This article is a follow-up to our 2019 post: I use evidence to inform my teaching. There is overwhelming research (documented on the Human Restoration Project website) supporting common sense initiatives to reimagine education. The current system isn’t working and we can do better. We’re past the point of waiting for change and hoping that a single policymaker or political party will “save” education. We must demand better right now.
The Issue
Young people are struggling. The vast majority of students spend their days “tired” “stressed” or “bored.” Moeller et al., 2019 Nearly all teenagers report that school is a somewhat or significant source of stress. Stress in America 2013: Are Teens Adopting Adults' Stress Habits?Research summary (based on the identified source): The American Psychological Association’s 2013 Stress in America findings compare teenagers’ and adults’ reported stress and coping. Teens reported...View source → Teenagers face an unprecedented mental health crisis: feeling sad, helpless, depressed, and anxious. Mental Health, Suicidality, and Connectedness Among High School Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic - Adolescent Behaviors and Experiences Survey, United States, January-June 2021MMWR SupplementsView source → This crisis has gotten worse over the last two decades, especially in middle school and high school – a problem before the pandemic which was exacerbated after 2020. Mental Health-Related Emergency Department Visits Among Children Aged <18 Years During the COVID-19 Pandemic - United States, January 1-October 17, 2020MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly ReportResearch summary (based on indexed source text): This CDC surveillance report compares US children's mental-health-related emergency department visits in January–October 2020 with the same period in...View source → The APA has written that, “We are facing a national mental health crisis that could yield serious health and social consequences for years to come.” APA, 2020
When surveyed, 96% of teenagers report that anxiety and depression are a problem their peers face, with 70% identifying them as major problems. Most U.S. Teens See Anxiety and Depression as a Major Problem Among Their PeersResearch summary (based on the primary publisher or institutional source): A Pew Research Center survey of 920 U.S. teenagers aged 13–17, conducted in late 2018, examined perceived community...View source → And horrifically, the suicide rate of students increases between 30 to 43% during the school year. Children's Risk of Suicide Increases on School DaysScientific AmericanResearch summary (based on clinical perspective and opinion article): A pediatric emergency psychiatrist discusses the relationship between school demands and children's mental-health crises, drawing...View source →
A Pew Research Center report finds that the vast majority of young people feel their peers are facing anxiety and depression (alongside bullying, drug addiction, drinking alcohol, and poverty).Gallup scientists categorized 1 in 10 students as both disengaged and discouraged, and reported that older students “feel less cared for by adults and see less value in their own work.” Gallup Student Poll Finds Engagement in School Dropping by Grade LevelEducation WeekA recent poll of nearly a million U.S. students concludes that schools need to work on building supports to keep students invested in their educations, especially as they advance in grades.View source →
Alongside these mental health statistics, we find a crisis of engagement. Children ask fewer questions as they proceed through school. Children aged 14mo to 5 years old have been found to ask an average of 107 questions an hour, but by the time those children reach elementary school they may only ask 2 to 5 questions over 2-hours. Children's Questions: A Mechanism for Cognitive DevelopmentMonographs of the Society for Research in Child DevelopmentPreschoolers' questions may play an important role in cognitive development. When children encounter a problem with their current knowledge state (a gap in their knowledge, some ambiguity they do not...View source →
In what is described as the “school engagement cliff”, a steep drop in engagement occurs from 5th to 6th grade (8 points); 6th to 7th grade (12 points); and 7th to 8th grade (9 points). In total, engagement drops from 74% prior to the typical middle school years (5th grade) to 40% after these years (9th grade). A 34% decrease. Gallup Student Poll Finds Engagement in School Dropping by Grade LevelEducation WeekA recent poll of nearly a million U.S. students concludes that schools need to work on building supports to keep students invested in their educations, especially as they advance in grades.View source →
A 2016 Gallup Poll notes the “school engagement cliff” from 74% engagement at Grade 5 to 40% at Grade 9.Likewise, test scores and absenteeism (shown below) worsen in middle school as engagement plummets. Stuck in the Middle: Impacts of Grade Configuration in Public SchoolsJournal of Public EconomicsResearch summary (based on the source page): This study examines achievement changes when students move from elementary to middle school in sixth or seventh grade. Using student fixed effects and an...View source → Similar studies have found the same findings. Student Engagement and Its Relationship with Early High School DropoutJournal of AdolescenceAlthough the concept of school engagement figures prominently in most school dropout theories, there has been little empirical research conducted on its nature and course and, more importantly, the...View