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ACHIEVEMENT COMPETENCETRAINING: A REPORT

PART VIII: ANECDOTAL REPORTS,

EXHIBITS, AND

STRUCTURED INTERVIEWS

By Peter BeckinghamFlorence V. DavisDorothy KekalosShirley H. Schmuckler

and the ACT Evaluation Staff

1974

ISRussell A. HillHumanizing Learning ProgramResearch for Better Schools, Inc.1700 Market StreetPhiladelphia, Pa. 19103

RESEARCH FOR BETTER SCHOOLS, INC.1700 Market Street, Philadelphia, Pa. 19103

Published by Research for Better Schools, Inc., a private nonprofit corporation. Theopinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the position orpolicy of the National Institute of Education and no official endorsement by theNational Institute of Education should be inferred.

The work upon which this publication is based was performed pursuant to Contract#NE-C-00-3-0088 with the National Institute of Education, Department of Health,Education and Welfare.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Since this part of the ACT Report offers descriptive evaluation data on a human,

personal level, we felt that this was the most appropriate place to express our

gratitude to the large number of persons who were so warm and helpful to us during

the many tryouts of ACT materials. Space does not permit listing all their names,

but we want to acknowledge here the aid and support given by each and every one.

To the principals and teachers whose names are included in the list of participating

schools at the back of this document, and to the many children who also took part

in the tryouts, our especial thanks for their cooperation. May they achieve all their

goals, both personal and professional.

-The ACT Staff

ABSTRACT

Achievement Competence Training (ACT) is a multimedia learning package designed

for use with children in the fifth through seventh grades. Its objectives are to teach a

six-step strategy for achieving personally meaningful goals and to develop attitudes

that will dispose the learner to use this strategy. The ACT program was field tested

with fifth-grade students in 32 Philadelphia area schools. During the field tests, over

115 anecdotal reports were collected from children taking ACT, their parents and

their teachers. Structured interviews were conducted with 1 1 teachers and 36

students. The children commented most on the self-awareness and the planning skills

they had developed from taking ACT. The teachers said that as a result of ACT,

their students were more autonomous, more cooperative, and more accepting of one

another. The anecdotes about class goal outcomes also reflect these behavioral

developments. The parents generally expressed support for and approval of the use

of ACT in the schools. Numerical results of teacher and student responses to ACT

evaluation interviews showed positive reactions.

VII

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS v

ABSTRACT vii

INTRODUCTION 1

ANECDOTAL REPORTS 3Children's Comments and Applications " 4Teachers'Comments and Applications 12Parents' Comments 25Comments on Group Goals 30

EXHIBITS 55Mirrors 56Strength-O-Grams 58Achievement Worksheets 60

STRUCTURED INTERVIEWS 65Teacher Interviews 65Student Interviews 87

LIST OF PARTICIPATING SCHOOLS 97

in

INTRODUCTION

Achievement Competence Training (ACT) is a multimedia learning packagedeveloped by Russell A. Hill and staff of the Humanizing Learning Program ofResearch for Better Schools, Inc. The ACT package was evaluated during the1972—1973 school year in 32 elementary schools in the Philadelphia area. Over3,000 children in 104 classrooms participated in the field testing.

This document is the eighth part of the complete report on ACT. It contains asubjective assessment of the program as expressed by teachers and students whohave used the ACT materials, and by the students' parents. The assessments are inthe form of anecdotal reports, exhibits of student responses to the lessons, andstructured interviews.

Most of the anecdotal reports were collected informally during the field test byPeter Beckingham, an ACT staff member who was the liason between Research forBetter Schools and the participating schools and teachers. In addition, some reportswere gathered from schools in various parts of the country during preliminary"hands-off" trials.

The exhibits are typical of the effort expended by the children in the "heat" of thelessons. Their quality indicates a positive attitude toward the materials, and we feelthat they represent a form of self-report that is more immediate and meaningfulthan one which is solicited by an interview.

The structured interviews were conducted formally with a randomly selected groupof teachers and students at the completion of the field testing.

1

A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACT PACKAGE

The ACT package teaches fifth-, sixth-, and seventh-grade children a behavioralstrategy that enables them to set and achieve their own goals. The strategy consistsof the following steps:

1. Study self 4. Plan2. Get goal ideas 5. Strive3. Set a goal 6. Evaluate

Step 1 calls for the children to study themselves — their past achievements andstrengths. Step 2 asks the children to use this self-study data to get ideas for goalsthat are personally meaningful. Step 3 teaches the children to set specific,medium-risk goals. Step 4 calls for the children to list the tasks they must do inorder to achieve their goals. Step 5 teaches a range of striving methods—such asenvisioning achievement or competing with an internal standard of excellence— thatthe children can use to help them persist in their efforts. Step 6 asks the children toevaluate the quality of their achievements.

The package comprises audio tapes, workbooks, games, filmstrips, and a teacher'smanual. The course content and activity directions are presented by the audio tape,thus freeing the teacher to function as facilitator and counselor. The parts of theprogram are so structured that they can be taken in short segments of twenty totwenty-five minutes or in longer blocks of time, from forty-five minutes to an hour.The strategy follows a spiral design wherein the children learn new skills in a contextthat provides practice for exercising skills learned previously.

The global objectives of the ACT program are to enhance children's belief in internalcontrol, to increase their effectiveness in action and self-direction, and ultimately tocreate in them a sense of personal agency. More specifically, the objectives of theprogram are learning to set one's own goals and learning to work competently toachieve these goals.

As you read through the anecdotes and interviews and scan the exhibits, ask yourselfthese questions: Do these instances of behavior seem to be attributable to the ACTpackage? If they do represent outcomes of the package, are they worthwhile? Andfinally, do they exemplify the objectives of the program as stated above?

ANECDOTAL REPORTS

The anecdotes in this section — plus many more — were collected by PeterBeckingham with the help of Shirley Schmuckler, both of Research for BetterSchools, Inc. They provide descriptive data about the effects of the"AchievementCompetence Training (ACT) program that cannot be developed in any other way.All the persons interviewed were most helpful and gave valuable insights into whatmay be expected from using ACT in the classroom.

To have printed all of the more than 115 anecdotes, however, would have created adocument of formidable size. Furthermore, many of them were repetitive in thatthey reflected essentially the same observations. The 50 that are included here wereselected on the basis of whether they provided the reader with a different point ofview about the effects of the ACT program. Reading them will provide anotherperspective for evaluation; they will give you a feeling for and an understanding ofthe effects of the package that you cannot get from reading the results of thestatistical analyses presented in Parts V, VI, and VII of the ACT Report.

The first group of anecdotes reports what the children said about the ACT programand how they used what they learned in their own lives. The second group reflectssome of the teachers' feelings about the package; their perceptions of the children'sfeelings; how they themselves used the concepts; and how they saw the childrenusing the ACT strategy in and out of class. Included also are a few comments fromsome of the school principals. Parents' comments were also recorded when possible,and they comprise the third group of anecdotes.

The anecdotes in the last section report on the final activity of the ACT course, thegroup goal. In this activity, the entire class sets, plans, and strives for a relativelycomplex goal. It is the culmination of the skills learned in previous lessons and is ahigh point of the course. In this group of reports, we see the effects of ACT from allpoints of view: teachers, children, parents, and principals.

ANECDOTES: CHILDREN

CHILDREN'S COMMENTS AND APPLICATIONS

The children's comments about ACT reflect a major effect in two important areas:planning and self-awareness. Children talked most consistently about the planningconcept. It seemed to be something that was, if not new to them, at least meaningfulfor the first time. Although not all children were writing lists of tasks, most were atleast applying forethought to their activities.

The second major effect was to increase self-awareness. Children could talk abouttheir strengths, and in some cases, their weaknesses and what they could do to workon them. Most of the children seemed more self-directed and in many cases weremore conscious of this sense of self-agency.

Because many of the children's anecdotes contain references to the "StrengthSurvey," and one mentions the "Strength-O-Grams," a brief explanation of eachseems necessary. The Strength Survey is a list of activities which the children readthrough and rate themselves on. The activities are grouped into five categories:physical, interpersonal, scholastic, artistic, and hand skills and hobbies. The childrenrate themselves in each activity as "great," "O.K.," or "not strong."

The Strength-O-Grams are positive messages which the children send each otherregarding their strengths. Samples of these Strength-O-Grams may be found onpages 58 and 59.

It should also be noted that the names of the children have been changed to protecttheir rights to privacy. The first person references in the anecdotes are to PeterBeckingham of Research for Better Schools, Inc.

ANECDOTES: CHILDREN

LYNNEWOOD SCHOOLTeacher: Marcella Addy

Some of the children in this school wrote letters telling what they thought about theACT project.

ANECDOTES: CHILDREN

WEST POINT SCHOOLTeacher: Gwendolyn Delp

Eric, who is very keen on diving, said he had used Achievement Worksheets to setgoals for this activity. He showed me his current worksheet on which he had writtenthe goal, "To achieve a triple somersault in two weeks." He reported he had told theinstructor who was working with him about this goal. Eric said that he felt using theACT concepts had helped him. The main effect he had noticed was in the way hehad learned to focus on one specific thing at a time and to aim for that.

