Our Initiative
The phrase "student engagement" has come to refer to how involved or interested students appear to be in their learning and how connected they are to their classes, their institutions, and each other.As part of a Leadership 203 group project at the University of Prince Edward Island, we have decided to try to encourage a stronger relationship between our students and the faculty. We hope to build a more powerful connection, with hopes that students and staff enjoy their experience while attending University. We have created a Facebook page open to student discussion on their student engagement experiences within the classroom.
As a added part of our project, we found a A to Z Employee Engagement Alphabet that we adjusted to meet the needs for our own faculty. Each little point is an encouraging reminder or suggestion that faculty and staff can sample within their classroom. We hope you enjoy reading our alphabet and you find some helpful tips to use!
The Employee Engagement Alphabet
-Engaging
students is as simple as ABC…
Authenticity: We hear it all the time, "Why
do we need to know this stuff? When will I ever use this?" There is no doubt that successful
learning is directly related to its relevance, purpose and
authenticity. We are more motivated to learn if we see a clear connection to the
purpose and use. If our desire is for students to
engage, the work they do must be significant, valuable, and real.
Brain: The brain is
intimately involved in and connected with everything educators and students do
at school. Any disconnect is a recipe for frustration and potential disaster.
Every school day changes the brain in some way. We can influence and ignite
that change when we understand the way the brain learns,
and act accordingly.
Collaborative: Collaborating with others in
solving problems or mastering difficult materials prepares students to deal
with the messy, unscripted problems they will encounter in life. Students are
valuable resources for one another. If they have opportunities to engage and
explore topics, assignments, and content in a collaborative way, understanding and
engagement are natural outcomes.
Disengagement: Students are
sometimes labeled as lazy, unmotivated, off-task, and disrespectful. These
behaviors can and often are a direct result of disengagement. When learning
involves wondering, dreaming, playing, interacting, communicating, exploring,
discovering, questioning, investigating, creating – the disengaged become engaged.
Environment: Just as architects create the
environments in which we live and work, teachers create the place and space
that become home
to learning. The decisions they make — from the arrangement of furniture to the
feeling students experience — greatly influence conditions of learning.
Feedback: Feedback is a
powerful force.
It can be a stimulating motivator or a suffocating inhibitor. Feedback that is
specific, non-threatening, and frequent changes performance, attitudes, and
behaviors. So, the next time you say, "Good job", follow that with,
"…and here’s why!"
Generative: Learning is
about the creation of meaning, value and action on the part of the learner.
Learning is not something you ‘absorb’; it is something you create for yourself
– mentally or physically. Generative learning is the active process of linking,
sharing, re-creating, and co-creating. Engagement comes about when we
encourage learners to construct and produce knowledge in meaningful ways by
providing experiences and learning environments that promote active, collaborative
learning.
Habitudes: You may have observed that the
most successful individuals in life are not necessarily the ones who got the
best grades in school. Successful people learn to be successful because they
develop specific attitudes and behaviors to ensure their success in all aspects of life. We can teach
students the specific habits of preparedness, mindfulness, and persistence to
use and apply when engaging in any task, challenging or otherwise.
Joy: People are learning machines and have untold hours of play and joy…
until… they are "educated" – educated to behave otherwise. If
you want a better class of thinkers and innovators — people with explosive
curiosity and creativity, bring FUN back into the classrooms. You need giggles
and laughter, enthusiasm and excitement. School can become a place remembered
for the love of learning, if for no other reason than it feels joyous!
Kaizen: Kaizen is the Japanese term for "continuous
improvement", a concept to take to heart if you want students to achieve
their personal and professional best. Small changes, if done every day, can
make a big impact
over time. By creating an environment of Kaizen, reflection becomes
part of the daily work and conversations. Continuous improvement can only be
achieved with continuous reflection. And with
continuous reflection, students will become more and more engaged in
their growth and learning.
