Engage or Entertain?

Data pubblicazione: Oct 13, 2009 7:54:25 AM

It's a fallacy to believe that today's students are unhappy unless they are entertained.

Mirco Berrutti says: a classroom teacher lamented that because of the amount of time kids spend online, they now need to be entertained if you want to hold their attention. It's not an uncommon complaint. I hear it often during workshops when I ask teachers to list some qualities of today's learner.

But I don't believe it is a valid complaint. The terms "entertain" and "engage" are being confused. There are important distinctions. The dictionary definitions hint at some:

Engage: to hold the attention of; to induce to participate

Entertain: to provide entertainment (amusement or diversion provided especially by performers)