source → School Engagement: Potential of the Concept, State of the EvidenceReview of Educational ResearchThe concept of school engagement has attracted increasing attention as representing a possible antidote to declining academic motivation and achievement. Engagement is presumed to be malleable,...View source → Martin et al., 2014 The Classroom Social Environment and Changes in Adolescents' Motivation and Engagement During Middle SchoolAmerican Educational Research JournalThe authors investigated how students' (N = 233) perceptions of the social environment of their eighth-grade classroom related to changes in motivation and engagement when they moved from seventh to...View source → The Impact of Alternative Grade Configurations on Student Outcomes Through Middle and High SchoolJournal of Public EconomicsResearch summary (based on the verified ERIC indexed abstract): Schwerdt and West use Florida administrative data, student fixed effects, and instruments based on earlier schools' terminal grades to...View source →
These figures, measuring students who remain in an elementary school building (K-8) versus students who attend a middle school (6-8), highlight negative test score and attendance trends across the intermediate school ages.These crises has been compounded by the devastating impact of COVID-19, where more than 140,000 US children lost a primary or secondary caregiver to the pandemic. COVID-19-Associated Orphanhood and Caregiver Death in the United StatesPediatricsResearch summary (based on indexed source text): Using fertility and mortality data, researchers estimated that more than 140,000 U.S. children lost a parent or caregiving grandparent during the...View source → Although disparities in engagement and mental health among race, gender, gender identity, disability, and other demographics existed prior to the pandemic, these disparities were made worse, leading to drastic mental health disparities facing BIPOC students Psychiatric Symptoms and Diagnoses Among U.S. College Students: A Comparison by Race and EthnicityPsychiatric ServicesResearch summary (based on indexed source text): An analysis of 2015 survey responses from 67,308 undergraduates at 108 U.S. colleges compared reported symptoms and psychiatric diagnoses across...View source → Behavioral Health Equity Report 2021: Substance Use and Mental Health Indicators Measured from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), 2015-2019Research summary (based on the primary publisher or institutional source): SAMHSA's Behavioral Health Equity Report 2021 presents selected substance-use and mental-health indicators from the National...View source →, LGBTQIA+ students 2022 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental HealthResearch summary (based on survey report): The Trevor Project's 2022 survey describes mental-health experiences among nearly 34000 LGBTQ young people aged13–24 in the United States. Topics include...View source → Insights from the Student Experience: Emotional & Mental HealthResearch summary (based on survey report overview): YouthTruth summarizes student responses concerning emotional well-being, bullying, counseling and access to help. Drawing on a large sample of...View source →, Latinx EL students The Epidemic of Internalizing Problems Among Latinx Adolescents Before and During the Coronavirus 2019 PandemicJournal of Clinical Child & Adolescent PsychologyResearch summary (based on the indexed study abstract): This study compares depression and anxiety among Latinx and non-Latinx students referred for services in Chicago public elementary schools...View source → COVID-19 Stressors and Latinx Adolescents' Mental Health Symptomology and School Performance: A Prospective StudyJournal of Youth and AdolescenceResearch summary (based on the PubMed-indexed abstract): This prospective study follows 547 Latinx adolescents with surveys collected before and during the pandemic from 2018 to 2021. Increased...View source →, Disabled students How Has the Pandemic Affected Students with Disabilities? An Update on the Evidence: Fall 2022Research summary (based on the ERIC-indexed abstract): This fall 2022 review assesses how the COVID-19 pandemic affected students with disabilities in the United States. The authors synthesize more...View source → Impact of Online Learning in the Context of COVID-19 on Undergraduates with Disabilities and Mental Health ConcernsACM Transactions on Accessible ComputingThe COVID-19 pandemic upended college education and the experiences of students due to the rapid and uneven shift to online learning. This study examined the experiences of students with disabilities...View source →, and underserved students generally. Student Mental Health During the Pandemic: Educator and Teen PerspectivesResearch summary (based on the ERIC-indexed abstract): The EdWeek Research Center compares reports from 2,000 high-school students with educators' responses to similar questions about mental health...View source → COVID-19-Related Mental Health Difficulties Among Marginalised Populations: A Literature ReviewCambridge Prisms: Global Mental HealthThe COVID-19 pandemic has had negative consequences on the mental health of the population, which has been documented. Marginalised groups that are at risk of poor mental health overall have been...View source → COVID-19 and U.S. Schools: Using Data to Understand and Mitigate Inequities in Instruction and LearningShortly after the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in the United States, schools across the country had to enact significant, rapid changes to their instructional models, and schools varied widely in their...View source → The Mental Health of Minority and Marginalized Young People: An Opportunity for ActionPublic Health ReportsResearch summary (based on source commentary): Murthy discusses the mental health challenges facing young people, emphasizing racial and ethnic minorities, sexual and gender minorities, and those...View source →