Listening: Both learning to listen and
listening to learn are critical to literacy in the 21st century. Listening is a
powerful and essential means of developing and mastering both old and
new literacies. Listening is not only part of the engagement process, it’s the
first step. In any culture or community, listening first will earn the right to
be listened to.
Motivation: Motivation is
essential to learning at all ages. Students have the primary
responsibility to own their own learning, yet educators have a shared
responsibility in the task. The environments they foster, the cultures they
contribute to, and even the aura of a classroom all makes a difference.
Networks: One
mantra is Together we are Smarter. Students
are connected to friends and family outside the classroom; creating a network
inside the school makes sense too: school mates can become brain mates.
Outside: To really
engage students you must bring and allow
some of their outside into the classroom. Every student you teach has
something in their life that is engaging – something they do well AND love. If
you can identify the engaging and creative ways they do their work outside of
school and find ways to bring that into the classroom, students may start to
feel engaged.
Participatory: Students have
come to depend on educators for learning to happen – sometimes. IN reality,
most know they can rely on each other these days. They are becoming a community of learners. Encouraging participation fosters
engaged student body. Engaged learning is active; it is hands-on, minds on,
eyes on, and demands participation at all levels.
Questions: Questions that stretch student
minds, invite curiosity, provoke thinking, and instill a sense of wonder, keep
students engaged. Successful
student engagement requires a classroom culture that invites mutual inquiry, and gives permission to
investigate open-ended and suggestive questions.
Relationships: To grow ‘em
you must know ‘em. Knowing students seems obvious, yet many students claim that
educators do not "get" them. Students want and need a relationship with their teachers. They
work harder and smarter when they know that their learning matters to them.
Self-Efficacy: Self efficacy is commonly defined
as the belief in one’s capabilities
to achieve a goal or an outcome. Students with a strong sense of efficacy are more likely to challenge themselves with difficult tasks and be intrinsically motivated. Self-efficacious students also recover quickly from setbacks, and ultimately are likely to achieve their personal goals.
to achieve a goal or an outcome. Students with a strong sense of efficacy are more likely to challenge themselves with difficult tasks and be intrinsically motivated. Self-efficacious students also recover quickly from setbacks, and ultimately are likely to achieve their personal goals.
Teacher (as
student): Students see the teaching part of your persona
every day. But, do you stand before them as learners? What would that do to
engagement, if you shared with students how you came to know, how
you faced and conquered learning challenges, and most importantly how you can
help them do the same. Teachers who stand before their class as learners first,
are more successful teachers because of it.
Understanding: A wise saying goes, "seek first to understand and
demonstrate that understanding before seeking to be understood." How do
you demonstrate to your students that you understand and value them; in your words, with your
actions, and by your expectations?
Variety: Variety adds spice to life and to teaching.
This being said, use a variety of teaching methods. No matter how gifted a
teacher you are, using the same method to teach each class can become
monotonous- for you and the students.
WWW: The information
super highway. It is not only the pathway learners in the 21st century seek out
and locate information; it is a place where people engage in the creation, and
co-creation of content and understanding.
Xtra: Educators sometimes say that
there is no time for engagement, there is too much content to cover; giving
students time to collaborate, create, talk, and reflect is just Xtra work. We should turn "Xtra" into
"Xpectation", so engagement is no longer an option, it becomes an expectation.
You: This alphabet
list of student engagement from A to Z will only become alive if you take these
thoughts and ideas and put them into practice.
Engaged learning requires
leadership. Your leadership reflects the research and philosophies you believe
in and promote. As a leader, you can coach, model, mentor and support
colleagues in the process of creating and sustaining engaging classrooms.
Zeal: Energy and enthusiasm are contagious. When you show students your zeal
and passion for what you believe in, you welcome them to share their own. Love
what you do and present it with zeal every day! Even if it is the 100th
time you have presented something, remember it is the first for your students!
As you can see, student engagement is as
simple as ABC. What are your keys to engaging your students?
References:
Maiers, A. (2008). 26 keys to student engagement.
Retrieved from http://www.angelamaiers.com/2008/04/engagement-alph.html