* * * * * * * * *

Jeff recounted a story about how he had gone with his parents to visit somerelatives. While the adults were talking, he went out with his cousin, who introducedhim to some friends. These children had started to build a playhouse but got fed upwith the job and left it half-finished. Jeff upbraided them and told them theyneeded to use a striving method. When asked what that was, he explained about thelessons called ACT he had at school. He then proceeded to tell them about planningand the other steps. Before leaving, he got them not only to set a goal to get theplayhouse finished, but also to make a plan and actually get working on the thingagain. He was a serious boy and told the story in such a way that I believe it to betrue.

Jeff also reported that he felt the ACT materials had helped him in math becausenow he set goals, whereas last year he didn't and had not finished some assignments.He said that his parents had commented about changes in his behavior. When theyasked him about these changes, he told them about ACT. They were pleased withthe program and seem very supportive. Jeff is certainly very positive about how ACTis helping him. I did not feel I was just getting compliance.

* * * * * * * * *Debbie told me that she had been surprised and pleased with the results of theStrength Survey. She hadn't realized before how many strengths she did have. Shealso said that learning about risk had made her realize that some of the work she didfor a social studies project was really too easy. In one instance, she had redone areport to make it work of a higher standard.

* * * * * * * * *

Jeannie reported she had set and achieved the goal of teaching her dog to sit up. Shealso told me she hadn't realized before that "standing up for yourself" was astrength. When she learned this through the Strength Survey in Unit III, she realized"standing up for herself" was indeed one of her strengths.

ANECDOTES: CHILDREN

PENN VALLEY SCHOOLTeacher: Paul Martinelli

Linda said she liked the Strength Survey because she found out more about herself.She had not realized before how many strengths she had in the area of physicalactivities. Linda reported using ACT out of school— she had set a goal to get into thePhiladelphia Tennis Gold Cup competition. By using the planning concept, she hadset aside time for practice. As a striving method, she had pictured herself taking partin the competition. She feels ACT is definitely helping her and at the same timethought the lessons were fun.

* * * * * * * * *

Danny also liked the Strength Survey and discovered that teaching younger children,helping others with problems, and leading group discussions were all things that hedid which he hadn't recognized as strengths.

He had set a goal to make the soccer all-star game of the Gladwynne SoccerAssociation. Under "Planning" on the Achievement Worksheet, he had listed"working on my left foot" and "practice in taking longer shots." A typical in-schoolgoal for Danny seems to be "To get an A on the math test." For the striving methodused, he reported "remembering past achievements." He told me that writing thingsdown, planning, and striving were all new to him and he thought they were veryhelpful. He also spoke of parental interest and support for the ACT project.

Sean told me that putting tasks in order, which he had learned from the planningconcept, was especially helpful. He illustrated this by telling me about a modelrocket he had built at home. Before starting work on it, he had made a list of all thesteps, then reviewed the list to see what he should do first.

Sean also felt that ACT had helped him to work on and complete individual projectsin school. As an example, he described his current social studies project on Aristotle.It seemed that his planning was more thorough than it used to be. I felt that now hewas conscious of planning as a self-initiated and self-directed activity, as comparedto an earlier stage where planning was something accidentally engaged in.

8

ANECDOTES: CHILDREN

SALFORD HILLS SCHOOLTeacher: Russell V. Scaramastra

Jimmy said he thought the ACT project was mostly fun and that it was useful too.One of his goals had been to save money, and he felt happy when he had achievedthat goal. Another goal had been to get a BB gun, and for this he had planned howhe would raise the money.

Generally speaking, Jimmy felt he planned more as a result of using ACT. In schoolhe had used what he had learned to work on a social studies project about beaverdams. He had written down ideas for what he was going to do.

Jimmy also reported that he liked the sharing activities in ACT. As a result of agroup sharing session, he had helped another boy with his social studies project byoffering advice about building dams.

* * * ******

Lisa told me, "When I start things now, I finish them. Before, I never used to." Shealso said that she used to do things without thinking about them, but now she makesa list. When I pressed for examples, she mentioned cleaning up at home— she makesa list for this. I felt that the bit about making lists and being so completely better atplanning now was probably an exaggeration related for my benefit.

ANECDOTES: CHILDREN

KNAPP SCHOOLTeacher: Sondra C. Sykes

Sue reported that she wasn't bored anymore because now she could always think ofher past achievements, and from them she would get an idea of something to.do. Shefelt too that thinking about past achievements could give you confidence inproblem-solving. As an example, she told of a problem she was having with somephase of horseback riding. By thinking of what she had accomplished in the past, shehad confidence that she could solve this problem too.

Robert said he didn't know anything about goals or goal ideas, but he added that hedid use a striving method to help him get things accomplished. He imagined himselfboasting to his friends about what he had done!

THEODORE L VIVIAN SCHOOLTeacher: Eleanor Shea

Gary reported that before ACT he didn't even know what a goal was. Then he hadrealized how useful it could be and had set a goal to get a bird. I gathered he hadsuccessfully achieved this. He had also told his friends about ACT and had set a goalwith one of his friends to help him repair his bike.

Gary spoke with a great deal of excitement and animation. Once he got started, hetalked so much that it was difficult at times to get down all he said. He seemed tofind what he had learned from ACT both useful and relevant, and he was anxious totell everyone about it. When I asked him to name a personal strength, he said,"helping other kids."

Joanne told me about her experience of having to help at home when her motherwas sick. She had planned what tasks she had to do. From the way she spoke, Isensed that the planning had helped her to feel in control of the situation. She alsosaid that because of ACT she felt capable of doing more things.

10

ANECDOTES: CHILDREN

\

JENKINTOWN ELEMENTARY SCHOOLTeacher: Edward P. McKinsey, Jr.

Mark related that he now did more planning in his head. He said that he felt moreaware of his strengths, and that knowing them made him feel good. He then told meabout a goal he had set to become first trumpet in the junior band. When I askedhim if he had used a striving method, he said that he had pictured himself as the firsttrumpet player. He was smiling as he said this, and I had the impression that herewas a boy who thought in terms of success and who had found the ACT packageuseful.

* * * * * * * * *

Ellen told me that she had set a goal to swim fifty laps in the club pool. She didn'tmake it, but said that as a result she had learned not to set too high a goal in thefuture. She also told me about a goal she had set to make a foreign doll. Sherecounted how she had planned for it and how very proud she felt when shefinished. She gave the doll to her father for a birthday present. "He said it wasbeautiful," she added with a grin. This success gave her further ideas for sewingactivities, and she next set a goal to make a pillow for her mother's anniversary.

Ellen stated that before ACT she never planned and was always messing things up.Although this may well be an exaggeration, her case did seem to exemplify again thebenefits of a planned approach.

* * * * * * * * *

Cheryl had set a goal to break a forty-three second freestyle record at the swim club.She missed it by one second, and so decided to try again after she had evaluated herperformance. On a later attempt, she did reach her goal. Cheryl also said that sincetaking ACT, she felt that she didn't overlook so much and that she had learned touse new information.

11

ANECDOTES: CHILDREN

LOWER SALFORD SCHOOL

Teacher: Dorothy Krapf

Sharon reported to me that she felt good after she had completed the StrengthSurvey in Unit III, but after the Strength-O-Gram session she felt really great! Ingeneral, her feelings about the project were very positive. She regarded planning asthe most useful concept she had learned, and said it had changed her way of goingabout things. "Before ACT," she explained," I used to jump right in and make amess of everything."

As an example of her new approach, Sharon told about the way she was working onher social studies reports. She had a number of them to be completed. But instead oftaking them as they came, she wrote a list of all the reports and then put them inorder so she could see what would have to be done first. Using this method, she gotthem all done on time— something she said she would not have achieved before.

She also told me that she had set a goal to get a good report card. Her strivingmethod was to imagine the reaction of her parents when they looked at a goodreport card. Sharon reported that she felt she had achieved her goal.

12

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

ACT!?

TEACHERS' COMMENTS AND APPLICATIONS

Increased self-awareness and the use of the concept of planning emerge as thedominant effects of the ACT course also from the teacher's point of view. Inaddition, the teachers report that the children are more organized, more autono-mous (both individually and as a class), more accepting of one another and morecooperative.

The anecdotes that follow contain some excellent examples of how the children andthe teachers have used some of ACT's concepts and techniques, such asgroup-sharing and the Achievement Worksheet (see samples of the worksheets onpage|61,), to their advantage outside the confines of the ACT lessons. It is alsointeresting to note the ease with which the ACT vocabulary enters into the everydaylanguage of the classroom.

13

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

WEST POINT SCHOOL

Gwen Delp reported how much the children liked the ACT course. She also pointedout that the children constantly use the Achievement Worksheets in working towardtheir own goals. When she asked the class to name some of the things the sheets wereused for, the children called out a number of examples: social studies projects,report-making, learning to play musical instruments, working for Scout meritbadges, Christmas shopping, and sports such as kickball and diving.

One child showed me the worksheet she was completing to help herself and hergroup with the science project they were working on at that moment. The goal wasto assemble the bones of an animal. The class had divided into groups of four or five,and each group had a kit of plastic animal bones which they were to assemble intoan animal, using any resources they wanted.