This mirrors how schools have always inequitably served youth, causing many cited instances of racism, sexism, and other forms of discrimination Kohli et al., 2017, leading to less engagement and participation in schools. Teachers, Please Learn Our Names!: Racial Microaggressions and the K-12 ClassroomRace Ethnicity and EducationResearch summary (based on indexed source text): Questionnaires and interviews explored students of color's experiences of how their names were treated in K–12 schools. Using critical race theory,...View source → Status Dropout RatesResearch summary (based on statistical indicator): This National Center for Education Statistics indicator describes status dropout rates using American Community Survey data. It defines status...View source → Student Engagement in Schools Serving Marginalised CommunitiesInternational Journal of Inclusive EducationResearch summary (based on indexed source text): Five case studies examined how schools serving marginalized communities supported meaningful student engagement. Interviews with students, families...View source → The Reciprocal Links Between School Engagement, Youth Problem Behaviors, and School Dropout During AdolescenceChild DevelopmentResearch summary (based on indexed source text): A longitudinal study followed 1,272 adolescents from seventh through eleventh grade, examining engagement, substance use, delinquency and dropout....View source → Predicting Dropout Using Student- and School-Level Factors: An Ecological PerspectiveSchool Psychology QuarterlyResearch summary (based on indexed source text): Using data on 14,106 students in 684 schools, this study modeled both individual and school characteristics associated with later dropout....View source →
What Can We Do?
Incorporating interdisciplinary project-based learning, designed to take action within communities and act for the social good, leads to more involved and engaged youth (with specific impact for those who have been historically disenfranchised from education). The Positive Impact of Project-Based Learning on Attendance of an Economically Disadvantaged Student Population: A Multiyear StudyInterdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based LearningResearch summary (based on indexed source text): This quantitative study compared attendance among economically disadvantaged high-school students in a project-based school and a school using more...View source → Project Based Learning in Improving Critical Thinking Skill of Children with Special NeedsResearch summary (based on the source page): This conference paper reports a national-scope literature review of project-based learning and critical thinking among students with special educational...View source → Projects for HopeResearch summary (based on indexed source text): This chapter describes a two-year project with eighth graders at a rural K–8 school, beginning with literature circles and expanding into social...View source → The Effectiveness of Project-Based Learning on Pupils with Learning Difficulties Regarding Academic Performance, Group Work and MotivationInternational Journal of Special EducationResearch summary (based on the ERIC-indexed abstract): Filippatou and Kaldi examine an eight-week project about sea animals in Greek fourth-grade classrooms, focusing on pupils with learning...View source → How Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Project Based Learning Affects High-Need Students in the U.S.Learning and Individual DifferencesResearch summary (based on the identified source): Han and colleagues compared mathematics achievement trajectories for 528 students in three high schools using STEM project-based learning and 2,688...View source → Critical Consciousness in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review, Critical Assessment, and Recommendations for Future ResearchPsychological BulletinResearch summary (based on indexed source text): A systematic review of 67 studies published during 1998–2019 examined critical consciousness in children and adolescents. Relationships and social...View source → Designing for Liberation: A Case Study in Antiracism Instructional DesignJournal of Applied Instructional DesignResearch summary (based on indexed source text): This essay presents instructional design as a practice shaped by institutional power and proposes antiracist design aimed at expanding liberatory...View source → The Impact of a Project-Based Science Curriculum on Minority Student Achievement, Attitudes, and CareersScience EducationResearch summary (based on indexed source text): The study examined a project-based science curriculum alongside professional development for urban teachers. Student achievement improved, while...View source → The Impact of Project Based Learning (PBL) on Students from Low Socio Economic Statuses: A ReviewInternational Journal of Inclusive EducationResearch summary (based on indexed source text): This review considers whether project-based learning improves engagement, motivation and academic achievement for students from lower socioeconomic...View source → Study after study, it is completely clear that designing for those at the margins leads to greater learning experiences for all.
