Risk-Taking
by Patty Rehfus
1. Make sure students understand how to use available tools.
1.1. Make high-quality, appropriate tools available.
1.2. Give opportunites for meaningful, low-stakes practice.
2. Teachers and other staff must model risk-taking
2.1. Step outside what's comfortable
2.2. Show students your learning process
3. Make it a game.
3.1. Student may take a more positive spin on an assignment if they if there is an element of fun to it
4. Reduce destructive competition
4.1. Create win-win situations
4.2. Teach and model how to give good feedback.
5. Teach risk assessment skills
6. Give students opportunities to experience both success and failure.
6.1. Allow second chances and do-overs.
6.2. Build in opportunities for reflection on how/why things went well or poorly
7. Each student needs to understand her/his strenghts as a learner.
7.1. Give opportunities to operate within and outside comfort zones.
8. Re-define "mistake"
8.1. Encourage generating multiple solutions to a problem
8.2. Reflect and refine
9. Encourage laughter
9.1. Show students that it's okay to laugh at yourselves when you've tried something new and it doesn't work out quite the way you thought