Ms. Delp explained that some of the groups had used brainstorming to come up withdifferent ways of assembling the bones— putting the legs together first, laying all thebones out first, and so on. She felt it was very noticable how differently this classapproached such a project as compared to her last year's class. This difference shedefinitely attributed to ACT.

The children's increased awareness of planning, Ms. Delp said, was also very evidentin the social studies projects they were working on. Here they were involved in avariety of activities: making charts and models, drawing maps, writing reports.Again, she said, the children were asking for Achievement Worksheets. In addition,they were sharing information and ideas in a manner that previous classes had not.They were talking together and cooperating with one another in the ways they hadbeen taught by ACT.

Gwen Delp's final anecdote reveals, I believe, how relevant the ACT skills are whenboth teacher and class have a positive approach to them and use them beyond theconfines of the actual ACT lesson. This story came to light when I made somecomments on the Christmas bulletin board displays that the children had made. MissDelp smiled and related the facts behind their construction.

The story began earlier in the year, just before Thanksgiving. The girls had all leftthe classroom to go to another lesson. While they were out, the boys decided tomake a surprise for them. They would put up a Thanksgiving display on the bulletinboard and have it all finished by the time the girls got back. Matters, however, didn'twork out that way.

14

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

WEST POINT SCHOOL (continued)

First, there was disagreement about what the display should be and how it shouldlook. Then, when the boys started to put their work up, there were problems aboutdesign and size. Then too, they found there was not enough time to complete such alarge project. Ms. Delp had warned the boys about what a big job it was, but theyhad insisted optimistically that they could get it finished. Finally, though, the girlsreturned to find an unfinished, poorly made Thanksgiving bulletin board.

The boys were disappointed and disgruntled. Some were quite angry withthemselves. It wasn't until the children had done the planning lesson in Unit II thatsome of them realized they had found the missing ingredient. One of the boysshouted out, "That's what was wrong, Miss Delp. We didn't plan."

When it came close to Christmas time and the class decided to make some seasonaldisplays, the children themselves suggested that they start with a fifteen-minuteplanning period. Once they started, however, and experienced all the complexitiesinvolved, the fifteen minutes expanded into an hour of planning.

The children worked in groups and planned exactly what designs they would make,how large the figures would be, and so on. Some groups cut out all the design figuresbeforehand and laid them out to see what the final design would look like. Theythen tried different positions for some of the cutouts and made decisions about sizeand color before gluing the figures down into the final position. The finishedproducts took a couple of weeks to complete, but the results were the bestfifth-grade displays I have ever seen.

15

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

PENN VALLEY SCHOOL

Paul Martinelli told me about using ACT concepts with a social studies project hehad assigned to the children in his class. Part of the assignment was to fill out andhand in a completed Achievement Worksheet with the project. Each child's goalbecame the title of his project. In this way the children got down in writing a goalstatement in specific terms. Furthermore, they had a tangible way of monitoringtheir own progress.

Mr. Martinelli reported how pleased he was with the results. Every child handed in acompleted project and not one person was late. Although he has many good, highlymotivated students in his class, he told me that he had never achieved this resultbefore. He felt that it was an outcome of using the worksheets.

Later Mr. Martinelli commented that he found the rules for working in groups,which the children learned in Unit I of the course, very useful. (Since the childrenengage in a considerable amount of small-group work in ACT, they are introduced tosome rules that promote group cooperation. Then they are given some practicesituations and subsequently play a board game, "Achieve," in which they operatewith these rules.) Mr. Martinelli said that he was so pleased with the results that hedefinitely was going to teach these rules on a general basis with his new class thefollowing year. In fact, he planned to start the year off this way.

16

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

SALFORD HILLS SCHOOL

Russell Scaramastra reported an instance in which ACT training helped children towork together more effectively. One of his reading groups was to put on a play forthe class. Some members of the group were in the ACT class, while others were not.At first the children bickered and argued about how the play should be put on.Finally, a boy who had been a group leader in the ACT class suggested that theychoose a group leader to get things written down. The others agreed, and the groupbegan to plan for the play. It was obvious, Mr. Scaramastra said, that the initiativewas taken by children who were in the ACT program.

Since his class started working with the ACT materials, Mr. Scaramastra has noticeda general improvement. There is less chaos, and the children seem more open. Theyhave become used to sharing and exchanging information. These changes, he feels,are directly attributable to the group-sharing behavior they practiced in the ACTlessons. He added that the youngsters seem to be more willing to hear other pointsof view. Two students in particular seem less defensive and not so apt to withdraw.

Mr. Scaramastra has also found that the project work of his class is of a much betterquality. This change he also attributes to ACT because he had not directly talkedabout or practiced behaviors or strategies for improving project work. "ACT givesyou a basis to spring from," he explained. He told of one boy who was havingtrouble getting started with a social studies project. He met with the boy, referred toACT, and suggested some striving steps. Apparently it worked because the boy didget started.

Achievement Worksheets are used generally by the children for projects in class, butMr. Scaramastra reported that they had proved especially helpful with one of hisslower students. First he talked with the boy and helped him to set a goal. Then heshowed him how to plan for it using the worksheet. Later, the boy changed some ofthe tasks and replanned. Finally he achieved his goal.

17

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

MARCUS HOOK SCHOOL

In response to an ACT questionnaire, Rosemary Berry wrote: "I felt that ACThelped my class learn to be more accepting of one another. An example of this wastheir spontaneous response one day. The children had written creative stories. Whenthey finished, they sat in a big group on the floor to share their stories. I was amazedat their positive remarks' 'I liked the ending of your story,' 'You really used goodwords,' and so on.

"Because of ACT, I feel the children have begun to set personal goals in subjectsthey can achieve success in; for example, spelling. The program has a marvellousobjective. I feel there is still some 'ironing out' to be done, but I am happy to havehad the opportunity to be a part of ACT. Thank you."

PENN SQUARE SCHOOL

Elizabeth Bachteler applied the ACT strategy to start a class magazine. First sheoutlined the idea to the class, using achievement language and format. The questionthey focused on was "What will be our goal?" She encouraged the children to definethe main goal and then some subgoals. In the planning step, she got them to specifytasks, such as having each child bring in a joke or a story for the magazine. Finally,they set a time limit for achieving the goal.

18

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

CROOKED BILLET SCHOOL

Carl Groth reported that he used the ACT terms, such as strength or achieve, as partof the children's spelling vocabulary. He also told me about the effect of ACT on acouple of individual children in his class. One boy has some psychological problemsand is undergoing counseling. At the point in the ACT lesson where he had to writeabout his own strengths, this boy declared that he didn't have any. But Mr. Grothhad discovered that this boy's hobby was wrestling. He pointed out to the youngsterthat his ability to wrestle was a strength. The boy then recognized that his ability toplay chess was also a strength. So he was able to write down two items. Mr. Grothfelt this had helped to raise the boy's self-esteem a little. He also said that it hadgiven him some insight into the boy's behavior that otherwise he might not havehad.

Another boy was very negative about the class goal, which was set in terms of takinga camping trip. His contributions to the planning discussion were always pessimisticremarks like "You're wasting your time, you know we won't go," or "We haven'tgot the equipment." To which the other children replied, "Sure we can make it," or"Our family has a tent and my dad says we may borrow it." The boy, howevermaintained his negative attitude almost until the final planning stage. Finally herealized that the class really was going on a camping trip. Faced with this fact, hechanged his attitude. "Now he is a believer," Mr. Groth said. "He believes you cando things."

19

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

ROBERT HILL LANE SCHOOL

Principal Joyce Zikas reported that one of the students in that school's ACT classwas unusually enthusiastic about the program. This boy had a speech problem andwas having treatment for it during school hours. One day the speech teacher came tocollect him for a speech session while the ACT program was in progress.

The boy asked the teacher if he could take his lesson during recess for that day. Sheagreed, but later in the day she came back to find out what it was that had sointerested this boy that he would give up recess rather than miss it.

Keith Lord, a teacher at this same school, wrote a letter describing how a group ofeducators had used ACT in formulating a new school program. In part, he said,"What is ACT? If it is training in becoming competent and achieving one's goal ineach individual life-style, then it's not a program for our children only, but a trainingfor us as well. Joyce Zikas, principal; Roberta Rowland, coordinator of programs;and Keith A. Lord, classroom teacher, regard this training very highly. We like it wellenough to use its prerequisites as a format for structuring an innovative program.This program is attempting to accelerate learning."

Using the six achievement steps — study self, get goal ideas, set a goal, plan, strive,and evaluate — as their basic format, this group of educators met regularly and sentme notes about the meetings and about their progress toward their general goal. Oneset of notes is reproduced on the following page.

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ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

TEAM TEACHING PROGRAM NOTES 5/11/73

Self Study

We need to regroup our students with different prerequisites.We need to develop what prerequisites we will use to regroup.We need to consider adding another classroom to our teaming.

Get Goal Ideas

Add another room to our teaming.Develop the prerequisites for nongrading.Continue to find and use the appropriate learning task from

the IPI Math Program and other pertinent resource materials.

Set Goal

Add Room 12 with Mrs. Cole to our teaming.Set up the prerequisites we will use to determine the appro-

priate group for each student.Continue to research and find pertinent information to be

used as we develop the prerequisites for nongrading.

