Rethinking Student Engagement in the Classroom

Just think...  Today's kids have grown up with computers, the internet, digital cameras, and instant messaging.  Reading books from tablets and communicating at almost every waking moment.  How do we expect our children to sit still in their chairs?  pay attention when the teacher is lecturing?  Is there a need to be entertained?  How do we engage them?  Welcome to the digital age and the era of free-range learners.

How do we teach children today to make the right choices, build confidence, work collaboratively, inspire, and create tomorrow's leaders?  How do we keep up with China and India who have surpassed us exponentially in education?  How do we keep engineering jobs here in the United States?  How do we develop future entrepreneurs? 

We can begin by speaking their language of technology.

 

  In an article written by Mitchel Resnick of the Media Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he identifies teaching as an active collaborate process "in which people construct new understandings of the world around them through active exploration, experimentation, discussion, and reflection."  The idea that every student in every school should have a computer is too simplistic in today's world of technology.  Being connected no longer means having a computer, the iPod, a tablet, Flip Video and smart phones have taught us that!  To engage students in learning today, teaching needs to incorporate the three C's; creating, communicating and collaborating.

I think, as teachers, we understand that we need to change how we engage today's students, the problem is that the United States, as a whole does not view education as a high priority.  Too many schools in America don't have the technology that is available today.  In addition to the lack of technology in our schools, we also lack quality teachers that are able to teach this technology.  Offering a computer class is not enough anymore.  Teaching students how to use Microsoft Office might help them write a paper, but it doesn't teach them how to be intuitive, a spatial or critical thinker and it certainly doesn't prepare them to be integrators and collaborators.

Today, America ranks 37th in world education.  We lag behind South Korea, Singapore, Latvia, Hong Kong, Brazil and Japan.  At one time America was first in the world.  We not only need to engage our students in the classroom, we need to educate them for their future and for the future of our Country.  When I hear our President speak of upgrading our "infrastructure" what comes to my mind is not the roads and bridges, but our children.  Our children are our infrastructure, they are our future innovators, entrepreneurs, thinkers, doers, etc.