When we incorporate alternative assessment metrics – such as portfolios, narrative-based grading, learning labor contracts, and other forms of moving away from grades (e.g. “ungrading”) – we engage youth. Beyond Standards-Based Grading: Why Equity Must Be Part of Grading ReformPhi Delta KappanResearch summary (based on indexed source text): This commentary argues that grading reform should be evaluated in terms of equity as well as how accurately grades represent learning. It contrasts...View source → Perspective Chapter: Ungrading, Grading Contracts, Gamification and Game-Based LearningThis chapter will explore considerations for the adoption of grading contracts with the possible addition of the mechanics of game design, game-based learning, or gamification. The motivation for...View source → Revolutionizing Grading: Implications on Power, Agency, and EquityView source → Moving Toward Equity: Experiences with UngradingJournal of Education for Library and Information ScienceResearch summary (based on indexed source text): Using autoethnographic accounts from library and information science education, the authors describe their movement toward ungrading and reflect on...View source → Improving Student Motivation by UngradingResearch summary (based on indexed source text): Three upper-level computer-science courses used a grading approach emphasizing revision, removing numeric scores and involving students in final-grade...View source → Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, Which Is the Fairest Test of All? An Examination of the Equitability of Portfolio Assessment Relative to Standardized TestsHarvard Educational ReviewResearch summary (based on indexed source text): A comparison of portfolio assessment and standardized testing in Rochester, New York examined differences by gender, socioeconomic status and race....View source → The Pandemic and Pedagogy Experimentation: The Benefits of UngradingResearch summary (based on published chapter abstract): Taylor reflects on an experiment with ungrading during 2020 and the transition to remote instruction. The chapter questions whether letter...View source → Reflection Through Assessment: A Systematic Narrative Review of Teacher Feedback and Student Self-PerceptionStudies in Educational EvaluationResearch summary (based on the identified source): This systematic narrative review examines how teacher feedback supports students' reflection and self-perception in academic writing. Searches...View source →
When young people and educators learn together, moving away from sit-and-get content and toward a framework of social emotional justice, they emerge with greater self-actualization, more purposeful lives, and greater engagement in their communities. Jagers et al., 2019 Transformative Social and Emotional LearningResearch summary (based on source article): This article presents transformative social and emotional learning as an approach linking individual competencies with equity, cultural responsiveness and...View source → Capturing Teacher Students' Emotional Experiences in Context: Does Inquiry-Based Learning Make a Difference?Instructional ScienceResearch summary (based on the ERIC-indexed source): Nine teacher-education students completed mobile experience sampling during two-week periods in successive years, supplemented by interviews. An...View source → The Connection Project: Changing the Peer Environment to Improve Outcomes for Marginalized AdolescentsDevelopment and PsychopathologyResearch summary (based on indexed source text): A randomized trial involving 610 adolescents evaluated a school-based program designed to strengthen peer relationships. Participants reported better...View source → Transformative Education Against Oppression: An Emergent Framework of Social Emotional Learning for Social Emotional JusticeResearch summary (based on the source page): This conference paper critiques conventional social-emotional learning and proposes a framework linking it to social and emotional justice. It addresses...View source →
Experiential learning, such as high quality project-based learning, is associated with higher academic outcomes and interest across all subject areas, including science The Effectiveness of Project-based Learning on Students' Science Process Skills: A Literature ReviewJournal of Physics: Conference SeriesView source → Examining the Effect of Teachers' Adaptations of a Middle School Science Inquiry-Oriented Curriculum Unit on Student LearningJournal of Research in Science TeachingResearch summary (based on the ERIC-indexed abstract): Fogleman, McNeill, and Krajcik study how 19 teachers adapted an inquiry-oriented middle-school science unit, using surveys, classroom video, and...View source → The Effectiveness of Project-Based Learning on Science Education: A Meta-Analysis SearchInternational Online Journal of Education and TeachingThe present study aims to demonstrate, by means of a meta-analysis, the effectiveness of Project-Based Learning in the context of academic performance and various study characteristics. For this...View source → Student Outcomes from High-Quality Project-Based Learning: A Case Study for PBLWorksView source → Contextualizing Instruction: Leveraging Students' Prior Knowledge and Experiences to Foster Understanding of Middle School ScienceJournal of Research in Science TeachingContextualizing science instruction involves utilizing students' prior knowledge and everyday experiences as a catalyst for understanding challenging science concepts. This study of two middle school...View source →, mathematics