Connecting with your Learners

In preparing for an upcoming conference on Student Engagement, I struggled to identify 3 -5 strategies that would help increase student engagement in any classroom. The struggle was not in coming up with the strategies - I could list 20 - 30 if needed. My struggle existed in that creating and using activities alone will not necessarily increase student engagement. Don't get me wrong, engagement activities can definitely be worth the time and effort you put into them. However, wouldn't making meaningful connections with learners go a lot further?

To illustrate this point, allow me to ask you the following questions. Who was the most memorable teacher you've ever had? Keeping this teacher in mind, what are three adjectives you would use to describe him/her that made them memorable? Odds are, the three words you chose have very little to do with your grade in that class, the subject he/she taught, or the age of that teacher. I'm more willing to bet that your three words describe the rapport he/she had with you, the connection you made with him/her, and how he/she treated you as an individual!

If this is true, shouldn't more focus be placed on how to create and sustain meaningful connections with learners? Isn't it in the best interest of each learner to understand how he/she best learns, what's going on in his/her life, and to know how we can help each one be successful in his/her endeavors?

American Journalist Chris Hedges puts it this way. "We've bought into the idea that education is about training and 'success,' defined monetarily, rather than learning to think critically and challenge. We should not forget that the true purpose of education is to make minds, not careers. A culture that does not grasp the vital interplay between morality and power, which mistakes management techniques for wisdom, which fails to understand the measure of a civilization is its compassion, not its speed or ability to consume, condemns itself to death."

If we believe in Mr. Hedges statement, the question becomes how do we teach compassion in our classrooms? Ironically, the answer is quite simple - WE MODEL IT! We must not only recognize that each learner is an individual, we must harness their potential by engaging them in conversation that allow us to get to know them. What are their hobbies, what are their goals for your class, what is their weekend like, and how do they prefer to learn are only a small sample of questions we should consider. While this effort may take some time on your part, isn't that time more valuable than just diving into your content? How else will you be able to help each learner individually if you don't know who they are?

Aristotle once said, "Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all." We have an opportunity to reshape how we teach - will you take the opportunity to become the most memorable teacher your students ever had?