Plan

Mrs. Zikas to ask Mrs. Cole to join our teaming.Team to meet 5/15/73 and 5/16/73 and start regrouping students

by the nongraded prerequisites.Start the program on 5/16/73.

Strive

We will regroup on the following prerequisites:Most important: a program to fit the students.

The team members will program their program to thelearning style of the student.

Important: diagnosing students on the following criteria:mental development physical developmentemotional development educational development

social development

Consider the following prerequisites:a. What style of teaching is best for this student?b. What kind of group would be best for this student?c. At what level of learning is this student working?

Evaluation

We will have added another class to the teaming which willfacilitate a more realistic situation in the teaming.

We will have regrouped using the decided prerequisites.

21

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

WYNDMOOR SCHOOL

Dianne Bupp reported an example of how techniques learned in the ACT programmay be transferred. She was house- and child-sitting for the parents of a girl who hadtaken ACT the previous year. During the evening she went looking for the child andfound her in the kitchen, planning her tasks. Although the girl seemed a littleembarrassed about what she was doing, she explained that when she had a lot ofthings to do — such as homework assignments, putting out the garbage, — she wrotethem down in a list and then put them in order. Since the list-making reflected askill taught in Unit II, Ms. Bupp felt that this was obviously related to learning thathad transferred from ACT. She also reported that she used ACT terminology (strive,goal, achieve, etc.) constantly with her classes.

Ms. Bupp is a good example of a teacher who took a basic idea from the program —in this case, writing down goals and planning on Achievement Worksheets —andadapted it to suit her own needs. She designed a worksheet of her own, which shegave to her children and encouraged them to try using it, although she did not makeit compulsory. It had designated sections where the children specified their goals forthe week, wrote down any tasks for planning, and then evaluated their achieve-ments. The sheets were to be collected once a week.

22

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

AMOSLAND SCHOOL

Patricia Muth reported that as a result of what her children learned from ACT, shewas really surprised. To celebrate her engagement, the youngsters arranged for asurprise party, a project that was in no way connected with their class goal. Shelearned the details of organization only after the party was over by talking to someof the children.

On the big day the children darkened the room during lunch hour and put updecorations (including wedding bells) that they had made themselves. Then they laidout the food and gifts they had brought.

Ms. Muth said that when she arrived, she was puzzled by the darkened room. Thensomeone started playing a wedding march on the piano. Until that moment she hadbeen completely unaware of what was going on. Afterward, she found that thechildren had collected some money, had split up into groups of five, and then met ata shopping mall to decide what they would buy. The shopping was the only activityin which a parent was involved.

After the party was over, brooms appeared and the children began to clean up. Thisstep also had been carefully planned. Ms. Muth emphasized the contrast betweenthis party and the one the class had the previous year for which the mothers haddone everything.

I think it's important to note that Ms. Muth was critical of some aspects of theprogram. As she told me about the party, however, she was enthusiastic and pleasedabout the behaviors the children had exhibited, which she felt were an outcome oftheir learning from ACT.

23

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

THEODORE LYMAN SCHOOL

Eleanor Shea was extremely positive about the whole ACT program. But one of theaspects that particularly interested her was the way in which it had changed herteaching style. Prior to ACT, she felt she had tended to "spoon-feed" her children,and she had followed the curriculum very closely. After taking part in the program,however, she found that the children took a more active role in the learningsituation. "It was more a two-way street," she said. "They had more say." It allstarted with a simple request. She asked her class what time they would like to havethe ACT lesson that day. From that point on, the children's involvement expanded.

Ms. Shea also cited other changes in her methods. At the beginning of the year shehad divided the children into groups, which varied for each subject but were basedon ability. When the ACT program was started, she allowed the youngsters to picktheir own groups. It was very interesting, she said, to see who would go with whom.After seeing some of the positive reactions within the new groupings, she decided tolet the children choose their own groups for a social studies project on pastpresidents of the United States. Each group had to choose a given number ofpresidents and prepare a presentation. By encouraging them to use the self-actualizing skills they have learned, she has given these groups maximum freedom toplan and execute their projects. At the time of the interview, this project was stillgoing on and Ms. Shea was pleased with the progress the children were making.

24

ANECDOTES: TEACHERS

OAK PARK SCHOOL

Carol-Lynne Wiley told me that she had received several comments recently abouther ACT class. A substitute teacher had said that the class seemed to be much moreorganized and independent than the other one (control class) she had taught. Thelibrarian had also mentioned that the children in the ACT class seemed to be moreindependent and better able to work by themselves in the library. Ms. Wiley felt thatthese characteristics could be attributed to behaviors the children had learned fromACT.

One of the techniques Ms. Wiley used with her class was the striving method called"Going to a Special Place." (A Special Place is any spot that the student can go towhere he feels he works best.) She encouraged the children to experiment and try todiscover their own Special Place within the classroom. Several children requestedand were allowed to work on the floor. Some of them seemed to benefitmotivationally by having this freedom. .__

In a written report Ms. Wiley added, "Quite a few of my kids have home problemsand are under psychological guidance. Other teachers have commented on howmuch more mature they think my class is, compared to the other two [groups in thefield test design]. Individual children have shown marked improvement in theirwork habits and in decision-making. I'm pleased with the program's results."

25

ANECDOTES: PARENTS

PARENTS' COMMENTS

From time to time I had the opportunity to talk to some of the parents whosechildren were taking ACT. Sometimes the meetings took place at normal schoolfunctions. More often, though, the meetings would occur at the event that was theoutcome of the class goal. At these times the parents were usually in a positive frameof mind, having been buoyed up by what they had seen their children do. Theywere proud of their children and their achievements, so their positive reaction isunderstandable.

At other times, however, the parents were invited to come to school and were askeddirectly to comment about their observations of and reactions to the ACT lesson.Generally the parents were positive, expressing support and approval for the idea ofACT being used in the school. Often their comments were spontaneous and ebullient,like that of one mother who said, "I think it's fabulous. School was never like this. Iwish I could go back."

27

ANECDOTES: PARENTS

KNAPP SCHOOLTeacher: Sondra Sykes

The mother of one boy in the ACT class claimed that her son was awake for the firsttime in five years! She had noticed a sudden and startling change in hisaccomplishments in school. This change was mostly due, she felt, to maturationalfactors and the fact that he had overcome some learning problems he had as a youngchild. Nevertheless, she felt that ACT had helped also. It had given him a strategythat he could apply to his life both in school and at home.

The boy's counselor, as well as his teacher, also recognized the change. Thecounselor now works to help the youngster set goals in academic areas and to helphim achieve them. Several times the boy has set goals for math, which he not onlyachieved, but in doing so he actually surpassed his original aim. These experiencesboosted his self-esteem and gave him the confidence to continue. The boy himself isvery positive about the program. He felt that much of his success was due to hishaving taken ACT.

28

ANECDOTES: PARENTS

SALFORD HILLS SCHOOLTeacher: Russell Scaramastra

At the end of May I attended the class food and fun picnic, which was theculmination of a series of activities. (See page 48 for a description of this event.) Italked with two mothers who had come out to help with the arrangements. Onemother was generally supportive, but the other had more specific things to say aboutthe ACT program and its effects on the children. She said she thought it had beenparticularly good for the girls, in that it had helped them to gain self-confidence. Shealso said that she had noticed some beneficial effects on her son.

When I pressed her to describe these effects, she replied that the changes she hadnoted were subtle ones. He seemed generally more confident, and at home he hadmore to say for himself. Previously he had rarely spoken up. But now in similarsituations, he would make suggestions — such as solutions to a domestic problem oralternatives to a proposed outing.

I suggested that a maturational factor might be involved in this change in behaviorand asked how she could be sure that it was an outcome of ACT. She said itprobably was the result of both maturation and the program, but she really felt thatACT had given her son an awareness of himself that was a great advantage to him.She added that now he seemed to have more sources for ideas, which she felt was aresult of ACT. This, I thought, was a reasonable assumption because during myinterviews with many children, several of them told me that they had more ideas forthings to do as a result of working with the brainstorming technique or probing theirown past successes.

29

ANECDOTES: PARENTS

OAKMONT SCHOOLTeacher: Betty Hendricks

The following letter is typical of the general feeling of support expressed by manyparents for the ACT program and its aims.

30

ANECDOTES: PARENTS


(Note: The comments in this anecdote were made by parents of first-grade childrenwho had organized a project under the sponsorship of the ACT fifth-grade class.)

After the fifth graders completed their class goal, the principal suggested that theymight like to use the skills they had learned in planning and goal-setting to help thefirst grades organize a project. Encouraged by their teacher, the children decided todo it. Working independently with the first graders, they took them through suchsteps as brainstorming goal ideas, putting together goal statements, voting for a finalgoal, and listing tasks for that goal. The ACT class then divided into groups witheach group assigned to help groups of first graders.

The goal they came up with was to arrange a pet show. After the successfulcompletion of the show, I talked with some of the parents of the first-gradechildren. One mother mentioned how great the children thought the fifth-gradesponsorship was. She noted with some amusement that the show had even includedsome stuffed animals!

