Powerful Language for Reluctant Learners

For many 21st- century learners, everything about school seems archaic; from the way the day is structured, to the type of assignments they are doing, to the policies and procedures in the classroom. The disconnect between “school stuff” and “real life” can be even more dramatic for traditionally underrepresented students in schools that are dominated by the majority culture and are vastly different from their home experiences. When reluctant learners cannot see the value in the context in terms of their own lives, lack of relevance leads to disengagement in the classroom.
For students like my son Jeremiah, a lack of relevance will lead to boredom. I can vividly remember his kindergarten teacher explaining to me that Jeremiah walks up to her desk and touches everything on it. I asked her if it occurred to her that he was probably just trying to learn something through what educators call kinesthetic learning. To defend her, Jeremiah should not have been at her desk trying to touch her stuff, however I’m pretty sure sitting still at a table for at least an hour and focusing did not appeal to a five year old. I have had countless debates with educators who feel that pre-kindergartners and kindergartners should be an all day traditional learning atmosphere, however most of these kids are still very baby like and should be given multiple opportunities to play and have kinesthetic learning opportunities to keep learning relevant. It’s amazing how educators want these babies sitting for an hour or longer at a time and as adults they cannot sit for an hour or longer and focus at the same time. Even for older children, sitting in class and learning in ways that are often linear and passive can seem like a long, slow trudge. 21st century learners typically spend their out-of-school hours engaging in multiple tasks at the same time or participating in activities like swimming and gaming, which provide constant stimulation, escalating challenges, and immediate gratification. If “reluctant learners” cannot see the relevance of what they are learning or how they are being asked to learn, it simply will not interest them and they will not invest in classroom lessons.