Reviving the Spark: Energizing and Motivating Students to Learn in Uncertain Times

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Historically we have constructed our classrooms with the assumption that learning is a dry, staid affair best conducted in quiet tones and ruled by an unemotional consideration of the facts. Informed by contributions from psychology and neuroscience, the pedagogical world is beginning to awaken to the potential power of emotions to fuel learning. After the multiple layers of upheaval wrought by the global pandemic and political unrest, our students are experiencing an alleged epidemic of mental health problems and difficulty with engagement. In this interactive presentation, Sarah Rose Cavanagh, psychologist, professor, and senior associate director for Teaching and Learning at Simmons University, will argue that if you as an educator want to capture your students’ attention, enhance their motivation, harness their working memory, bolster their long-term retention, and encourage habits related to good mental health, you should consider the emotional impact of your teaching style and course design. To make this argument, she will bring to bear empirical evidence from the study of education, psychology, and neuroscience. The presentation will conclude with practical examples of activities and assignments that capitalize on this research and can be implemented in your very next class.

This talk is part of the Center of Learning and Teaching 20th Anniversary Symposium.

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