Title: How to Help Students Develop Hope
Headings: 
Education Articles & More
How to Help Students Develop Hope
According to research, hope is key to academic achievement--and it's a skill students can develop over time. Here's how.
About the Author
Vicki Zakrzewski
We believe happiness should be free.

Content: 3) Teach students that there’s more than one way to reach a goal. Studies show that one of the greatest challenges for students with low hope is their inability to move past obstacles. They often lack key problem-solving skills, causing them to abandon the quest for their goals. So teaching them to visualize different paths to their goals will help them get beyond insurmountable barriers. Perhaps most importantly, teachers need to make sure that students don’t equate those barriers with a lack of talent; instead, they need to be reminded that everyone faces obstacles. Success usually requires creative ways to overcome these obstacles, not avoiding them altogether. 4) Tell stories of success. Scientists have found that hopeful students draw on memories of other successes when they face an obstacle; however, students with low hope often don’t have these kinds of memories.