by Ashley Valencia-Pate
Partner–a word I cherish and center my teaching style around. In the past eight years, I have learned the most successful relationships I have with my students centers on becoming partners. As the teacher in the room, I have to enter my classroom as the best version of myself, especially if I ask my students to do the same. Some of the key elements I find helpful in fostering rich partnerships with students include: accepting one another, respecting boundaries, transformative feedback, not giving up on students, empathizing, and reflecting with students.
Accepting one another may seem obvious, but accepting that some students may not enjoy my favorite subject started out as one of the most difficult things to accept at the beginning of my career. In order to be a true partner to my students, I had to create an environment where students felt safe to disagree with or express displeasure at a text without fear of repercussions. If I want my students to become critical consumers of information, then I need to accept them as they are and not try to force them to appreciate an author just because the powers that be say they matter.
Respecting boundaries with students occurs both when boundaries are established within the classroom and when personal boundaries are respected for both the teacher and student. My students had a digital writer’s notebook, and I used to tell them to put a black square on top of any entry they did not want me to read or any entry that felt too personal. The amount of trust they had for me to honor our agreement stemmed from our partnership.
Transformative feedback changed the way I responded to student work. I used to give feedback the way I received it as a highschool student–mark the grammar errors, write “wow” or “great” in the margins, and fill out a rubric. Then I learned the importance of naming the skills a student did well and pointing to the impact of the craft move they used. The student can then apply the feedback to other instances and grow in a deeper way.
Not giving up on students who seem to have given up on themselves is an emotional and sometimes heartbreaking experience, but it is absolutely necessary in building successful partnerships. Could I let the student put their head down and sleep during class? Sure, but I would no longer be a partner to them in their educational journey. Instead, telling those students I will not give up on trying to help you or celebrating the moments they do participate–no matter how small–can build a partnership. I know sometimes it feels like nothing we do will reach every student, but one day, they may look back and realize we had their back.
Empathy is a powerful tool in a classroom. Being partners with students is a give and take relationship. Sometimes this may look like ungrading practices, but in an environment where ungrading is not an option, I have found being empathetic to student’s needs, shifting deadlines to respond to those needs, and allowing student input for ways they can demonstrate understanding shows not only that I appreciate the differences we have, but it also reinforces the power of their voices and agency in their education.
Reflecting and debriefing with students after major assignments, projects, or course materials is an opportunity for teachers to grow and for students to develop more agency in their education. Listening to them and responding to those needs moving forward helps strengthen the partnership because everyone involved has an opportunity to share what went well or what challenged them.
Becoming partners with my students rather than becoming a sage on a stage has created strong relationships and powerful outcomes in my classroom, and I highly encourage other teachers to approach their classrooms as partners in the learning process because it is one of the most beautiful experiences I have ever had.
Ashley Valencia-Pate is a high school English teacher living in eastern Florida with her husband, three children, and three dogs.