Encourage and Ensure Engagement
To many students, school is just a place they go. How do we create engaging learning experiences that make school more personal for them? Students need to be motivated in their learning before they can apply higher-order, creative-thinking skills and, ultimately, be prepared for their future college, career, and citizenship success.
The most recent results from the High School Survey of Student Engagement show that only two percent of students surveyed said they’d never been bored in school. Students who have thought about dropping out continue to cite a lack of engagement with the school as a reason: 50 percent said they considered dropping out because they didn’t like the school (51 percent cited this in the 2008 survey); 39 percent said they considered it because they didn’t like the teachers (40 percent in 2008); 42 percent said they thought of dropping out because they didn’t see the value in the work they were asked to do (45 percent in 2008). Just 41 percent of the students said that they went to school because of what they learn in classes.
We can—and must—do better to engage and re-engage students as learners and in learning. Students are engaged and productive when they have control, choice, challenge, complexity, and caring teachers. To create environments where students can thrive and succeed, we should use active and effective learning strategies such
