WHAT WORKS IN EDUCATION The George Lucas Educational Foundation
Facebook
Edutopia on Facebook
Twitter
Edutopia on Twitter
Google+
Edutopia on Google+
Pinterest
Edutopia on Pinterest Follow Me on Pinterest

Blogs on Student Engagement

Student Engagement

RSS

Get advice from educators on how to build a positive climate for learning, improve student curiosity, and enhance classroom collaboration.

27
Kids Speak Out on Student Engagement
Heather Wolpert-GawronApril 26, 2012
Tags Curriculum, Student Engagement, Teacher Development, Middle (6-8), High (9-12)

A while back, I was asked, "What engages students?" Sure, I could respond, sharing anecdotes about what I believed to be engaging, but I thought it would be so much better to lob that question to my own eighth graders. The responses I received from all 220 of them seemed to fall under 10 categories, representing reoccurring themes that appeared again and again. So, from the mouths of babes, here are my students' answers to the question: "What engages students?"

Read More
7
Introversion and the Invisible Adolescent
Mark PhillipsApril 16, 2012
Tags Classroom Management, Mental Health, , Student Engagement, All Grades

A few years ago, one of my teacher interns at San Francisco State University wrote a paper that was like the voice of a trickster, waking me up and reminding me of what I occasionally missed as a teacher. The assignment was to recall what it was like for them when they were in high school and to write a letter to their high school teachers advising them about how they might have better served them as students.

Read More
22
What Do Your Rules Say About You?
Lori CullenApril 9, 2012
Tags Best Practices, Classroom Management, Professional Development, Student Engagement, Teacher Development

Rules, rules, rules. Everyone knows the key to success in school is to follow the rules.

Read More
22
Using "Music Writing" to Trigger Creativity, Awareness and Motivation
Jeffrey PflaumApril 2, 2012
Tags Arts Education, Curriculum, Project-Based Learning, , Student Engagement, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), High (9-12), English Language Arts, Music

In our test-obsessed and bullying culture, it is imperative that children learn to know themselves better.

Read More
+
How to Bring Screenwriting into the Classroom
Jen AnsbachMarch 28, 2012
Tags After-School Learning, Student Engagement, Teacher Development, Middle (6-8), High (9-12), English Language Arts

The students work, huddled in pairs, jotting down ideas in notebooks. The classroom buzzes with collaboration, punctuated by giggles and laughter. Students are excited to be writing as we start our annual celebration of Script Frenzy!

Read More
21
Beyond Student Engagement: Achieving a State of Flow
Elena AguilarMarch 27, 2012
Tags Student Engagement, Teacher Development, All Grades

Think about a time when you were really engaged in something, the kind of engagement where you lose track of time and experience feelings of joy and satisfaction. You may have felt acutely focused, physically, mentally, and emotionally absorbed in a task. I've felt this most often while writing, reading, teaching, and coaching -- always signaled by the moment when I notice the clock and, feeling dazed, wonder where the hours have gone.

Read More
+
The Creativity Index: No Artist Left Behind
Mark PhillipsMarch 20, 2012
Tags Arts Education, Comprehensive Assessment, Formative Assessment, Primary (K-2), Student Engagement, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), Drama, High (9-12), English Language Arts, Music, Visual Arts

Some of you may remember the scene in The Dead Poets Society in which Robin Williams' Mr. Keating mocks the approach to poetry of Dr. J. Evans Pritchard. In a nutshell, Pritchard has a method for mathematically calculating the measure of a poem's greatness. "If the poem's score for perfection is plotted along the horizontal of a graph, and its importance is plotted on the vertical, then calculating the total area of the poem yields the measure of its greatness." Keating has students rip the pages out of their books, sardonically exclaiming, " . . . we're not laying pipe, we're talking about poetry . . . I like Byron, I give him a 42 . . . "

Some of you may remember the scene in The Dead Poets Society in which Robin Williams' Mr. Keating mocks the approach to poetry of Dr. J. Evans Pritchard. In a nutshell, Pritchard has a method for mathematically calculating the measure of a poem's greatness. "If the poem's score for perfection is plotted along the horizontal of a graph, and its importance is plotted on the vertical, then calculating the total area of the poem yields the measure of its greatness." Keating has students rip the pages out of their books, sardonically exclaiming, " . . . we're not laying pipe, we're talking about poetry . . . I like Byron, I give him a 42 . . . " Read More

1
For Engaging Projects, Connect Learning to Students’ Lives
Suzie BossMarch 15, 2012
Tags Diversity, Media Literacy, Project-Based Learning, Teacher Development, Middle (6-8), High (9-12)

Heather Hanson, a first-year teacher on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota, knew she was taking a risk when she showed a documentary called "Children of the Plains" to her speech class at Todd County High School. Narrated by Diane Sawyer, the 20/20 episode emphasizes poverty, alcoholism, and family dysfunction on the reservation. "I was offended," says Hanson, who is not Native American, "and it's not even about me. I wasn't sure how my students would react."

Read More
5
The Last 40 Days Until Summer
Danielle Moss LeeMarch 14, 2012
Tags Classroom Management, Field Trips, Lesson Plans, Primary (K-2), Teacher Development, Upper Elementary (3-5), Middle (6-8), High (9-12)

Late one afternoon last week, I found a student smiling a smile of sheer relief at the Harlem Educational Activities Fund (HEAF). "Only 40 days left," she grinned. She was meticulously counting down the days to the end of the school year.

I smiled to myself. As much as I enjoyed the years I spent teaching in New York City, I have to admit that I, too, hit The Wall around this time of year. Sometimes it takes nothing less than sheer will and determination to make it through.

Read More
16
Five Quick Classroom Management Tips for Novice Teachers
Rebecca AlberMarch 13, 2012
Tags Classroom Management, Student Engagement, Teacher Development, All Grades

I made a good number of blunders my first year teaching that still make me cringe. I learned though. And it's fair to say, when it comes to managing a classroom, most of what we learn as new teachers is trial by fire. It's also smart to heed the advice of those who have walked -- and stumbled -- before you. If you are struggling with discipline, here are five tips that you can start using right away:

Read More
see more see less