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Douglas Fisher

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Learning and risk are inseparable-you can’t have one without the other.

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For some, it’s accepting a goal they’re not sure they can meet.

And for many, it’s admitting they don’t know.

For others, it’s trying and risking being wrong.

Risk looks different for every learner.

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Accepting a goal you’re unsure you can hit.

Admitting you don’t know something.

Trying and risking being wrong.

Which door represents the kind of risk that is hardest for you as a learner or leader?

Hold up that number of fingers.

#1

#2

#3

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Rigor in teaching and learning means challenging students with high expectations, engaging them in deep and meaningful learning experiences, and supporting them to achieve their full potential.

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R

I

G

O

R

Relationships

Instruction

Goals

Organization

Relevance

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Relationships	Instruction	Goals	Organization	Relevance
Students’ names are used in positive and productive ways	Evidence of student learning is used to inform instruction.	Learning goals are aligned with grade-level expectations.	The physical environment is accessible for all students.	The learning process incorporates meaningful tasks that embed learning inside and outside the classroom.
Proximity is used to foster connections with students to ensure their learning.	Students interact with peers in meaningful discussions using academic language to complete tasks.	The level of knowledge expected of the learning goal aligns with the standard.	The physical environment is rich and recent.	Students describe the value of what they are learning and how they are learning it.
Students’ interactions with peers are respectful and productive.	Scaffolds are strategically used to support learning, invite productive struggle and ensure productive success.	Students can describe or demonstrate what successful learning looks like.	Grouping patterns are used flexibly to promote learning.	Students’ lived experiences, as well as those from backgrounds different from their own, are incorporated into learning experiences, making lessons culturally relevant and inclusive.
Academic risk-taking is encouraged and celebrated.	Lessons include input based on student learning needs.	Students regularly self-assess their learning and revise their actions based on the results.	Student behavior is proactively managed, monitored, and addressed through productive procedures and interventions.	Artifacts and materials reflect the unique identities and interests of students.
Student ideas are valued and explored as bridges to learning.	Students practice and apply what they have learned to familiar and new situations.	Students seek feedback, are provided with actionable ideas, and follow through with next steps.	The flow and pace of the lesson is aligned with the learning goals.	Learning activates students’ prior knowledge and experiences and fosters connections to new or more complex content.

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Where did it come from?�RIGOR Walk Construction & Validation

Construction

Literature- and practice-derived
Crowdsourced with experts and practitioners—four “review, reconsider, revision” loops
From 54 indicators to 25—with modifications and exacting all along the way
Converged into final RIGOR Walk model

Validation to Date

84 educator RIGOR Walks with ratings recorded anonymously
5 RIGOR components returned high internal consistency (.81-.95)=measuring same domain, reliability
5 RIGOR components correlated to reading growth (.42 to .68; .68 for full model) = meaning predictive validity
Currently testing for consistency over time

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Relationships	Instruction	Goals	Organization	Relevance
Students’ names are used in positive and productive ways	Evidence of student learning is used to inform instruction.	Learning goals are aligned with grade-level expectations.	The physical environment is accessible for all students.	The learning process incorporates meaningful tasks that embed learning inside and outside the classroom.
Proximity is used to foster connections with students to ensure their learning.	Students interact with peers in meaningful discussions using academic language to complete tasks.	The level of knowledge expected of the learning goal aligns with the standard.	The physical environment is rich and recent.	Students describe the value of what they are learning and how they are learning it.
Students’ interactions with peers are respectful and productive.	Scaffolds are strategically used to support learning, invite productive struggle and ensure productive success.	Students can describe or demonstrate what successful learning looks like.	Grouping patterns are used flexibly to promote learning.	Students’ lived experiences, as well as those from backgrounds different from their own, are incorporated into learning experiences, making lessons culturally relevant and inclusive.
Academic risk-taking is encouraged and celebrated.	Lessons include input based on student learning needs.	Students regularly self-assess their learning and revise their actions based on the results.	Student behavior is proactively managed, monitored, and addressed through productive procedures and interventions.	Artifacts and materials reflect the unique identities and interests of students.
Student ideas are valued and explored as bridges to learning.	Students practice and apply what they have learned to familiar and new situations.	Students seek feedback, are provided with actionable ideas, and follow through with next steps.	The flow and pace of the lesson is aligned with the learning goals.	Learning activates students’ prior knowledge and experiences and fosters connections to new or more complex content.

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We are learning how to create risk-ready learning environments so that students feel safe enough to take intellectual risks, persist through challenge, and grow as learners.

Learning Intention:

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I can:

explain what academic risk-taking looks like and identify instructional moves that increase students’ willingness to take risks.

describe the conditions that support psychological safety and relational trust and recognize how they reduce resistance and increase engagement.

apply strategies that help students experience success, manage productive struggle, and build resilience during challenging learning.

design or adapt learning experiences that require collective thinking, structured dialogue, and reflection so all students can engage in courageous learning together.

Success Criteria:

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A willingness to ask questions, offer ideas, seek feedback, and complete complex tasks.

Academic Risk-Taking

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Academic risk-takers aren’t born. They are BUILT.

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Averse

Hesitant

Bold

Exploratory

Reckless

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Level 1: Averse

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Level 2: Resistant

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Level 3: Exploratory

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Level 4: Bold

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Level 5: Reckless

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Apply the Continuum:

What Kind of Risk is This?

Work with your group to classify the following behaviors:

A student shares a wrong answer in front of the class.

A student asks peers for help on a writing assignment.

A student ignores the rubric and does their own thing.

A student hesitates to ask for help on a hard problem.�

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