Engagement is a word that educators have been speaking about for a long time; recently the word has surfaced in many more conversations. Hybrid learning environments have caused teachers to worry that students are not engaged as much as necessary for the learning outcomes expected. Aligning teachers’ practices and expectations around student engagement calls for a deep dive into the word engagement itself. This post will define engagement and look at how to develop engagement with specific strategies and points for reflection. To understand student engagement, it is important to consider its many layers. EdGlossary, an online resource that helps educators familiarize themselves with specialized language in the field of education, explains that, “Student engagement refers to the degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion that students show when they are learning or being taught, which extends to the level of motivation they have to learn and progress in their education.” Categorizing the above definition, Fisher, Frey, & Hattie (2020) have identified three distinct areas of engagement: behavioral, emotional, and cognitive. Behavioral engagement is the easiest to define. Attention is the easiest marker of behavioral engagement: hand raising, work completion, cameras on, and microphones unmuted. What are some markers of success in the areas of emotional and cognitive engagement? In this blog post, we will deep dive into emotional engagement, a trickier side of the topic. Strategies to Build Emotional Engagement Emotional engagement is characterized by how students are feeling about their learning. Teachers can see emotional engagement in the way students participate in discussions, what questions they ask, how they seek help, and how they express curiosity. Building positive relationships and creating a student-centered learning environment increases emotional engagement. Teachers must strive to build positive and healthy relationships now more than ever! Below is a list of strategies that can be applied in any classroom, virtual or in-person, to develop students’ emotional engagement:
A student-centered classroom filled with discussion—students in dialogue with each other—creates a positive atmosphere with time for critical thinking, active listening, and the development of curiosity. Educators must strive to teach students how to engage in this manner by giving guided practice on communication skills. A number of student-centered discussion protocols include fishbowl, socratic seminar, and jigsaws. The following questions can serve as a guide to establish dialogue in the classroom:
Markers of Emotionally Engaged Learning Commit to using practices that develop emotional wellbeing around learning. Emotional engagement starts with relationships and continues with student-centered learning practice. This type of engagement must be developed, taught, and monitored over time and with intentionality. As educators establish goals for student engagement, Fisher, Frey and Hattie (2020, p. 64) suggest that educators reflect and self-assess on these success criteria:
Justine Wilson, M.Ed. Instructor, Moreland University
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Publish a book? Really? I didn't know how and never took the time....
When This summer was not been like I had ever expected, no one expected it to be as it is. I realized I had taken for granted that I could always go visit family or travel on a whim. Now I know I need to appreciate every opportunity we get, not assume or take anything for granted. Those lessons are obvious to most of us now. I am so grateful for FaceTime, more than ever, and so grateful for my family to take the time to turn the video chat on my toddler niece as she eats breakfast most mornings while I am eating dinner. FaceTime is the lifeline to my family who are a continent away. The lesson that has taken longer to come into view was that we can "turn lemons into lemonade". I was very sad that I wasn't going home to see my niece this summer and spend some family time in nature's crisp cool air of northern California and hike in mountains of Colorado. My husband and I were destined to spend the summer in Doha, Qatar as borders tightened to slow the spread of COVID-19. The hot weather demanded that we spend days inside. These obstacles turned into an opportunity. With more inside time then ever before, I started writing little stories for my niece about our dogs, who she loved to watch on FaceTime. My family was so supportive and encouraging. My small writing project turned in to "doing it the RIGHT way" and I learned how to publish picture books. My husband was excited to illustrate using his passion of filtering photos and our picture book baby was born. We are now moments (9 days exactly) away from publishing our first picture book for the world on Amazon. We have two more in process and plan to continue writing stories for our niece. My small thought of sharing stories with my nice has actualized in to publishing a book for her and allowed us to share a love of reading with the world. As an educator who loves picture books who has been granted the gifts of time and an air conditioned apartment in Doha, Qatar. The obstacles the global pandemic created also created the opportunity for my passion project to turn into a reality. I had always thought of writing a picture book and now was the time to learn and publish! I am still sad to miss my niece in person, but I have so much to be grateful for. We will celebrate our book, Apartment Adventures with Amora and Yalla, being released with a Zoom Book Release party on August 1st, 2020 and we will keep moving forward learning, growing and celebrating along the way. I think the biggest lesson that I have learned is that when many the passions come together (dogs, books, family) and have time to "germinate", then anything is possible. |
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