The Kids Are Not Alright: Student engagement is a major concern, survey finds

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Jan 17, 2023, 09:00 ET

80% of educators are worried about low student engagement.

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The vast majority of educators said they are concerned about their students' engagement in classroom-based learning, according to the latest installment of the national Gradient Learning Poll, which examines the growing student engagement crisis in classrooms across the country. These findings are bolstered by Project Tomorrow's Speak Up research, in which 50% of student respondents claimed they are not engaged in what they are learning in school for the majority of their classes.

Teachers highlighted a number of reasons students are struggling to stay engaged in the classroom this year—from a lack of intrinsic motivation on core subjects to the long-term impacts of pandemic-driven disruptions.

The results also showed that educators are determined to find solutions to this widespread concern. Teachers believe that addressing student disengagement is a top priority: the survey found that nearly every teacher (95%) reported it should be a priority for every school to support teachers with the tools and strategies needed to increase and sustain student engagement.

Educators believe the following strategies will have the biggest impacts on students in the classroom:

78% said building stronger teacher-student connections is highly effective at increasing student engagement
72% said connecting learning to real-world skills helps students stay engaged in their learning
65% said leveraging students' personal interests and passions within learning is important
64% said incorporating active, hands-on learning experiences helps keep students excited and engaged in classroom learning

The findings reveal an urgent need for strategies and tools to help teachers build classroom environments that nurture student engagement. It is essential for school and district leaders to take action to combat this engagement gap. To learn more about how schools and districts can support teachers to address the student engagement gap, check out the full report here.

About the Gradient Learning Poll

Conducted in partnership with Project Tomorrow, the Gradient Learning Poll surveyed 400 educators, of grades 4-12, across the country to better understand their views on the state of education. Participants span the national education landscape with respondents coming from all 50 states. The respondents also reflect all experience levels of instruction with the majority (68%) having 11+ years of teaching experience.

About Gradient Learning

As a nonprofit organization led by educators, Gradient Learning is a trusted partner — to communities, schools, educators — that creates captivating solutions to meet the holistic needs of every child while fostering success for all. We are empowering an underpowered educational system to work for students of today and tomorrow. Our offerings include the Summit Learning program — a research-based approach to education designed to drive student engagement, meaningful learning, and strong student-teacher relationships — and Along.

SOURCE Gradient Learning