Beth Rohloff

Beth Rohloff, a K-1-2 multiage teacher at Buckman Elementary School in Portland, Oregon, notes that all children--regardless of their cultural, social, or economic background--are motivated to learn if their basic needs have been met. Excerpted from a videotaped interview with Beth Rohloff (North Central Regional Educational Laboratory, 1998).

"You need to pay close attention to kids coming from all different cultural backgrounds and social economic backgrounds, because there is one thing we know about kids, and that is that they're all interested in learning, they all come with a basic motivation to learn if some of their basic needs have been met, and put them in a classroom stimulating environmentally rich and provide them with good skills and opportunities to partake of that and understand expectations that everyone's meeting on their own levels, but as teachers the best thing we can do is be sure we are looking at what's developmentally right for kids."

This Critical Issue was researched and written by Jeanette Vo-Vu, program specialist with the Center for School and Community Development, North Central Regional Educational Laboratory, in collaboration with Judy Caplan, coordinator of school and family partnerships with the Center for School and Community Development, North Central Regional Educational Laboratory, and Lynne Huske, Pathways coordinator.

Date posted: 1999