The Weight of our Beliefs

Six weeks into the school year, the cracks start to show — the fatigue, the frustration, and the quiet slide into low expectations. In this episode of Make Math Happen, Laneshia gets real about the dangerous drift toward deficit thinking and the power of collective teacher efficacy to turn it around.

Drawing from John Hattie’s Visible Learning research — where collective teacher efficacy ranks at an effect size of 1.57, the most influential factor on student achievement — this episode challenges educators to examine how their words, tone, and team mindset shape student outcomes.

Laneshia breaks down the difference between describing student struggles and defining their potential, reminding us that belief is not a feeling — it’s a decision. You’ll hear practical shifts for moving from isolation to collaboration, from “they can’t” to “they haven’t yet,” and from blame to blueprint.

If you’ve ever caught yourself lowering the bar to survive the moment, this episode will help you recalibrate — because students don’t just learn what we teach; they learn what we believe.

Listen to reset your mindset, reframe your language, and remember: our collective belief isn’t just powerful — it’s predictive.

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