Your Students Are Talking
According to the just-released High School Survey of Student Engagement, today’s teenagers find school boring. The study lets you inside the mind of teenagers from public schools across the country. While many were bored with material that wasn’t interesting and work that wasn’t challenging, many of their comments were insightful.
“I think a lot of classes are pointless, boring, and have no real life application. I feel like there should be more classes that attract different types of people’s interest rather than just one general curriculum that is the same thing every day.”
I believe strongly in a holistic, self-driven education. This educational institution discourages that. Forced education or learning retards motivation and a natural drive or curiosity to learn.
“I feel as though even though individualism is encouraged, anyone like me who does go against the norm is basically shunned.
“[My school] focuses too much on maintaining its reputation and not enough on connecting with students.”
“School does not determine how smart a student is. A “smart” student is one who absorbs everything they are told. I hate school because it only limits students to one kind of smart.”
Today’s kids want and expect more from school. No longer content to sit and listen to irrelevant lectures, they’re accustomed to a choice in how they spend their time, and if given the choice, would choose “other” when it comes to education.
ODYSSEYWARE is the “other” alternative to a traditional classroom. The interactive online curriculum was built to keep students interested and provide relevant information that will help them prepare for careers and college.
What are you doing at your school to encourage engagement and support learning in the digital age?