So since expectations can change the performance of kids, how do we get teachers to have the right expectations? Is it possible to change bad expectations?
"It's really tough for anybody to police their own beliefs," he said. "But think about being in a classroom with 25 kids. The demands on their thinking are so great."
"If I believe boys are disruptive and my job is control the classroom, then I'm going to respond with, 'Johnny! You're out of line here! We need you to sit down right now.' "
But if the teacher doesn't carry those beliefs into the classroom, then the teacher is unlikely to see that behavior as threatening. Instead it's: " 'Johnny, tell me more about what you think is going on ... But also, I want you to sit down quietly now as you tell that to me,' " Pianta says.
"It's far more powerful to work from the outside in than the inside out if you want to change expectations," he says. In other words, if you want to change a mind, simply talking to it might not be enough.