Parents, You Have More Power Than You Think: Boosting Student Motivation

Happy Wednesday!

This week, I'm participating in the National Assembly for Family Engagement in Education, which kicked off Monday with online sessions and then moves to in person festivities (panels and workshops and keynotes, oh my!) in Denver, Colorado today. Big shout out to the organizer, the National Association of Family, School, and Community Engagement for the stellar program they have put together and I am honored to be a part of it.

I will be talking a lot (in a virtual session and in the closing plenary with my colleagues from around the world Friday in Denver) about parents and caregivers role in boosting student motivation, engagement and agency. Everyone knows that teachers and school leaders play a crucial role in designing learning experiences that motivates and engages kids.

But parents, you have more power than you think in boosting your kids’ motivation to learn. Check out my conversation with TaNisha Harris, the Family Engagement Committee Member based in Georgia via my Facebook (which I will link in the comments). We talk about how to recognize when kids are disengaged. Sometimes, kids look engaged but they are only engaged on the surface. Sitting in class, facing forward but their minds are miles away. We also discussed what we can do as parents when we have a kid who is coasting in Passenger mode or becoming afraid of failure in Achiever mode or acting out in Resister mode.

Ultimately, we want kids to love learning and develop the skills to be an Explorer as my coauthor Jenny and I discuss in our book The Disengaged Teen: Helping Kids Learn Better, Feel Better, and Live Better. As kids enter school, one of the best things parents can do is encourage and talk with your kids about what they are learning, ask them questions about the content and what it means, share what you are learning and why something surprised you. Across 450 studies of US caregivers and students, this approach boosted children’s motivation, engagement and academic outcomes.

As always, I am curious about your thoughts. Is this what you have found with children in your own life?