Another parent reported that she saw no adults managing the children and felt surethat the children had done it all themselves. It seemed a little disorganized, she said,but she got the impression that the youngsters were very much involved. She endedby saying that she thought the whole concept of the ACT package was good, quitedifferent from anything she had at school.

A third mother said she thought the whole show was well organized and that itseemed evident that the fifth grade was running it. She was impressed by the factthat the fifth graders didn't just hand out the prizes, but that they were alsoinvolved in measuring the animals and making the decisions.

Another mother told me how excited her son had been about the project and howproud he felt when his dog won a ribbon for the pet that did the most tricks. Shefelt it wasn't just a big game — the children had taken the activity seriously and hadhandled it well.

Another parent also mentioned that it wasn't all fun and games. She had noticedthat some of the boys had measured the dogs, using finger spans to determine whichone was biggest. She thought it was obvious that a lot of effort had been put intothe show. One of the details she noted was that the children each got a decoratedlollipop as well as a prize.

31

ANECDOTES: GROUP GOALS

32


COMMENTS ON GROUP GOALS

In the last unit of the package the children use all the ACT skills they have learnedto organize and achieve their own class goal. Again they follow the six achievementsteps, but this time as a group. For example, in the first step — Study self — the"self" now becomes the class. Th'e children list the strengths and past achievementsof their class.

Some past achievements listed were:

First class to accomplish square dance goals in gymLetter to the PresidentMade cards for old folks homeSent cards to Mary when she had appendicitis

Examples of class strengths were:

Math homework (consistent in doing it)Writing good storiesWe try not to make the art teacher yell for more than 3 to 5 minutes!Write good book reportsGood at organizing materialsWe try to make an extremely shy newcomer feel at home in our class

The class goals themselves were as varied as the number of classes who participated.Some of the anecdotes that follow are Peter Beckingham's eye-witness reports. Theothers are from verbal and written reports made by teachers and principals.

33


OAKMONT SCHOOLTeacher: Betty Hendricks

The class goal was,1973."

'Have a Revolutionary War play ready to give by March 23,

The children wrote the play themselves after they had studied that period of historyand done further research. Ms. Hendricks reported that they planned the wholeactivity and followed it through, including making the costumes, with very littlehelp from her.

I was able to attend the performance myself. The class had also received permissionto have parents present that morning. Guests were shown to their seat by two girlsdressed in period costumes.

The play was quite long with many scene changes, but the performance wasextremely good. Obviously the children had spent a lot of time rehearsing andlearning lines. The costumes too had been put together with thought and care.

The parents were pleased and impressed, and the children were "proud as peacocks."Later the principal told me that he had been most impressed with the planningsessions he had observed. He was very pleased to see a degree of discursive skill, aplanning acumen that he felt represented considerable growth for this class. At thebeginning of the year, he said, he would not have thought that this class was capableof such concerned planning and cooperation.

34


OAK PARK SCHOOLTeacher: Carol-Lynne Wiley

The class goal was, "Raise money for our camping trip (about $700-$8QO) by May 9,1973, and have a party up at Camp Laughing Waters."

I asked Ms. Wiley how the children were going to raise such a large amount ofmoney. She told me that they planned to rent movies and arrange performances forthe children at the school, charging a ten-cent admission. During the performance,the children would sell popcorn, which they had bagged. Each child also made acommitment to earn $3.00 by doing odd jobs outside of school, mostly chores athome.

Ms. Wiley reported: "We made and earned approximately $800 for our trip. Wecamped May 9—11 and had a party Thursday night that turned out to be a 'goingaway' party for one fifth-grade teacher." She was very positive about the resultsobtained from the ACT package. She felt it had helped with the camping trip aridthat the children had a repertoire of goal-striving and planning strategies that theycould build on.

I also talked to some of the children about their impressions of the camping trip.Their comments were equally positive: "It was great. We had a lot of fun." "We didfun things — we walked across some rapids — we found a big old bee nest." One girltold about some of their planned activities, such as drawing animal life and lookingat nature.

Another girl told me that she thought the whole project had been worthwhile andthat the things they had learned from ACT had helped them organize and plan thetrip.

Only one boy seemed negative about the trip. He thought that it was too organizedand that he should have been allowed just to wander off and not have to participatein any group activities.

35


OUR CLASSPast- Aihie/emerits

MANOA SCHOOLTeacher: Bernadine I. DeCampli

This class brainstormed sixty-seven ideas for possible class goals! (See Figure 1 forcomplete list.) Although this number far exceeds that of all other classes involved inthe ACT tryouts, it represents the breadth of ideas that the brainstorming techniquecan generate. As in the other classes, the teacher filed the excess ideas and used themlater as a source for future goals.

The class goal they ultimately set was, "To have a fun festival for senior citizens byThursday, March 22." Partway through the project, Ms. DeCampli sent out aprogress report (Figures 2,3,4), which gives some idea about the scope andbackground of this goal. Also included here is the information sheet (Figure 5) thatwas prepared to give the guests when they arrived. Ms. DeCampli later wrote: "Eachchild invited guests of his own choice in the neighborhood. They made a special giftof love for each guest. There was no money exchanged. They provided allrefreshments and hand-printed the invitations. The guests — fifty in all — respondednicely. Games were the medium of communication after the people were orientedby their host or hostess about modern school life."

She also reported that the children made many new friends and learned a number ofsocial graces: for example, the use of R.S.V.P., and how to make peoplecomfortable. The children were really proud, she added. One boy was overheard tosay, "We need better relations with people so we can understand them."

36


Goal

ShowsMake a show for the communityAnimal ShowShow for first gradePuppet showArt showHave a play

Sportsmake a kickball teamfifth grade Olympicsbasketball teamsoccerstreet hockey teambaseball teamhave a football team

Contestswheelbarrow racessock racewrestling contestspeed contestkicking contestwriting contestlaughing contestbubble gum blowing contestweight-lifting contestthrowing contestpie-eating contestbanana-eating contesthave a spelling bee

New Ideas

1

^'•^?xL o"54* <fledus •*-' * J i__ t

y^c j ?iît-s (L^^^^/"• __/ ;

C <- &-£nj£'4~s ^2^-^LJL^1

('*in<j ., >

Ideas from Brainstorming

Community ProjectsHelp clean up Darby CreekInvite people to our classroomClean out our desksShovel drivewaysbe nice to older peoplecut lawnsrake leaveshave a party for older folkscollect trash from their lawnsmake a vegetable gardenrecycle paper and bottleshave a bazaar for older folkshelp Mrs. Hutton in the cafeteriaclean up the fieldwrite consumer letters to companies

Tripsvisit Mrs. DeCampli's housevisit White Housevisit old folks hornsgo to a children's wardvisit Mr. Fisher's housego on a picnicgo to ice cream shopgo on a hikego to zoogo on a camping tripgo on trip to other schools

Artsculpture a horse and paint itmake a movie

, make a mural

t-'./ jUJS drawing contestmake a go-cartfinger paintmake stuff out of clayfifth grade concertmake own product

imaice a newspapermake a recordmake a bird home

i /2x!c<- 6/St -lJ Kl- /t-&'M)Ji__ &*&/ &s /U*~&,£-&sq\s£-tt.'}L&(L j.-

Figure 1. Manoa School—Ideas for Class Goals 37


WiAT'5 GOING ON? a special progress reportfrom Mrs. DeCampli's class

FESTIVAL TOR

WHEN? Thursday, March 22, 1973

from 1:00-3:00 P.M.

WHERE? East wing of Manoa School

Who? Special guests invited by

Students in 5 DE

The above achievement symbol was chosen by the class to represent

the entire project. There are six balloons, each one representing one

of the steps necessary in achieving a goal:

1. study self 4. plan

2. get goal ideas 5. strive

3. set a goal 6. evaluate

Since the beginning of the year the students have been learning

how to make better use of their time by learning the proper procedures

of planning and working toward their individual goals. This is the

culminating group activity where each student realizes his personal

worth in a group activity.

Figure 2. Manoa School—Class Goal Progress Report (Sheet 1)

38


Just exactly what are we trying to do here???? (OBJECTIVES)

We now know what each one of us inthe class can do best. Mow we wantto put all our strengths togetherand see what we can accomplish.

We often feel that the older peopledon't like us. They often keep usfrom doing what we want to do. Maybeit's because they don't think wecan do anything worthwhile. Maybe we'llfind out what they really think.

It's just like a new kid that comesto our class, if no one explainswhat goes on here he wouldn't likeus. Often times a new kid surprisesus with what he can do, like being agood kickball player or having aneat collection or something. Wethink sharing ideas is what it's allabout.

You never stop to think about it, butif you study our strengths, they haveall gotten strong by everything wepractice in school. It takes math.,reading, spelling, handwriting, art,group work (which we learn about insocial studies, too) and, of course,good oral and written language to dothis project. Maybe we should stop andthink more about how school helps us inother ways, like achieving our goals inscouts, on the Little League field, at theswimming pool or making friends.

WHAT KIND OF ACTIVITIES WILL BE AVAILABLE?

So far the students have planned various types of games such ascheckers, chess, toss games, perhaps a type of bingo. None are definiteyet but they do want to keep it easy to play. They want to have prizesfor everybody. Those who do not want to play any games may perhapscrochet or make a project of their own. Perhaps they will want to justlook around and have some »ood old-fashioned conversation. We are pre-pared for that. We hope to supply them with some type of refreshment.No $$$ is involved.

