoming learning challenges can not be reached without addressing these factors.

5. Resourcefulness – Working hard is one things but working smart is another. Students need be equipped with the right skills to seek out the resources they need in order to achieve learning success. This can entail after school help, online research, books on tape, etc.

6. React – get ready to react to what’s working and not working. This means being critical about the learning process and the chosen skill in order to make effective changes or alternations.

7. Commitment to finish – Finishing what one starts is an important factor to long terms success. Staying committed to a task until the task is complete, regardless of interest or difficulty.

8.  Perseverance when things get tough – Learning can be tough and requires various levels of perseverance in order to overcome the learning challenge and rewire the brain with effective patterns of thought and behavior.

 

One-to-one computing is a relatively new educational lingo in Education. But one that's picking up speed as more and more schools across the country are placing mobile devices, such as laptops (Duxbury High School) or Ipads (Sacred Heart), into the hands of each student.  There are many implications to this initiative that must be considered as educational leaders manage the complex changes that one-to-one computing has on teaching in learning. One of these implications is the growth of new categories of online education. 

Defining the Scope of Investigation Online education reflects a highly diversified growth industry that represents all academic disciplines and uses a relatively recent set of technologies, which makes classification of the discipline a challenge. There are ten general categories relevant to online education, which are listed below:

1. Blended learning: Serving many different learning styles by offering a combination of virtual and physical resources
2. Hybrid learning: Often used interchangeably with blended learning; more explicit in the combination of face-to-face classroom instruction with online instructional delivery
3. Flexible learning (a term from Australia and New Zealand): Generic term that highlights learners choices about where, when, and how learning occurs; often used synonymously with open learning
4. Distance education/learning: Pedagogy, adult learning strategies (andragogy), and instructional systems delivering education to students who are not physically on site
5. Distributed learning: People educate themselves by engaging in learning activities at their own pace and at a self-selected time
6. E-learning: Planned teaching/learning experience using a wide spectrum of technologies, mainly Internet or computer-based, to reach learners
7. Online learning: Using the Internet to disseminate and manage classroom instruction
8. M-learning: Learning with mobile devices, such as iPods and cell phones
9. Virtual learning: A learning environment where teacher and student are separated by time or space, or both, and
10. Open learning: An educational approach (typically involving e-learning) that highlights flexibility and


Elbeck, M., Mandernach, B. Jean. (2009). International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning Journals for Computer-Mediated Learning: Publications of Value for the Online Educator 10(3). ISSN: 1492-3831