I was teaching a group of 7th grade students in the Bronx when I developed the formula of desire + confidence + focus = success. This became our motto and I introduce it at the beginning of the year whenever and wherever I teach. These 7th grade students of color from the Bronx wanted to attend some of New York City’s prestigious specialized high schools. These are free, public high schools which are considered among the best schools in the country, and the sole criterion for admission is a high score on the SHSAT (Specialized High School Admissions Test). There is a problem though – Black and Latinx students traditionally do not perform well on this test compared to Asian and White students.
At Stuyvesant High School, the jewel in the crown of the specialized system, in 2022 about 72% of students were Asian, about 18% were White, about 4% were Latinx and about 1.5% were Black. It has been like this for at least the past 20 years. My group of Black and Latinx students really never had a chance on the test even though I offered special after-school and summer classes and devoted classroom time to the algebra and trig that would be included on the math portion of the test.
They never had a chance because some students prepare for many years for this test in for-profit, semi-legal learning centers scattered throughout Brooklyn and Queens. Or, their parents pay through the nose for the famous tutoring centers. Indeed, there are a number of factors as to why not enough students of color do not make it to specialized schools: teachers who did not believe that students of color could be high achievers, conservative teaching methods not geared toward the experience or background or diverse learning strategies of students, a one-size-fits-all Common Core curriculum, parents unwilling to put undue pressure on their children to prepare for many years for one exam… I plan on writing a more extensive article on the specialized schools, the Common Core curriculum, parental motivation of students and other salient and often ignored aspects of our educational system, but for this article, let’s get back to “the formula”.
It was while I was preparing to help my students on this high-stakes test that I hit on “the formula”. I could see that the students who were making progress and learning the skills necessary for this test were more driven than other students. They were more active in regard to class participation and they often openly celebrated when deciphering a tough word problem and solving it. For whatever reason, they truly WANTED to tackle the challenge of this test (not knowing they were so far behind others that they didn’t have a chance).
But desire alone was not all that some of my students demonstrated. The students who were making real progress in an impossible situation seemed to enjoy what they were doing. Their enjoyment came from the fact that they BELIEVED that they could successfully tackle this test. With every practice test they took and by solving one difficult problem after another, their confidence grew. Indeed, I began to realize how important confidence was in relation to desire. We all want to do or be things, but we often do not see ourselves in a position to be what we want to be. We are not confident we can get there and do that. We do not believe in ourselves and this kills one’s desire. Or someone else might kill our desire by destroying our confidence. A lousy teacher with racial biases might not believe his/her students of color can do well and this message gets to them in subtle or not so subtle ways. They buy into it. For many generations female students were not encouraged to pursue careers involving mathematics or the sciences. Teachers who did not believe in the abilities of their female students killed their desire to succeed in these fields. Belief that you can actually do something is a huge component of success.
Finally, focus completes the third part of this formula. So you wanna be a rock and roll star? Then listen now to what I say. It takes more than getting an electric guitar, and taking some time to learn how to play, even if your hair is combed right while your pants get tight (tip of the hat to Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman of the Byrds). To do something significant, you have to want to do it, you have to honestly believe that you can do it and finally you have to take meaningful and direct action to accomplish your goal. So here’s where the 10,000 hour rule of thumb comes into play. Focus basically means LEARNING through trial and error and developing through a time-consuming process of meaningful engagement. Focus means honing. Focus means taking that type of action that makes you better and better. Just spending 10,000 hours doing something does not make you good at it. But spending 10,000 hours doing something while analyzing what you are doing and constantly growing through this process is focus.
During the first week or two of class I often ask my students to write an essay on “the formula”. What do you think it means? Do you think this formula can be useful to you? Can you think of situations where you lost confidence and gave something up or where you believed in yourself so strongly that you fought against the pressure to give up? One of my students (who actually was able to attend a specialized school) wrote that desire is like the engine of a car. Confidence is like the fuel that allows the engine to operate. Focus is the steering and acceleration system. I could have cried when I read that. The guy got it. He really got it.
So more than anything, I want to please offer “the formula” to other teachers out there. Please think about these three components. Please think about how you might help your students to get better and better in regard to all three components. For example, I think many classroom management problems derive from either a lack of desire or a lack of confidence in students. Often students come into classrooms with no confidence, and consequently, no desire to learn anything. They just don’t see themselves as good students, or students at all, and our grading system is often used to reinforce their corrosive and self-defeating beliefs about themselves.
But even if you are not a teacher, I think this formula can apply to you and your endeavors as well. So you want to accomplish something? Please assess your desire to do this, your confidence in doing this, and your willingness to work meaningfully toward your goal.
But I think this formula can be especially effective in the field of education. I honestly believe that if we focus more on these three components of a successful endeavor, we can help create classrooms where students want to learn, believe they can learn and work meaningfully toward learning.
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