Figure 3. Manoa School—Class Goal Progress Report (Sheet 2)

39


Although this project is to be handled as totally as possible by the

children themselves, it is of the utmost importance that you have a complete

knowledge as to the whys, hows and wherefores of this undertaking.

The objectives should make it quite clear as to their reasons. Eachchild in 5 DE is to invite two(2) senior citizens frfim the Manoa SchoolCommunity, preferably not their relatives, as the main purpose is statedin the objectives. People from their own neighborhood would be just great,(i.e. one student thinks perhaps a neighbor will allow their street hockeygame to take place if they understand them better.)

Your guidance or a follow up to the invitation may be necessary.We will try to make the invitations clear, but if you can answer anyquestions for the guests your child has in mind please feel free to helpus out.

Transporting these guests, should they need it, may be a way thatparents could help out. If you or someone you know could arrange to bringyour child's guests at 1:00 and pick them up at 3:00 we would be grateful.Please contact us if you have trouble with transportation. Allow yourchild to make as many of the arrangements as possible. Do not do toomuch for him or her.

The students have chosen a large but a very beautiful task! Theywill probably want to make cupcakes or cookies or candy. We hope youdon't mind.

Please lend your support by showing an interest in the project andkeeping up with the progress as the children strive to achieve this veryworthwhile goal.

If you have any ideas that we could use or care to contribute any-thing, use the space belox-7 to contact our class. Address your ideas toNeil F who is leading the project or John F who will be super-visor of the comnittee work. All the jobs are not volunteered for yet,so your child will keep you informed as to what that particular task ofhis or hers will be.

' /

40 Figure 4. Manoa School—Class Goal Progress Report (Sheet 3)


De's Fun Festival

HELLO!! We're glad you are here! All wehope to accomplish today is to get to know oneanother better. Your host or hostess can takeyou around our areas and tell you some of thethings we do in our regular school day. Thetwo other fifth grades, which have 66 morepupils, are having special activities in the

gym this afternoon. At 2:00 P.M., if youwish, a guide will show you around the other

building.Enjoy yourself! Stay as long as you like.

Take part in some of the activities. Gamesmake people relax (and kids, too) and getacquainted better.

Section A

SEE the CENTERSCraft Corner ****Science CornerPoker BingoChessCheckersPlantsMath GamesPrizes of your ChoiceGuest Book

Section B

SEE the CENTERSCard gamesFun roulettepainting

Section C

SEE the CENTERSScrabbleTable TennisPuzzlesKismetDominoesSkittle Ball .Battleship

PLEASE don't forget to sign the guest book before you leave!!!!

Refreshments will begin around 2:00, but if you have to leave early,make sure you get served first.

Have a happy afternoon!

*sV*&Monique M and helpers have some lovely ideas for things to makein the craft corner.

Figure 5. Manoa School—Class Goal Information Handout 41


CHATHAM PARK SCHOOLTeacher: Ruth Brown

The class goal was, "Invite fifth- and sixth-grade classes to watch our basketballgame on May 2, and make hoagies which we'll sell for 50 cents each to raise moneyfor earthquake victims in Nicaragua."

When asked if the class achieved its goal, Ms. Brown wrote: "Yes; committeesplanned well; took orders; collected money; found wholesale sources for ingredientsfor hoagies (some donated); advertised project; made and delivered hoagies; madeprofit of $38.90; had well-played basketball game; thanked everyone who helped."

Ms. Brown commented further about the benefits of the project, which she called "areally unifying experience!" "The children met periods of discouragement," shesaid, "but they rallied, replanned, and forged ahead. Everyone was involved to someextent, and they all experienced pride and satisfaction."

She also mentioned that the class had gained a closer rapport with the principal whorefereed the game. His congratulatory note was highly valued. In addition, thechildren accepted without fuss the leadership of youngsters who had natural talentsin various fields of expertise. There was some arguing during basketball practice, butfor the most part the children showed amazingly good sportsmanship. "Theychastened the few poor sports firmly, but without rancor," Ms. Brown concluded.

42


LYNNEWOOD SCHOOLTeacher: Barbara Dervitz

The class goal was, "Plan to entertain at a children's hospital or convalescent home."

In this case the original goal was not achieved because early research by the childrenshowed that it was not a practical goal to pursue. Transportation was the mainproblem. But this was a chance for the children to practice the replanning skillstaught by ACT. The goal was accordingly amended to read, "To have a Wagon Traintype campfire on Friday, February 23."

Ms. Dervitz reported that the striving method the children used was "promising areward," the reward being to perform before the whole school. The day of thepicnic went well until a fuse blew because all the electrical appliances used to cookthe pancakes were plugged into the same circuit. The children rallied, however, andreported the blown fuse to the principal. Then after a group replanning effort, theyrelocated their cooking activities in different parts of the school so the electricalcircuits would not be overloaded.

"After it was over," Ms. Dervitz wrote, "there was a beautiful feeling ofaccomplishment and camaraderie. We did perform our production and it was doneto perfection." When it came time for the children to evaluate their performance,the children agreed that they had achieved their goal. One boy, though, objected togiving the class a plus for the planning step because they hadn't listed replanning forthe fuses. The rest of the class protested. "We replanned when the fuse blew," oneyoungster pointed out. "We couldn't have known ahead of time that it wouldhappen." Another child added, "You replan when you run into difficulty."

43


The fifth grade at Knapp Elementary will show 'on Thursday afternoon at2:45 three films made by the students. The class chose the film project asa culminating activity after several months of working with a goal/achievementoriented package of materials supplied by Research For Better Schools. As afinal group project the students decided to combine two suggested ideas fromseveral they had submitted. They wanted to raise money to donate to theS.P.C.A. and they wanted to make a movie. Result: the films at a slightcharge to the audience — 15? for children and 25c for adults. Popcorn andpunch will be sold for 5c. The showing in the cafeteria will last approxi-mately one half hour.

THE DEEP DARK DREAM POND

It begins as a live-action film showing a boy and girl going fishing.The film then switches to animation and shows what the children imagine isin the pond

MAGIC WITH EL FLOPPO

This is a live-action comedy showing a magician doing all the traditionaltricks, except that they all go wrong...sawing the woman in half, card tricks,etc. At the end of the film El Floppo is left, still struggling to untieknots in his Rope Trick, while his audience cheers.

THE WORLD'S WORST BASEBALL TEAM

A live-action comedy showing a wacky ball team that makes Charlie Brown'steam look like the Mets...a ballet-dancing pitcher, a batter who can't liftthe bat, a catcher using a blanket instead of a mitt, etc.

The teachers are Miss Sue Paraskewik, Mrs. Kathy Zackon, and Miss Sondra Sykes.

Figure 6. Knapp School—Class Goal Handout

44


KNAPP SCHOOLTeacher: Sondra Sykes

The goal of this class was, "Make a comedy movie before the end of school. Chargemoney to see it and give proceeds to the SPCA."

In this school the ACT group was part of a larger group of seventy-five childrenhoused in a large open-plan room that could be partitioned to make three separateclassrooms. As a result of this arrangement, both of the other groups also wanted toset goals to make their own movies. The ACT students, however, took theresponsibility for supervising the other two groups, for integrating the project, andfor organizing the event when the three movies would be shown.

When I looked in on the class in late April, Ms. Sykes told me that the ACT groupwas brainstorming ideas for the subject matter of the movie. She seemed pleased notjust with the amount of progress the children were making, but also with the degreeof involvement, independence, and capability that the children were showing.

On the last day of school I went to see the movie performance. Outside the cafeteriawas a colorful poster advertising the "Fifth Grade Film Festival." A program (seeFigure 6) had been prepared and was handed out to people as they entered. At atable on one side of the hall some of the ACT children were selling popcorn anddrinks. Later I learned that the youngsters had made their own popcorn, bagged it,and then sold it for five cents a bag. Other children made the punch, which they soldfor five cents a cup.

There were two showings that day. The first was underway when I arrived.Eighty-three children and a few parents made up the audience. At the end of the lastfilm, I spoke to the teacher who was operating the projector. She said that she andthe children were really surprised at how many people had attended because schoolwas finished for the year.

45


KNAPP SCHOOL (continued)

As the time approached for the second showing, more children turned up to buypopcorn and punch. Supplies were soon completely sold out, and the cafeteria wasjammed with people. I managed to squeeze in the back as the last of the parentswere filing in. The three films ran for nine minutes each. They were without asoundtrack, but the children had worked out an accompanying tape of music whichthey synchronized with the start of each film. This extra dimension gave more polishto the presentation, and the audience seemed to enjoy the film festival very much.

After the showing, I again spoke to Ms. Sykes about the whole project. She told methat her class was overwhelmed by the fact that people would pay money to seesomething they had made, and added that she felt the same way.

In all the class raised over $47 to be given to the SPCA. They were surprised andpleased at this amount, which was considerably higher than they had expected. Ms.Sykes felt that the children had gained a great deal from this particular goal. She waspleased at the way her group had shown evidence of independence and at how wellthey had accomplished things that she had supposed might be too difficult for them.

