Why Academic Rigor Matters (Part 2 of Is Your Homeschool Program Rigorous Enough? )

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One simple reason to include academic rigor is to decrease boredom and increase student engagement. Mundane and repetitive school work is boring. Work that only requires lower-order thinking or a regurgitation of simple facts and ideas often fails to engage students creatively. Higher-order thinking requires students to do something with the knowledge they’ve gained, which grows the creative side of their brains.

Another reason to include it is to provide students with the opportunity to fail. Yes, you read that right–the opportunity to fail. Failure allows students to develop grit and perseverance, particularly when they fail in their areas of strength and passion. Failing forces us to confront our limitations and to choose to push past them. If we only ever ask students to work in their strengths or to do work that is easy for them, we deprive them of the opportunity to prove they can do hard things, overcome obstacles, and achieve goals they set, all of which grow self-confidence.

Research shows this is especially true in test-taking. In the Scientific American article “The Pluses of Getting It Wrong,” authors Henry Roediger and Bridgid Finn cite research findings that show the benefits of testing that includes quick correction. Homeschooling families often forego tests. Some don’t use grades and, therefore, see testing as unnecessary. Others worry their students will get discouraged by poor test results. However, the research shows that “students who make an unsuccessful attempt to answer a test question before receiving the correct answer remember the material better than if they simply study the information.” Keep in mind, testing is only one kind of assessment, and while it shouldn’t be the only assessment you use, incorporating some difficult tests with clarifying correction in your homeschool will benefit your students.

Rigorous coursework can help students develop problem-solving skills if you provide modeling and training in problem-solving strategies. You can find many options online. Younger children can begin with simple models you build on as they grow. A good model will include the following basic elements:

• identifying a problem,

• establishing “good solution” criteria,

• brainstorming possibilities, and

• evaluating options.

Additional steps can expand and deepen the critical thinking process as students tackle topics with more extensive problems.

Rigor for the College-bound Student

Along with critical and creative thinking skills, your college-bound student will need solid research, writing, and study skills. They will also benefit greatly from learning how to receive and implement constructive criticism and feedback. Presentation skills are often a weakness for homeschoolers who lack opportunities to speak on a public platform or share ideas with a group. Be sure to find or create these opportunities for your students. Requiring a computer-assisted slideshow, for example, is a simple way to add challenge, by requiring students to manage technology and maintain eye contact as they speak.

Rigor for the Career-bound Student

If your student plans to enter the workforce directly after high school, rigor in their high school courses will better prepare them for managerial roles and advancement by equipping them to analyze and evaluate. Good critical thinking and creative problem-solving skills will also aid students bound for the trades. In fact, the diagnostic part of their job will demand them. They need experiences that require them to “think outside the box” and to invent new solutions when standard solutions don’t work. That kind of experience is one form of rigor.

Career-bound students will benefit greatly from activities and projects that strengthen executive function skills like time management, organization, long-term planning, and flexibility.

Activities that develop executive function skills are crucial for students who struggle with school work due to learning differences. Those differences should not preclude them from attending the college or trade school that offers the training they need for their preferred occupation. Activities that require them to develop executive function skills will help prepare them for any post-high school learning option.

For example, they may need help with organizing their ideas or developing a planning/calendaring system for managing daily tasks alongside long-term projects. Teach them how to evaluate their own timeliness, effort, completion, and neatness in projects. These traits are valued in all vocations because they reflect conscientiousness, which employers appreciate.

We all want our students to think and reason strategically, to strive for excellence in whatever work they enjoy, and to function effectively when balancing a variety of tasks and expectations. By focusing on these three goals, you can add appropriate rigor to your home school, regardless of your child’s post-graduation plans.

In Part 3 of this series, we’ll take a closer look at what higher-order thinking looks like, and in Part 4 we’ll discuss more specific examples of how to add the rigor your student needs.

References for further reading:

Academic rigor — and why it's so important for your child

Navigating Academic Rigor: What It Means and Why It Matters - Crimson Education US

Problem-Solving Strategies and Obstacles

The Pluses of Getting It Wrong | Scientific American

Looking for ways to boost your students’ academic skills during the summer months? Visit my From the Teacher’s Desk page at ElevateAcademicSolutions.com where you’ll find a series of articles written to help students struggling to catch up from Covid-related learning loss.