Investment of Energy

A major factor in whether a student is successful in terms of his education is the amount of energy he is willing to invest. Particularly during the beginning of the program, there is a strong focus placed upon the student's energy system because this variable is something over which the young person has a greater degree of control than other variables such as retention, concentration, or rate of concept mastery. In the program the assumption is made that the young person has an ample amount of energy. The observation is that young people do not seem to want for energy. Our task in education is to develop a program that will encourage them to invest some of that energy into working to learn. Through the design of the investment of energy continuum, over time the student will increase his investment of energy to a significantly high level.

Within the context of teacher expectation, support, encouragement and recognition, the child invests energy into completion of the project. One underlying premise of the program is the belief that anytime an individual takes upon himself a project and invests energy into it until completion, the person will have an intrinsic sense of satisfaction. And if, at the same time, the person can receive recognition and praise by a significant other, i.e., a teacher, that individual will have a positive affective experience. He will have an experience that takes place in time and space, and for that moment enables him to feel good. More particularly, the positive affective experience enables the child to feel competent and successful. As a function of these positive experiences occurring every time a child puts forth energy into a project until completion, over time he should slowly but steadily increase his investment of energy into working to learn. People tend to do the things that make them feel good and competent. The program is completely designed to enable the child to experience competency and feeling of success every time he puts forth energy into working to learn. The value development continuum contains a number of primary dimensions. Each of these dimensions is interwoven throughout the program. These continuums include: self worth and self value, proper care of physical body, work habits and values, interpersonal relationships, spiritual values, and curriculum subject areas.

Each student needs to develop a powerful, positive self-image in terms of his own ability. There are three primary dimensions for accomplishing the objective. The first is for the teacher to mirror image the belief that the child has tremendous ability and unlimited potential. This belief should result in a feeling of reverent respect for the student. There is the feeling that the child has within himself the genius of Einstein and the potential greatness of a Mother Theresa. This feeling and respect becomes part of the relationship.

Regardless of situations or circumstances, the child should always be held with the image of unlimited ability or potential. The belief that a child has unlimited potential and is to be treated with a sense of reverent respect does not mean that the teacher plays the role of pusher or prodder to live up to the expectation. As the positive mirror image is presented in a steady and consistent fashion, the student over time will tend to internalize this image as his own.

The second component that the student must have in developing a positive academic self image is experiencing positive affective states. The program must be structured to provide numerous opportunities to feel competent and successful. The program must also be structured to minimize any experience of incompetence or failure. Our entire program has been developed completely with these objectives paramount at all times.