Another outcome of the project was the emergence of unexpected talents. Ms. Sykesreported that one boy who was not usually included socially by the others becamethe "star" of one of the films. "Now he seems more accepted by his peers," she said."And he also seems to have gained confidence in his own abilities."

Another student, whose weakest subject was math, voluntarily took charge ofcollecting the money at the performances. He not only acted in a totally confidentmanner, but also did an accurate job. The teachers expressed surprise about this andmentioned that when something like that happened, it forced them to look atindividuals in a new light.

46


PRIMOS SCHOOLTeacher: Elizabeth Warshawer

The goal of this class was, "Have a kids-as-teachers day for grades 1-4 during the firstweek in March."

The project was a success. Ms. Warshawer reported, "The children met with variousteachers who showed interest in the project after our advertising campaign. Theyplanned intricate lessons and very successfully completed their goal. The youngerchildren really seemed to benefit from the contact."

In addition to the new experiences, the children also gained insight into some of theproblems faced by a serious teacher. They were amazed at the amount of planningnecessary to teach an interesting lesson. They also became acquainted with manymaterials that the school has. And together with increased awareness came thereality of the sheer amount of physical and mental energies needed to teach.

"The kids came back pooped at the end of the day," Ms. Warshawer said. "Somewere amazed that lessons they had planned for hours took only minutes to teach.Some children were able to verbalize about their increased understanding andexpressed appreciation for all the work teachers must do. They realized the greatamount of reinforcement necessary in teaching. Several made comments aboutwanting to be teachers."

47


FOLSOM-EDGEWOOD SCHOOLTeacher: Helen O'Rourke

The class goal was, "To win a soccer and a hockey game vs. Mrs. Filson's class."

To the question, "Did the class achieve its goal?" Ms. O'Rourke replied, "The soccergame resulted in a 0-0 tie. The hockey game was won 1-0 by our class." She addedthat the children gained more than one might think from such a goal.

"The soccer game," she wrote, "consisted of more arguments between the classesthan actual playing. Our class was angry at the poor sportsmanship of the otherclass. After much discussion our class tried a new approach prior to the hockeygame, which was played on another day. This game went exceedingly well. Theapproach was that our best diplomat was chosen to discuss the rules and generalfair-play tactics with the other class prior to the game."

48


LYNNEWOOD SCHOOLTeacher: Mar eel la Addy

This class chose a long-range and complex goal: "To raise plants from seed to sell atthe Haverford Historical Fair on May 10."

The seeds were planted early in the year. When I visited the school in May, theplants were fully grown, and the children were bustling about, excited about theupcoming fair. In addition to growing the plants, the children had made largeartificial flowers and put them together in a very attractive and colorful display. Theflowers were also to be sold individually at the fair.

The project was successful, although not without its problems. Ms. Addy wrote inher report, "The goal was achieved with much replanning and striving. A great dealof distress came when plants were mishandled by others. Ingroup tolerancedeveloped, but it was wearing thin near the end. Some individuals just did not wantto work with the group. Two girls in particular grew beautiful plants but would notallow the others to water or transplant them. They did relinquish them for the sale,however."

At the fair there was much counting and recounting of the money, and as the daywent on, prices were changed. The total earned was $45 for the Historical Society."Everyone felt good about the results," Ms. Addy said. "This was an achievementfor the class."

49


SALFORD HILLS SCHOOLTeacher: Russell Scaramastra

The goal of this class was, "To hold a food and fun picnic in the month of May."But the children decided that first they would need to find a way to raise the moneyneeded to buy the food and other materials. After some debate, they decided on abake sale, which in effect became another class goal in its own right.

The children formed committees to handle both the bake sale and the picnic. Theyincluded a planning committee, which was to decide on prizes, make up price tagsfor the cakes, etc.; a food committee, which would decide on the menu for thepicnic; a games committee that would decide on the activities to be held after eating;and, of course, a clean-up committee. At least half the class members, particularlythe boys, did their own baking. One group of three boys worked together on somerecipes from the Peanuts Cook Book.

Setting the date for the bake sale proved to be somewhat of a problem. After somereplanning, it was decided to hold the sale on kindergarten registration day whenthere would be many adults coming into the school.

According to Mr. Scaramastra, the sale was "a great success." Each class member hada turn at doing something. Because the younger children wanted to buy somethingsmall, some of the large cakes were cut and sold in pieces. In this way everything wassold, and the children raised over $48.

The picnic too went extremely well. I arrived in time to watch the organized games.The youngsters all seemed to be having a good time. Mr. Scaramastra said he hadbeen pleased with the outcomes of the program in general, but that throughobserving the children as they planned and executed their class goal, he had becomeespecially aware of their capabilities and ingenuity. He added that only part of themoney made at the bake sale was needed for the picnic, so the children decided togive the rest to a charity.

50



This class completed several class goals, one of which was, "To have a fair and abazaar for charity in the month of June." The idea originally was to have twoseparate events on different days, but because of time pressures the children finallydecided they would have both affairs on the same day.

In telling me about the results, Ms. Delp was extremely positive about the way inwhich the children had organized and planned the project. On the day of the fairthey arrived at school early in the morning. Some brought popcorn makers andmade popcorn to sell. Others made signs for the booths. Other children made prizes,which included felt bookmarkers, pins, paperweights, and Creepy Crawlers. It hadbeen decided in advance that everyone would get a prize, win or lose.

Booths at the fair included bowling, bean-bag through the target, penny pitch, awhite elephant booth with over four hundred items, and a bakery stall for which thechildren had made many of the items themselves. Two children acted as runners andbrought classes over in staggered succession. The fair was a great success and thechildren were very proud of their accomplishment. They made a profit of $81 whichthey sent to the Wildlife Fund.

51


LOWER SALFORD SCHOOLTeacher: Dorothy J. Krapf

Earlier this class had expressed disinterest in the ACT program. Some of the childrenhad set only perfunctory goals, not seeing the relevance of the strategy. But they didset a class goal: "To have a talent show for charity in three weeks."

During the course of the group project, the children changed their attitudes. Theybecame very much motivated by what they were doing. Several committees were setup to accomplish the many tasks the class had outlined. One committee, forexample, auditioned all the children who applied to be in the show. Ms. Krapf toldme that the class was taking the goal very seriously and really working at it withenthusiasm.

The show was a great success and merited the amount of work put into it. Therewere twenty-three acts presented before several hundred students, parents, andfriends. A voluntary donation of ten cents was requested, and the money was givento the Cancer Society. The local newspaper printed a story and a picture of theshow.

Ms. Krapf told me that the children felt really great about themselves. She alsoreported that the parents and the principal were very pleased both with theperformances and with the whole idea of the event being planned and run by thechildren. The principal wrote a letter to the class, congratulating the children ontheir efforts, which also added to their self-esteem.

52


WOODLYN SCHOOLTeacher: Albert Ramos

The class goal was, "To hold a pet show on Wednesday afternoon, April 18, 1973,from 1:15 to 2:15."

Not only was the goal achieved, but Mr. Ramos reported that the event wasgenerally considered to be a "howling success." "There were fourteen dogs, five cats,seven mice, one guinea pig, and one snake," he wrote. "Each person who brought apet received a framed certificate and a ribbon. Each animal was declared a winner ofsome category."

Mr. Ramos added, "The youngsters decided on the categories, designed thecertificates, colored them, drew the ribbon medallions, made the placards, decidedthe winners for each category, originated other categories where necessary, andcontrolled their animals well." The high degree of involvement and motivation thatwas common to many class goals seems evident in this teacher's report.

53


MYERS ELEMENTARY SCHOOLTeacher: Kay Patton

The goal on the Achievement Worksheet was, "To have groups of children plan andprepare international luncheons by May 30, 1973." The luncheon I attended inApril had been planned and organized by five girls.

When I arrived, one of the girls, dressed as a geisha, showed me into the room.Tablecloths had been spread out on the floor and cushions placed around them.Each "table" had its own candle, and some were decorated with Oriental figurines.From the overhead lights hung paper lanterns that the girls had made. On theblackboard they had drawn a large Chinese dragon, colored in bright reds, yellows,and greens. Underneath the dragon was written, "The Chinese-Japanese Luncheon."

The girls told me later that they had researched the decor in their social studiesbooks. The recipes had been selected by two of the girls from some Orientalcookbooks. Then they decided what each one was going to supply. Recalling whatthey had learned about goal statements, they set a date for the event and then listedfurther tasks, including getting permission from the principal.

54


MYERS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL (continued)

Their plans suffered a minor setback when the girls realized that first, they didn'thave enough money for the things they needed to buy, and second, they couldn'tget the room they wanted on the date they had set. But ACT had taught them aboutreplanning. So they rearranged dates and times and collected a few pennies fromeach child in the class. Then, with money in hand and the recipes chosen, the girls —accompanied by a parent — went shopping for the food. On the day of theluncheon, the girls cooked the food by themselves, under the supervision of twoparents.

At 11:20 the five girls, all now dressed in Oriental style, lit the candles while theparents who had supervised the cooking brought out the food. A few minutes laterthe rest of the class came in and were seated one by one with the girls acting ashostesses. The guests were then motioned to the food table one at a time. Whileeveryone was enjoying the excellent meal, a record of Hawaiian music began playingin the background.

