Engaging All Kids in Learning

“Poor students come to school with no literacy.” This was a comment from a psychology student in my reading intervention class in reference to why only 38% of students in the United States are reading at grade level according to the NAPE. In this moment, my blood pressure skyrocketed. Maybe this is because teachers aren’t delivering quality instruction. I digress…

All students come to school with funds of knowledge. The difference is that low-income students’ funds of knowledge are not always aligned to the prominent discourse in education. We cannot continue to play the blame game around race and class. Instead, educators must rise to the challenge to provide all students, rich and poor, with an excellent education.

I had the pleasure of attending Colleen Cruz's Learning From Teachers in High Needs Schools Calendar Day last week. According to Colleen, engagement is the number one factor in learning. She says engagement is crucial for students in high needs schools, but I believe it is crucial in order for all students to have meaningful learning experiences. If you spent two hours on a beautiful lesson plan but students are not engaged, you should have watched a Modern Family marathon instead. The first way to engage students is through materials. According to Richard Ellington, all texts are equal to your brain. That means reading To Kill a Mockingbird is not necessarily going to make you a better reader than The Watsons Go to Birmingham. The most important thing is that kids are reading and they are going to read more if texts that interest them are available. The most popular books are pop culture biographies, which Colleen calls gateway drugs because they link to other books. For example, a student could start with a biography on Beyoncé, and then he or she could read biographies on other singers or information books about Houston or becoming a singer. No wonder second graders reading at level F are bored; most level F books lack the engagement factor. Other materials that engage students are writing supplies such as post-it buffets, felt tip pens, revision toolkits, and paper choice, as well as technology. Materials such as these are engaging for all students, not just students in high needs schools.

Another way to engage students is through the curriculum. Colleen argues that teachers need to include meaningful topics and make connections to student interests. TCRWP units of study address the standards and provide helpful curriculum frameworks. However, teachers need to realize they have the autonomy to change out texts and topics to make them meaningful for students. For example, a fifth grade student who has experienced death and loss will probably find it more meaningful to write an argumentative essay about gun control rather than uniforms. Choosing significant topics and making relevant connections will catalyze students to engage deeper with content. Dare I say the percentage of students reading at grade level might increase if adapt the curriculum to meet their needs? 

My biggest takeaway from Colleen’s session is that learning is hard. Imagine immigrating to the United States in third grade and learning to read in a foreign language or learning to multiply two digit numbers for the first time. There is a disequilibrium that occurs when we learn something new that, as teachers, we often do no acknowledge in our classrooms. Colleen suggests that teachers learn something new annually to experience this disequilibrium so that we can better understand our students throughout the learning process. Your topic can be something fun such wine, opera, or art. The important thing is that teachers are also engaging in the learning process so that they can better understand students’ frustrations, difficulties, and excitement when learning something new. Teacher awareness and intentional action lead to higher student outcomes.