The Impact of Project-Based Learning and Technology on Student Achievement in MathematicsResearch summary (based on publisher chapter abstract): Leah J. Branch compares mathematics achievement at two Chicago charter schools using different instructional approaches: technology-supported...View source → The Effectiveness of Project Based Learning in TrigonometryJournal of Physics: Conference SeriesThis research aimed to explore the effectiveness of Project-Based Learning (PjBL) with scientific approach viewed from interpersonal intelligence toward students' achievement learning in mathematics....View source → The Effect of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Project Based Learning (PBL) on Students' Achievement in Four Mathematics TopicsView source → The Effect of Project Based Learning on the Statistical Literacy Levels of Student 8th GradeEuropean Journal of Educational ResearchThis study examines the effect of project based learning on 8th grade students' statistical literacy levels. A performance test was developed for this aim. Quasi-experimental research model was used...View source → The effective use of the project-based learning method on students academic achievement in mathematicsUniversal Journal of Educational ResearchView source →, social studies Learning History in Middle School by Designing Multimedia in a Project-Based Learning ExperienceJournal of Research on Technology in EducationThis article describes a study in which eighth grade students in one school learned to create multimedia mini-documentaries in a six-week history unit on early 19th-century U.S. history. The authors...View source → The Effect of Project Based Learning Approach in Social Sciences Class on the Student Success and MemorabilityView source → A Longitudinal Investigation of Project-Based Instruction and Student Achievement in High School Social StudiesInterdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based LearningResearch summary (based on indexed source text): This longitudinal comparison examined secondary social-studies achievement and college/career readiness in two high schools within one rural district....View source →, and English language arts/language learning English Teaching Through Project Based Learning Method, in Rural AreaCuadernos de Lingüística HispánicaResearch summary (based on indexed source text): This study describes a project-based English-learning activity with eighth-grade students at a rural public school in Boyacá, Colombia. The reported...View source → Teaching Against the Grain: One Title I School's Journey Toward Project-Based Literacy InstructionLiteracy Research and InstructionThe current high-stakes testing environment is compelling many educators to teach reading in programmatic ways. This type of teaching contrasts research on effective literacy instruction. This...View source →. PBL has been associated with improved equitable outcomes The Impact of Project-Based Learning on Minority Student Achievement: Implications for School RedesignEducation Leadership Review of Doctoral ResearchProject-Based Learning (PBL) serves as an instructional approach to classroom teaching and learning that is designed to engage students in the investigation of real-world problems to create...View source → Equity-Centered Project-Based LearningResearch summary (based on the original source text): This paper connects project-based learning with equity-centered instruction. Drawing on learning research, culturally responsive pedagogies, and...View source → Kee & Lai, 2022, improved social-emotional health Culclasure et al., 2019 Fitzgerald, 2020 Project-Based Learning as a Tool for Sounding Perception and Developing Socio-Emotional Skills in 4th-Grade StudentsCreative EducationThis reports an analysis of the application of Project-Based Learning (PBL) methodology with a group of 17 students of the 4th grade of an elementary school at Taubaté town, São Paulo State, Brazil....View source → Jagers et al., 2019, and more agency, self-efficacy - a generally better overall experience. Project-Based Learning for the 21st Century: Skills for the FutureThe Clearing HouseProject-Based Learning (PBL) is an innovative approach to learning that teaches a multitude of strategies critical for success in the twenty-first century. Students drive their own learning through...View source → Literature Review on Project-Based LearningView source → Measuring Student Success Skills: A Review of the Literature on Self-DirectionView source → Measuring Student Success Skills: A Review of the Literature on CollaborationResearch summary (based on the ERIC-indexed abstract): This literature review examines how collaboration is conceptualized, defined, developed, taught, and assessed as a student success skill. It...View source → Measuring Student Success Skills: A Review of the Literature on Critical ThinkingThis paper explores the conceptualizations, definitions, and understandings in the research literature related to critical thinking.View source → Measuring Student Success Skills: A Review of the Literature on Complex CommunicationResearch summary (based on the ERIC-indexed abstract): This literature review examines complex communication as a student success skill, including its definitions, relationship to other competencies,...View source → This School is Made for Students: Students Perspectives on PBLJournal of Formative Design in LearningResearch summary (based on the PubMed-indexed abstract): This qualitative study explores biology students' experiences of project-based learning through observation, artifacts, interviews, and a...View source → Learning with Others: A Study Exploring the Relationship Between Collaboration, Personalization, and EquityResearch summary (based on the original source text): This mixed-method study examines collaboration and personalization in four racially diverse high schools, with data from 892 students, 138...View source →
