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B Y S H E R R Y P O S N I C K - G O O D W I N I F YO U D I S C OV E R research you think we should shine a light on, send it along with your name and local chapter to editor@cta.org. 3 The number of suspended or expelled students declined sharply during the last school year, according to the California Depart- ment of Education (CDE), which credits increased measures designed to keep young people in the classroom and learning. The total number of expulsions decreased by 12.3 percent. The total number of sus- pensions, both in school and out of school, dropped 14.1 percent. "Student defiance" is an often-reported reason for suspensions, and this area saw the largest declines statewide. There were a total of 259,875 suspensions statewide for defiance in 2012-13, down 81,237 or 23.8 percent, compared to the year before. There were 495 expulsions for defiance in 2012-13, down 113 or 18.6 percent from the year before. (See details on page 46.) Latinos mostly go to community colleges, even from the state's best high schools. According to a USC study, 46 percent of Lati- nos who graduated from California's top public schools enrolled in a community college after graduation. Students of other ethnic groups from the same schools enrolled in community colleges at a much lower rate: 19 percent of Asians, 23 percent of African Americans, and 27 percent of white students who graduated from high-performing schools went to their local community college; most went to four-year colleges. George Washington University researcher Lindsey Mal- com-Piqueux, who authored the study, concluded that efforts to close the Latino achievement gap, focusing on impoverished neighborhoods, may not be enough. She expressed concern that the completion rate for Latino students at communi- ty colleges is relatively low, as is their transfer rate to four-year colleges. "Amping up" anxious students is better than trying to calm them down when it comes to performance. In a series of experiments highlighted in Journal of Experimental Psychology, Harvard Business School psychologist Allison Wood Brooks found that getting anxious people "amped up" or excited about an upcoming test or task improved their performance more than trying to soothe their fears. The rationale is this: When people feel anxious and try to calm down, they are thinking about all the things that could go badly. When they are excited, they are thinking about how things could go well. Because fear and excitement are similar types of brain arousal, Brooks believes talking about being excited can fool the brain into translating fear as anticipation. The researcher found it was easier to get children and adults to switch mentally from fear to excitement than to switch from fear to serenity. M A K E I T R E L E VA N T. Show stu- dents what they are learning is relevant to their lives now and show how they can use it in ever yday living, such as us- ing statistics to figure out how a spor ts team is doing, or algebra to determine room dimensions. O F F E R T H E M A R E W A R D . As an incentive for a job well done, offer a snack, a video game, a pizza party, or something they enjoy in exchange for doing their best. S E T G O A L S , long-term and short- term, and explain how a particular test or assignment is helping them meet their goals for success in the future. ways to get students excited about learning: Did you know? Did you know? Total Deļ¬ance Suspensions Research Know & Tell -23.8% www.cta.org 15 M A R C H 2 0 1 4 Educator 03 Mar 2014 v2.0 int.indd 15 3/6/14 10:52 AM