After everyone had finished eating and was still sitting — or lying — on the floor,two of the girls performed a short Japanese dance. The final event was a game thegirls had organized called "The Chinese Water Torture." Each player had to lie downwhile one of the hostesses dripped cold water onto his forehead. The object of thegame was to see how long you could take the dripping without moving. The momentyou moved, you were out. The game proved to be very popular, with all the childrenclamoring for a turn.

The Chinese-Japanese luncheon was only one of a series. Each luncheon took a greatdeal of planning and preparation, but almost all were student-prepared with aminimum of help from parents and the teacher. Commenting on the overall goal, Ms.Patton said, "The children have learned a lot about other countries through food.This has been a most valuable learning experience."

55


HILLTOP SCHOOLTeacher: Shirley J. Robertson

The class goal was, "Have a charity bazaar on March 21 with games, chances, whiteelephants, refreshments, exhibits, and handicrafts."

Ms. Robertson told me that the children were surprised to learn how much theycould accomplish when they worked together. As one child put it, "If we all worktogether, we can do big things."

The bazaar was successful, and the children raised $97.95, which they gave to anearby school that works with children who have cerebral palsy. Furthermore, as aresult of this initial contact, some class members began to work with thecerebral-palsied children on a semi regular basis.

Ms. Robertson also reported that she liked the way the last unit of the package hadbeen structured to give so many children the opportunity to be discussion guides.She felt that this experience had been particularly good for her class.

WILLIAM B. EVANS SCHOOLTeacher: Mildred L. Pye

The goal of this class was "To publish a class (school) newspaper by March 16,1973.(With more issues to follow if possible.)" .a

The goal was achieved. Ms. Pye wrote, "The 'Evans Echo" was a six-page newspaperwith masthead, illustrations, feature articles, cartoons, jokes, poetry, news fromother grades, and school-wide news. At least a hundred copies were mimeographedand distributed. Favorable comments, both written and oral, were received." In fact,there was a six-hundred word article about the "Evans Echo" in the May 17,1973,issue of a local paper, The Courier.

56

EXHIBITS

The exhibits that follow represent some of the "products" turned out by thechildren during the ACT lessons. They include reproductions of some ACT mirrors,Strength-O-Grams, and Achievement Worksheets.

MIRRORS

The mirrors are a self-study device introduced in the first part of ACT. Insubsequent lessons, the children recall their past achievements and investigate theirstrengths. They then select some past achievements and strengths to copy onto themirrors as permanent records.

STRENGTH-O-GRAMS

The Strength-O-Gram is a device used in a self-study lesson in which children findout about their strengths from their peers. Working in groups of four, the childrenwrite down one strength for each person in their group. Then the children read eachStrength-O-Gram aloud to the person to whom it was written and hand him the slip.

ACHIEVEMENT WORKSHEETS

The Achievement Worksheet is the vehicle that the children use to formalize theirgoals. The front of the sheet contains places for recording the goal statement, forlisting the tasks needed to achieve the goal, and for writing down the strivingmethods that the children intend to use to help them persist. The reverse side of thesheet is used by the children not only to assess their performance on the detailedtasks of their goal, but also to evaluate their proficiency in using each of theachievement steps.

57

EXHIBITS

A_YitOf&£s Qc"^£>ltA»V«I iicr vcri i ic?i 11 y f\v\r9 r/wuirfo

ACT mirrors reflecting the personal strengths and achievements of individualchildren.

58

EXHIBITS

J, ast Achievement *£

(^Strengths)

ACT mirrors reflecting the personal strengths and achievements of individualchildren.

59

EXHIBITS

(Post Achievement

~ TStrengths)

^

ACT mirrors reflecting the personalstrengths and achievements of individ-ual children.

(feast Achievement )

(Strengths)

Bite ?;j;,urA i» wiaUinainy ?«f«r

»ai'oi««)'

60

EXHIBITS

ACT mirrors reflecting the personalstrengths and achievements of individ-ual children.

61

EXHIBITS

SI Rl NC. IHOt .RAM

, i „-.,„,,., ,,...,s

T fite

rt ynu o»

CMV» ip-K-fcô^

H.STRENGTH O-GR AM

TOjQuDLt L.L.STRENGTH Ol.lt A"

ool \O>

JfSt.lCS Chh GL

".HSQ '(ÔQ^ Oaf- QTJfrirQ-Lk'J -_- 5S.

ONE OF YOUR STRENGTHS ic fii •fhf

USTRtNGTH-O-GRAM

QTf» V/GTU QDOrJ; '

5TRENCTHOCRAM

ONE OF YOUR STRENGTHS IS rvt.

STSENGTH-aGRAM

OM 01 xnr^T-.

T".j^' ^'

STRENGTH-O.GRAM

ONE OF YOUR STRENGTHS IS

Strength-O-Grams received by individual children as part of an ACT group exercise

62

EXHIBITS

STRENGTHOGRAM

ONE OF YOUR STRENGTKS IS-

STRENGTHOGRAM

ONE OF YOUR STRENGTHS "

STUNGTHOGRAM

STRENGTHOGRAM

ONE OF YOUR STRENGTHS IS.

i atIJQII nra v&T

OMOFTOMSTUNGTHSBi.

STRENGTHOGRAM

vt f\\C£

ENGl H-tMiKAM

vniip»».»..:..it.t apii r\C£ t-Q

SntENGTHOGMM

SO 6av4

SnENGTHOGRAM

----- ~.»^—nooA r>V~

63

EXHIBITS

Achievement Worksheets filled out by individual children. ACT introduces theworksheets as tools for achievement, and children use them to set and work towardtheir own real-life goals.

ACHIEVEMENT WORKSHEET

NAME. DATE .

GOAL SETTING

M> Goal "1 HJ

My Goal is based on a ... (circle one)

PAST ACHIEVEMENT f STRENGTH

M> Past Achievenieni or Strength

PLANNING

s in the order I must do them.

REPLANNING

New tasks or ihjnges in tasks.

the space above to draw a picture, of a Striving Method you will use

64

EXHIBITS


GOALSETT.NG . . L. . » ft

M,. r- .,1 >„.!>. Jufir J* *f llirrf lt-.TClimMt

I. '•" 4 ?STp^t\rfi y*v *-j*M ri/i LU*A

My Goal is based on a ... (circle one}

PAST ACHIEVEMENT (STRENGTH

ACHIEVEMENT SYMBOL

2 PLANNING

TasksiivtheordeLl must do them.n.*- n fl T dhAîtfltjfAifn^J,^' j^Q ^^

fjlei

REPLANNING

New tasks or changes in tasks.

STRIVING

Striving methods I will use.

Achievement Worksheetsfilled out by individualchildren.


STRIVING

Striving methods I will use.

Use the space above to draw » pictuiof a Striving Method you will me.

65

EXHIBITS


nGOAL SETTING

My Goal JiJQ^

iMy Goal is based on a ... (circle one)

PAST ACHIEVEMENT /STREN

My Pasi Achievement or Strength is

PLANNING

Tasks in the order I must do them.

STRIVING

Striving methods I will


ACHIEVEMENT SYMBOI

REPLANNING

New tasks or changes it


M.MC,J*.lllatAtr V BATE

I GOAL SETTING

M,. .. TWib rraKe

My Goal is based onj - - - Icircte onel

^"pAST ACHIEVEMENTj STRENGTH __

ryCj'&X Q. fn£.. Rvivvii^wc) TPI AMMIMA*)

ACHIEVEMENT SYMBOL

2 **1T~1*" »PLANNING'

Tasks in the order I must do them.

REPLANNING

New tasks or changes in tasks.

Use the space above to draw a picture

of a Striving Method you will use.

66

EXHIBITS

EVALUATION CHECKLIST

EVALUATE YOUR Af.H'tVEMENT FOR THIS GOAL.

1 DID I GET MY GOAL? BYes Q

2 WHAT nm i nn wn i . «

3 WHAT CANI IMPROVE?


CJ

EVALUATE YOUR USE OF THE SIX ACHIEVEMENT STEPS.

2 Put an x beside Ihc pieiure of stepi which you uied well.

3 Pul a 1/bviidc su-pi wh«- uê you need 1O improve.


67

EXHIBITS


I GOAL SETTING

' M.r McxVe. abu

My go.il is h.iscd (in the followingposl achicvcrncnl or strength.l achicvcrncnl or stre

fn*i<"I

ACHILVEMENf SYMBOL

PLANNING

T.-,k<. m the null i ! naM do Ih.-in.

IsCPLANMNG

...UJ\i-Vl-C


EVALUATION CHECKLIST

EVALUATE YUUK AtHIEVO.UNr FOR 1IIISGOAL.

1 DID I GET MY COAL? BYcs DN.I

2 WHAT DID i DO «Fi i ' ctyirKP c\

3 WHAT CAN I IMPROVE?

|"f* .

\\t~fiO l{) (3 «

EVALUATE YOUR USE OF THE SIX ACHIEVEMENT STEPS.

1 Think about your use of eaeh step in trying to athicve this goal

2 Put an x beside the picture of steps which you used well.

3 Put a beside steps whose use you need to improve.

a

68

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