Rigor in the Classroom

Rigor is a word that I heard right out of the gate once I started this program. At

first, what I thought rigor meant was similar to grit, hard work, difficult tasks that you

power through...I was not too far off, however, rigor is even more than that in the

classroom. I have come to understand that rigor is a commonly used term in education,

however, it’s meaning can be different across every classroom. One common theme that

applies to the term rigor is that it is the fine line of challenging and frustrating a student.

(TeachHub Team, 2020) The way that I can personally relate to rigor is a part of my life

that is very much ingrained in who I am, and aligns with what my teaching philosophy

will be, even as it evolves: hard work pays off.

Growing up, I played many sports. I had to work very hard to do well in the

different roles in each sport that I played. I understood from a young age that the coach

would first start with the ultimate goal of the practice or game. We would practice drills

to reach the desired goals. Then, during a game situation, we were able to apply our

practice knowledge to the real life situation and succeed, or grow as a player. In these

ways, rigor closely relates to sports for me; goal setting and defined, practice repeatedly,

apply in real time. The same can be said for rigor in the classroom. It is the teacher’s

responsibility to lead like a coach, to clearly set the goals for the students, be it the daily,

weekly, monthly or yearly goals. Next, the teacher will give the students tasks to practice

working their way up to the desired goal. Scaffolding through different lessons helps

prepare students for the final objectives. All of the scaffolding assignments: projects,

discussions, papers, group work, and tests, help prepare the students for the

“championship” or initial purpose and goal of the rigorous coursework they have

completed.
 The first step in establishing rigor in the classroom is to clearly introduce the

standard and what is expected of the students. This can be done through explaining the

assignment or the goal of the unit by showing examples or providing an outlined rubric

so the students can clearly see what is expected of them. High expectations should be set

early on in the classroom so as to evoke high achievement levels throughout the entire

year. The teacher should support the student’s learning processes to reach the high

standards by relaying not only clear expectations, clear instructions, but also a strong

belief in the student’s abilities to reach the standard. All of the lessons should scaffold

and build off of the prior knowledge and previous lessons. In this way, the teacher is

“coaching” the students towards the ultimate goal. The lessons and assignments should

push the students past their last achievement towards the higher standard of learning.

Such as in sports, every practice builds off of the last one, and while learning new tools

can be difficult, they are meant to push an individual to the next level of strength in the

given area, be it sports or education. Another important aspect to support rigor in the

classroom is allowing the students the opportunity to edit their assignments in order to

submit their best work. This gives students the opportunity to see where they can

improve, to review the rubric and to push themselves to achieve the best grade possible

while expanding on their comprehension of the subject. In this way, the teacher will

receive work that is of a higher standard and more thought-provoking while avoiding

low-level work by students.

The next phase of implementing rigor in the classroom is to give students

supportive methods to achieve the goals that have been previously laid out. “Teachers

must consistently ensure that whatever the content or skill they are covering, they

provide the requisite materials and instructional patterns.”(TeachHub Team, 2020) As

lesson or assignment by having the proper background to achieve the high standard set

by the teacher. This means simply that lessons are scaffold off one another and keep

progressing towards a higher level of thinking and work production. One of the best

ways for students to achieve at any level of rigorous coursework is for the teacher to

provide the students with consistency in the classroom. Examples of this would be:

consistent daily routines so students are prepared for what comes next; organization

within the classroom helps students know where to find all applicable materials;

availability of the teacher to meet with the students both during and after class time if

necessary, clear communication with students and families and course contone that

relevant and relatable to the students. (TeachHub Team, 2020) As an athlete myself, I

understood the importance of making the most of our practice time, what I put in, I

would get out of the practice. The same can be applied to lessons and assignments in the

classroom. The teacher will outline the goals clearly, then begin teaching the students

ways to achieve the desired outcome. Before the students know it, they will have a solid

level of understanding on the topic with the ability to apply it in the final. The teachers

will push rigor in this way, but not without support to the students. The content

understanding should be clear, the coursework should build off of each lesson and be a

prerequisite for the lessons that follow, and the teacher should be available to assist

students in any way during these times. The teacher should equip the students with

supportive methods to achieve the given goals.

Once the goal has been clearly defined and the practice work has been

repeated and implemented, the students should feel prepared and ready to successfully

show their academic knowledge in the area of the lessons. The students should feel
confident to a level of mastery on the subject and ready to take on their final assessment.

While the summative assessment shows the encompassing knowledge of the students at

the end of the unit, it is important for the teacher to give assessments throughout the

units as well. In this way, the teacher is pushing the boundaries of the rigorous work and

can see where the students may have gaps in their understanding. Formative

assessments give teachers the opportunity to circle back to the holes in the student’s

understanding and cover the material from a different angle or reteach in a way that

allows for better comprehension by the students. Formative assessments give teachers

great insight to the student’s level of understanding, as well as demonstrate how far they

have progressed in the rigorous classroom environment. These formative assessments

can consist of class discussions, small group work, quizzes, short writing assignments,

exit slips and more. Summative assessments are similar to what I referred to earlier as

the “championship game.” Summative assessments are the culmination of the unit, but

if the teacher truly pushed the class in a rigorous way, the summative assessment should

be achievable to a high standard for the students because they will have been prepared

and have a solid understanding of the material. “The important point is that teaching

that never raises expectations will not raise student achievement.” (Dougherty 31)

My hope as a teacher is to be able to apply rigor in my classroom in a similar way

that I learned rigor in sports. I feel teaching closely aligns with coaching, and many of

the same principles can be applied. It will start with outlining learning goals and

expectations to the students. Students will be supported to accomplish these goals by

providing a consistent routine, clear guidelines and rubrics of the lesson and allowing

time for teacher-student meetings to be able to check in with each student throughout

the unit. They will also have the opportunity to demonstrate their understanding
throughout the coursework when the teacher administers formative assessments. In

these ways, the teacher will have a nice control over the content being taught and know

when to push the students as well as when to reign in a little to reteach certain areas.

Then, ultimately, the students will be prepared for the summative assessment and the

cycle of rigor in the classroom has been accomplished effectively.

Resources:

TeachHub Team. (2020, May 19). What is Academic Rigor and What Do We Do with
It? TeachHUB. https://www.teachhub.com/teaching-strategies/2014/03/what-is-
academic-rigor-and-what-do-we-do-with-it/.

Smith, D. D. (2018). Introduction to contemporary special education: New Horizons.