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Addressing the engagement gap in K-12 education would significantly improve student and community success.

Student engagement has been shown to correlate positively with academic achievement and high school graduation rates (Finn, Zimmer, 2012; Fredricks et al, 2011; Gallup, 2014).

Further, research shows that students who are disengaged are more likely to drop-out of school (Fredricks et al, 2011).

Marks (2000) suggests that dropping out of school is the end of a long process of disengagement that begins early in education.

The standardization of instruction and testing has created a system that fosters disengagement, thus preventing students from reaching their potential and robbing communities of talent and skill.

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Published in: Jennifer A. Fredricks; Theory Into Practice 2011, 50, 327-335. DOI:10.1080/00405841.2011.607401

Copyright © 2011

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There is strong indication that students do not feel valued with in their learning communities, and thus are less likely to be engaged:

A common theme among respondents in the 2009 High School Survey of Student Engagement was that students’ voices did not matter within their school communities (Yazzie-Mintz & McCormick, 2012)

While some students have access to learning environments “that foster robust, contextualized, and cognitively challenging” learning opportunities, others “receive static, decontextualized, and recall-driven science learning” (Buxton, 2009, p. 17)

Too often it seems as though it is assumed that all students share similar educational experiences, rather than allowing them to learn what they love and discover their talents (Gallup, 2014)

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2009 High School Survey of Student Engagement found that two-thirds of high school student respondents were bored at least every day in class, with one-sixth bored in every class (Yazzie-Mintz, 2010).

Other examples point to around half of K-12 students being routinely disengaged at school (Fredricks et al, 2011; Gallup, 2014; Marks, 2000)

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How might we close the gap?

Stop Blaming Students: Kuh (2001) notes that student engagement should be viewed as “both the time and energy students invest in educationally purposeful activities and the effort institutions devote to using effective educational practices [emphasis added]" (p. 13).

Rely Less on Standardization: Standardized instruction and testing devalue student interest and talent, disengaging students from the learning process. Many students find that curriculum is too standardized and not tailored to their needs (Gallup, 2014; Yazzie-Mintz & McCormick, 2012).

Authenticity: It is important to have relevant, authentic curriculum and student-centered, interactive instruction. Researchers agree that curriculum should be imbued with relevance and authentic instruction in order to foster student engagement (Egbert & Roe, 2014).

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Most researchers agree that student engagement is multifaceted, including behavioral, cognitive, social, and emotional components (Axelson & Flick, 2010; Finn & Zimmer, 2012; Mahatmya, Lohman, Matjasko, & Farb, 2012).

Participation-Identification Model: Developed by Finn in 1989, the Participation-Identification Model explains how behavior and affect work reciprocally to create academic engagement and success (Finn & Zimmer, 2012).

Metaconstruct: Other scholars define student engagement as a metaconstruct of all its defined components, distilling it simply into the time and energy students spend on educationally effective activities, such as paying attention, taking initiative, seeking help, etc. (Axelson & Flick, 2010).

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In order to properly address the engagement gap in K-12 education, it is important to understand what researchers have defined as student engagement.

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The educational problem I addressed in my paper is the equity and engagement gap that exists in K-12 instructional practice. Drawing from my own teaching practice, I sought answers to the following questions:

Why is it that only a handful of students consistently engage in their school learning?

What can account for this so called engagement gap?

Is this a real problem across K-12 school communities?

If so, how might it be addressed?