1. Developing Positive Attitudes: A Practical Attitude Development Process Materials Available at: http://ronwilliamson.com/Oregon_GEAR_UP.html

2. Panelists Howard Johnston University of South Florida Ron Williamson Eastern Michigan University

3. Presentation Outline The Attitude Challenge Attitude Formation & Change Strategies Discussion

4. The Attitude Challenge Student, parent and community attitudes may not support post-secondary education. Staff may hold (and convey) negative attitudes about chances for student success in post- secondary education. Everyone may harbor unproductive/unrealistic beliefs: “I’ll just go to work in the [mill, woods, cannery, etc.] like the rest of my family.”

5. Attitudes are Keys to Change We believe in the power of positive attitudes. “He’s got a bad attitude.” “She’s got the right attitude.” “Positive and negative attitudes are directions. Which do you choose?” “The only disability in life is a bad attitude.” “Our attitude toward life determines life's attitude towards us.”

6. An attitude is a predisposition to approach or avoid and idea, event, person or object. It is an tendency to act in one way or another toward and “attitude object.” They can be specific (The NY Knicks) or general (Pro Basketball…or even “sports.”) What are Attitudes?

7. They are learned What is learned can be unlearned There are systematic ways to change attitudes Most people don’t hold very strong attitudes about most things Don’t waste your time “fertilizing the rocks;” focus on what you can change The Good News They may appear inflexible, but

8. We copy those of people who are important to us. We try out an attitude and are rewarded or punished for it. We get talked into it by a persuasive argument. Usually, it’s a combination of these. Where Do Attitudes Come From?

9. Cognitive Approaches – changing the way people think about the attitude object. Persuasive communication Cognitive dissonance Behavioral Approaches – rewards and reinforcements. Reward desirable attitudes Ignore undesirable attitudes Social Approaches -- copy the beliefs of those we admire. Modeling Consensus Peer group management How Can You Change Attitudes?

10. Persuasive Communication An engaging, energizing story of how a school staff member helped a student prepare for and succeed in college. Testimonials of former students. Cognitive Dissonance Point out contradictory beliefs or differences between beliefs and actions. How did you get here? Cognitive Approaches

11. Behavioral Approaches Rewards and Reinforcements Reward desirable attitudes Encourage action based on positive attitudes “Win Early, Win Often” and Celebrate Successes Punishments Rarely work to change attitudes Ignore inappropriate attitudes Deprive chronic dissenters of audience

12. Social Approaches Modeling Showcase respected, high status models Models must be attractive to the group Consensus Agree on broad statements Everyone must participate – perhaps virtually Safeguard against bullying Structure/Re-structure Peer Groups Create supportive groups Support and sustain positive group actions

13. A Sample Attitude Change Plan Attitude Goal: Staff affirms that their students can prepare for, be admitted to, and succeed in post-secondary education. SocialCognitiveBehavioral Testimonials from former students about how school helped them prepare and succeed. Testimonials by respected colleagues about how they have helped students prepare for post-secondary success. “Study Teams” or “Intervention Teams” prepare school-wide campaign – colleague to colleague. Enlist other groups: churches, businesses, etc. Persuasive communication about changing local job market and opportunities for kids. Link post-secondary education to success of entire region. Provide clear information about opportunities, costs, benefits of post-secondary education. Ask “how did you start out?” Find models from faculty. Celebrate successes of individual teachers – e.g., “turn around kids.” Use resources for training and professional development on promoting post-sec educ. Reward staff who are “on board.” Minimize influence of negative forces and personalities.

14. Discussion  What are attitudes in your school or community you’d like to change?  What strategies we talked about today might be helpful?  What are the impediments to changing those attitudes?

15. For More Information Download a complete Attitude Change Handbook and sample plans: http://tinyurl.com/3b455b7 For a copy of the handout and PPT: http://ronwilliamson.com/Oregon_GEAR_UP.html http://ronwilliamson.com/Oregon_GEAR_UP.html Contact us: Howard at: Johnston@usf.edu Johnston@usf.edu Ron at : rwmson214@aol.comrwmson214@aol.com