A Relational Learning Refresh
The start of a new year is a great time to refresh your understanding of why relational learning is one of Crescent School’s three pedagogies (along with active and experiential), what the relational learning gestures are, and how you can embed the relational learning gestures into your practice.
Why relational learning?
Reicher and Hawley’s seminal research in boys’ education (2010) discovered that “relationship is the very medium through which successful teaching and learning is performed.” In other words, the relationship with their teacher is the most critical factor in determining a boy’s capacity to learn. Through their conversations with hundreds of 12 to 17-year-old boys internationally, Reichert and Hawley identified seven behaviours teachers, coaches and mentors of middle and senior-aged boys should adopt to show their students that they are known, loved, seen and heard. Few research studies have had a more transformational impact on boys’ schools than this. Crescent School is proud to have been part of the original study.
Reicher and Hawley’s seminal research in boys’ education (2010) discovered that “relationship is the very medium through which successful teaching and learning is performed.” In other words, the relationship with their teacher is the most critical factor in determining a boy’s capacity to learn. Through their conversations with hundreds of 12 to 17-year-old boys internationally, Reichert and Hawley identified seven behaviours teachers, coaches and mentors of middle and senior-aged boys should adopt to show their students that they are known, loved, seen and heard. Few research studies have had a more transformational impact on boys’ schools than this. Crescent School is proud to have been part of the original study.
The Relational Gestures:
- Exhibit subject mastery
- Expect high standards of students
- Recognize personal interests and talents
- Share common interests
- Identify and share common characteristics
- Accommodate a measure of opposition
- Demonstrate a willingness to reveal vulnerability
Schools like Crescent with primary and elementary divisions contacted Dr. Reichert to see how these gestures applied to their students. This prompted Reichert to invite Crescent School, along with four others, to undertake a further investigation into relational learning approaches for younger boys.
How relational learning applies to boys in Grades 3-12?
This research, and what followed in Reichert’s I Can Learn From You (2014) and How to Raise A Boy (2020), solidified relational learning as a fundamental pedagogy in schools for boys. It prompted the investigation into the validity of these gestures for boys in elementary school in 2015 with an action research project conducted by Dr. Reichert and his colleague Dr. Joseph Nelson, including findings from Crescent School. That report, presented at the IBSC Annual Conference in Vancouver (2016), concluded that how boys in the elementary grades experience their teachers is as important as for older boys. However, it further revealed that the inevitable relational breakdown between boys and their teachers was more frequent yet less severe than those with older boys. An additional gesture, building confidence through leadership, was added to the list of relational gestures for this younger age group. Often, this comes in the form of a question, “I am looking for some student leaders to join (insert name of student) to do (insert high profile task) so that (insert value to teacher)."
This research, and what followed in Reichert’s I Can Learn From You (2014) and How to Raise A Boy (2020), solidified relational learning as a fundamental pedagogy in schools for boys. It prompted the investigation into the validity of these gestures for boys in elementary school in 2015 with an action research project conducted by Dr. Reichert and his colleague Dr. Joseph Nelson, including findings from Crescent School. That report, presented at the IBSC Annual Conference in Vancouver (2016), concluded that how boys in the elementary grades experience their teachers is as important as for older boys. However, it further revealed that the inevitable relational breakdown between boys and their teachers was more frequent yet less severe than those with older boys. An additional gesture, building confidence through leadership, was added to the list of relational gestures for this younger age group. Often, this comes in the form of a question, “I am looking for some student leaders to join (insert name of student) to do (insert high profile task) so that (insert value to teacher)."
Interested in learning more?
Crescent School went on to publish its own handbook for our teachers, Relational Teaching Strategies for Elementary Educators of Boys, followed by another CCBE-created resource to support the inevitable moments of relational breakdowns: Embedding the Relational Learning Framework in School Culture: Creating a Reflective Practice for Schools. If you are interested in learning more about relational learning and/or having a conversation about how you can build on the great work you are already doing in this space, please pop by the CCBE office for resources, conversation, coffee and snacks!
Crescent School went on to publish its own handbook for our teachers, Relational Teaching Strategies for Elementary Educators of Boys, followed by another CCBE-created resource to support the inevitable moments of relational breakdowns: Embedding the Relational Learning Framework in School Culture: Creating a Reflective Practice for Schools. If you are interested in learning more about relational learning and/or having a conversation about how you can build on the great work you are already doing in this space, please pop by the CCBE office for resources, conversation, coffee and snacks!
References:
Reichert, M. C., & Hawley, R. A. (2010). Reaching boys, teaching boys: Strategies that work—and why. Jossey-Bass.
