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PYGMALION IN THE CLASSROOM
Pygmalion in the Classroom
Rashawn Danae Mitchell
July 29, 2024
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PYGMALION IN THE CLASSROOM
Pygmalion in the Classroom
Pygmalion is about how pupils are affected by their teachers' expectations. Students'
academic performance might be impacted by the expectations set by their teachers. The 1968
Rosenthal and Jacobson study, commonly known as "Pygmalion effects," provides an
explanation for why people, nearly all children, students, and staff, live up to their expectations.
When given the impression that they will succeed, people aim to perform better. Positive
expectations for teaching, however, do not always result in great success. This implies that "you
get what you anticipate" is not always the reality, as evidenced by the example of the
thermodynamic workers and students—the "anti-Pygmalion-effect" phenomenon. This paper
discusses the 1968 study by Rosenthal and Jacobson, anti-bias curriculum objectives,
expectations examples that complement the curriculum's components, and methods for
establishing a safe learning environment.
The purpose of Rosenthal and Jacobson's study was to evaluate the likelihood of the
expectancy effect. The goal of the experiment was to determine if an elementary school student
would live up to the expectations of an instructor. Students took a general ability exam to start
the experiment, and teachers were informed that the results of this test would indicate which
learners would advance academically the most (Mcdonagh et al., 2015). Without taking into
account their real test results, students were selected at random after finishing the exam, and
teachers were informed that these "random" pupils were on the verge of achieving academic
success. Students retook tests at the end of the year to determine whether their results had
improved significantly. In contrast to the children who were not selected for the experiment, the
pupils who the educators were assured would succeed actually shown a greater rise in IQ
(Mcdonagh et al., 2015).
PYGMALION IN THE CLASSROOM
Pygmalion in the Classroom
Rashawn Danae Mitchell
July 29, 2024
, 2
PYGMALION IN THE CLASSROOM
Pygmalion in the Classroom
Pygmalion is about how pupils are affected by their teachers' expectations. Students'
academic performance might be impacted by the expectations set by their teachers. The 1968
Rosenthal and Jacobson study, commonly known as "Pygmalion effects," provides an
explanation for why people, nearly all children, students, and staff, live up to their expectations.
When given the impression that they will succeed, people aim to perform better. Positive
expectations for teaching, however, do not always result in great success. This implies that "you
get what you anticipate" is not always the reality, as evidenced by the example of the
thermodynamic workers and students—the "anti-Pygmalion-effect" phenomenon. This paper
discusses the 1968 study by Rosenthal and Jacobson, anti-bias curriculum objectives,
expectations examples that complement the curriculum's components, and methods for
establishing a safe learning environment.
The purpose of Rosenthal and Jacobson's study was to evaluate the likelihood of the
expectancy effect. The goal of the experiment was to determine if an elementary school student
would live up to the expectations of an instructor. Students took a general ability exam to start
the experiment, and teachers were informed that the results of this test would indicate which
learners would advance academically the most (Mcdonagh et al., 2015). Without taking into
account their real test results, students were selected at random after finishing the exam, and
teachers were informed that these "random" pupils were on the verge of achieving academic
success. Students retook tests at the end of the year to determine whether their results had
improved significantly. In contrast to the children who were not selected for the experiment, the
pupils who the educators were assured would succeed actually shown a greater rise in IQ
(Mcdonagh et al., 2015).