Implementing community-driven, project-based learning shifts the roles of educators and young people. Instead of reinforcing teacher-driven control that is typical in most schools, these systemic shifts require a movement toward self-determination theory (SDT). Instead of the pursuit of rewards, punishments, and other mechanisms for compliance, SDT adopts instruction and assessment methods that lead to greater motivation, purpose, and autonomy. Burton et al., 2006 Self-Determination Theory and the Facilitation of Intrinsic Motivation, Social Development, and Well-BeingAmerican PsychologistHuman beings can be proactive and engaged or, alternatively, passive and alienated, largely as a function of the social conditions in which they develop and function. Accordingly, research guided by...View source → The Classroom Social Environment and Changes in Adolescents' Motivation and Engagement During Middle SchoolAmerican Educational Research JournalThe authors investigated how students' (N = 233) perceptions of the social environment of their eighth-grade classroom related to changes in motivation and engagement when they moved from seventh to...View source → Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation from a Self-Determination Theory Perspective: Definitions, Theory, Practices, and Future DirectionsContemporary Educational PsychologyResearch summary (based on the identified source): Ryan and Deci review self-determination theory and its application to education. They distinguish intrinsic interest from different forms of...View source → Undermining quality teaching and learning: A self-determination theory perspective on high-stakes testingTheory and Research in EducationUsing tests to compare nations, states, school districts, schools, teachers, and students has increasingly become a basis for educational reform around the globe. Although tests can be informative,...View source → Niemiec & Ryan, 2009 Autonomy-Supportive Teaching: Its Malleability, Benefits, and Potential to Improve Educational PracticeEducational PsychologistAutonomy-supportive teaching is the adoption of a student-focused attitude and an understanding interpersonal tone that enables the skillful enactment of seven autonomy-satisfying instructional...View source →
As could be assumed, designing learning environments and experiences that bring people together, which celebrate peer relationships and academic success, directly correlates to less engagement drop-off and better well-being. Student Engagement and Its Relationship with Early High School DropoutJournal of AdolescenceAlthough the concept of school engagement figures prominently in most school dropout theories, there has been little empirical research conducted on its nature and course and, more importantly, the...View source → Upadyaya & Salmela-Aro, 2013 When we design relevant coursework where students choose what matters most to them, they are more engaged. School Context, Achievement Motivation, and Academic Engagement: A Longitudinal Study of School Engagement Using a Multidimensional PerspectiveLearning and InstructionResearch summary (based on the identified source): This longitudinal study examines how middle-school students' perceptions of instructional structure, choice, relevance, and emotional support relate...View source → The more student-centered our practices (and the more teachers/schools provide direct support to students), the more students academically achieve in coursework and in test scores. Exploring A Complex Model Of Student Engagement In Middle School: Academic Self-Efficacy Beliefs And AchievementResearch summary (based on the university repository abstract): Mary Beth Brennan studies approximately 400 seventh- and eighth-grade pupils in one middle school to examine relationships among...View source → Fredricks et al., 2019 The Relationship Between Student Engagement and Standardized Test Scores of Middle School Students: Does Student Engagement Increase Academic Achievement?View source → (Albeit, test scores are not necessarily a great indicator of academic success to begin with…)
The CASEL framework for systemic social-emotional learning.Of course, this is all common sense. Shifting to a “doing with” from a “doing to” model that involves hands-on, meaningful, authentic projects that value all learners (as opposed to simply completing entirely fact-driven worksheets and tests all day) is going to be more engaging. And it’s not that we don’t know better – hundreds to thousands more of these studies exist dating back more than one hundred years ago – It’s just the will to change. We need to recognize that youth and educators are in crises – and that schools need to change. It’s no longer warning bells – we are in a state of emergency. We need educators who are willing to push beyond the bureaucratic “tow the line” systems that most districts tend to reinforce every day. It’s going to take mitigated risk-taking of thousands of educators and young people who have the willingness to take actionable hope. It’s only then that we’ll truly start to restore humanity to education.
(Human Restoration Project works with schools to reimagine systems and build systems alongside students. Learn more here!)