Rigor Mortis

Lately, I have found myself pensive regarding rigor.  What is it?  How do I create and maintain it in my classroom?  It is frightening to admit I have noticed myself slipping in the level or rigor I hold for my students.  When I first started teaching at ACHS, I was new and fresh and had no preconceived notions of the students and subtle school-wide expectations.  I came from a rigorous high school English program, and a rigorous college program, so it was natural for me to hold high expectations for my students.  I didn't know another way!

But now, as poor habits seep in and I find my instruction more and more defined by external circumstances, I see how I have lost some of those high expectations.  I have deadened a bit, weakened in my passion and conviction regarding the GREAT things ALL students can achieve.

To address this, I have begun reading and reflecting on rigor.  In this post, I would like to describe rigor mortis--what rigor is not...

• Rigor is not a verb.  I know, I know, I know! about Bloom's Taxonomy.  I know what level of thinking I want to students to be at in my classroom.  I know I should be demanding that small point of the triangle.  However, just because I include a rigourous verb in my objective DOES NOT mean my class is rigorous.  Rigor is NOT lip service.
• Rigor is not breadth.  Covering more information, completing more work, writing longer papers, doing more is not rigor.  It annoys me so much when people assume that gifted or honors students need more work.  No, they need different work.  Rigor is NOT an amount, but a type.
• Rigor is not standardized.  As Dr. Daggett says:  "When assessment is viewed as the end goal or finish line, the test itself becomes a barrier to high levels of student achievement" ("Achieving Academic Excellence through Rigor and Relevance")  Bubble tests driving instruction is not the way to rigor.  Overtesting ruins rigor.  Rigor cannot be political or capitalist.
• Rigor is not disconnected from the world.  Learning rigorously cannot happen in a vacuum.  Students who are in a classroom which is detached from real world thinking, application, and relevance are deprived of rigor.
• Rigor is not a dead teacher acting as a robot.  It is not uninspired, inauthentic, or prescribed.  It is not manufactured by a program.  In fact, rigor is not teacher-constructed at all.  It is student-driven through the inspiration of a rigorous teacher, who more than likely loves his/her job.
• Rigor is not easily controlled.  Nor is it easily defined.  Rigor inspired by one teacher might look completely different than rigor in another classroom.  Rigor is not easily manipulated.

Now I admit, rigor is much easier to define through negation than by describing what it IS.  But I will attempt that in the next post.  Stay tuned!