Importance of Student Engagement

by Jerry Wircenski

In his new book, The Highly Engaged Classroom, Robert Marzano provides teachers with an in-depth treatment of research-based instructional strategies that can be used in the classroom to enhance student achievement. 

One of the key points in the book is the importance of student engagement.  If students aren’t engaged, there is little chance that they will learn what is being taught in class.    Basically, student engagement happens as a result of careful planning and classroom delivery on the part of the instructor.  The author emphasizes that no instructor will have all students engaged at high levels all of the time.  However, every instructor can create an environment in the classroom in which engagement is present the majority of the time.

The engagement model proposed by Dr. Marzano begins with the first step, which is attention.  Attention is a short term occurrence that ranges from a few seconds to a few minutes.  The following strategies and activities have been proven to solicit attention from students:

·        The level of activity in the classroom- Maintaining a lively pace can help keep energy high.  Any classroom activity that raises the level of activity in the classroom can help heighten students’ energy levels.

·        A positive demeanor on the part of the instructor is the second and most general influence on the attention level of students.  The instructor can communicate a positive demeanor through demonstrating enthusiasm and intensity.

·        Humor can change the culture of a classroom and is associated with enhanced productivity.  Humor reduces stress in students and promotes creative thinking.  Humor has been shown to produce a 40 percentile point gain in instructional effectiveness.

·        Game-like activities help trigger interest.  “Inconsequential competition” is an aspect of games that helps trigger and maintain interest.  Instructors should organize competitive games in such a way that students enjoy the challenge but do not feel compelled to win.  Competition might have a negative consequence in that it could embarrass some students on losing teams.

·        Another activity that triggers and helps maintain interest is the use of unusual information.  Student curiosity is the driving force which underlies motivation.

·        Effective questioning strategies can trigger interest. When a student is answering a quest6ion, his or her working memory is fully attentive to the task at hand.  Students’ attention to questions is most likely due to the fact that a quest6ion presents missing information.  One of the problems of questioning is that once an individual student answers a question, the others in class may disengage.  Consequently, increasing the number of students who respond to any given question helps capture the attention of more students.  Increasing the rate at which students respond is a commonly mentioned strategy to increase the effectiveness of instruction.

By incorporating these research-based “best practices” into instructional planning and delivery, instructors will increase the interest level of students which will, in turn, motivate them and keep the level of engagement in the classroom at the highest possible level.

SOURCE:  Marzano, R. & Pickering, D.  (2011).  The Highly Engaged Classroom.  Bloomington, IN: Marzano Research.

Quotations for Use in Motivating Students

by Mickey Wircenski

Instructors who wish to have highly motivated and engaged students in their classrooms are constantly looking for different ways to promote motivation and engagement. There are lots of strategies that can be used to accomplish this. One method is to use quotations and “sprinkle” them throughout a lesson, unit or semester. These quotations can be used for class discussion, group brainstorming, individual projects and individual consultations. Posting them around a classroom can be a positive addition to a positive learning environment.

For example, on a daily basis, or at least systematically, the class can discuss the meanings of the quotations as they relate to personal projects. Students scan also keep a list of quotes that are the most meaningful to them. The class might post a list of quotes on the bulletin board and periodically update it.

 The following quotes can be used as a “starter” list:

•  “The person on the top of the mountain did not fall there.” (Anonymous)
• “Without a struggle, there can be no progress.” (Frederick Douglass)
• “Genius is 99 percent perspiration and 1 percent inspiration.” (Thomas A. Edison)
• “Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after the others have let go.” (William Feather)
• “I hated every minute of training, but I said, “Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.” (Muhammad Ali)
• “I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed.” (Michael Jordan)
• “Perseverance is failing nineteen times and succeeding the twentieth.” (Julie Andrews)
• “Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no help at all.” (Dale Carnegie)
• “It’s not whether you get knocked down; it’s whether you get up.” (Vince Lombardi)
• “I am the greatest. I said that even before I knew I was.” (Muhammad Ali)
• “Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” (John R. Wooden)
• “Decide that you want it more than you are afraid of it.” (Bill Cosby)
• “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” (Eleanor Roosevelt)
• “Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors.” (African proverb)
• “Do the best you can in every task, no matter how unimportant it may seem at the time.
• No one learns more about a problem than the person at the bottom.” (Sandra Day O’Connor) 

SOURCE: Marzano, R. & Pickering, D. (2011). The Highly Engaged Classroom. Bloomington, IN: Marzano Research.