Student engagement in learning is the centerpiece of the Framework for Teaching; all other components contribute to it. When students are engaged in learning, they are not merely “busy,” nor are they only “on task.” Rather, they are intellectually active in learning important and challenging content. The critical distinction between a classroom in which students are compliant and busy and one in which they are engaged is that in the latter, students are developing their understanding through what they do. That is, they are engaged in discussion, debate, answering “what if?” questions, discovering patterns, and the like. They may be selecting their work from a range of (teacher-arranged) choices, and making important contributions to the intellectual life of the class. Such activities don’t typically consume an entire lesson, but they are essential components of engagement.
A lesson in which students are engaged usually has a discernible structure: a beginning, a middle, and an end, with scaffolding provided by the teacher or by the activities themselves. Student tasks are organized to provide cognitive challenge, and then students are encouraged to reflect on what they have done and what they have learned. That is, the lesson has closure, in which teachers encourage students to derive the important learning from the learning tasks, from the discussion, or from what they have read. Critical questions for an observer in determining the degree of student engagement are “What are the students being asked to do? Does the learning task involve thinking? Are students challenged to discern patterns or make predictions?” If the answer to these questions is that students are, for example, filling in blanks on a worksheet or performing a rote procedure, they are unlikely to be cognitively engaged.
In observing a lesson, it is essential not only to watch the teacher but also to pay close attention to the students and what they are doing. The best evidence for student engagement is what students are saying and doing as a consequence of what the teacher does, or has done, or has planned. And while students may be physically active (e.g., using manipulative materials in mathematics or making a map in social studies), it is not essential that they be involved in a hands-on manner; it is, however, essential that they be challenged to be “minds-on.”
Danielson, C. 2013
The artifact I chose was a Summative evaluation that was observed by Instructor in my Literacy Online Practicum. This evaluation shows that I carried out a beginning, middle and end in my lesson execution. Questions were asked to ensure understanding and allows students to engage in deep/critical thinking skills. The top of the evaluation has a section for general comments. In this section, it states that I had fun and creative lessons that helped students to engage in the material throughout the semester. An additional part of this artifact is the PowerPoint that was used in class to show what students were asked to participate in.
Attached is a writing conference that I did with a student and a review from my Instructor Sister Laorange. If you forward the video to 5:36, I instruct the student to create a graphic organizer. The purpose of this was for the student to have a place to engage in cognitive challenging in a organized way. Cora was able to write down her own thoughts and ideas. She proves to be engaged because she was able to take instruction and do it herself. The review from my Instructor states that I contained good Rapport and Scaffolding. My instructor thought it was clear in my video that the conversations were engaging and modeled well for Cora to follow instruction well.