Getting students engaged in learning

Now, as I travel the country coaching teachers on how to successfully use project learning, my goal remains the same. And I try to teach educators the strategies they need to achieve this goal in their own classrooms.


A teacher in one of my workshops said, "When my students and I are in the flow, then I don't feel like I have to work as hard." I heartily agree. When 90 to 100 percent of my students are excitedly engaged in their tasks and asking deep and interesting questions, I experience joy, and joy is a lot less tiring than the frustration that comes with student apathy. (Tristan De Frondeville on student engagement at Edutopia)

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Tips for improving student engagement

The educators at Cochrane Collegiate Academy, in Charlotte, North Carolina, have developed an instructional model called Interactive Learning (IL). It is a collection of their ten best practices, which they call their non-negotiables, and teachers must implement them in every lesson, every day.
Shana Oliver, the school's academic facilitator, runs the training sessions for these best practices, and she helps the teachers see and experience how they can incorporate all ten into one lesson. Here are Cochrane's IL non-negotiables, with additional comments from Oliver. Watch the video to see what they look like in the classroom and go to our Resources and Downloads for a sample lesson plan that includes all ten practices.(Mariko Nobori at Edutopia)

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