What are some tips/strategies you could give an undergraduate that would promote active engagement for students and would be useful during this uncertain time of remote learning?

—J., Pennsylvania

Perhaps if we look at what reduces active engagement, we may realize what we can do to create engaging online activities.

I think the main reason that students disengage from learning is because they feel the content is irrelevant to them. Another reason may be that few students actually like work. Most students choose to work out of obligation, expectation, necessity, and in many cases, fear. They fear negative reactions from parents and teachers, risking their future, failure, and so on.  Feeling fearful is not conducive to learning.

Students also may disengage when they don’t get a chance to use their strengths. I once had a student who was considered almost illiterate by his English teacher, but he would read software manuals cover-to-cover and became an expert at various programs. He didn’t find relevance in literature, poetry, or prose, but learning every nuance of a computer program was important to him.

You can use many avenues to get to the big ideas of any curriculum. Ask students to tell you their passions and interests, and you will likely find some path that may engage them in what you are teaching.  

Image by Michael Schwarzenberger from Pixabay