Teach for Authentic Engagement

Finding meaning, vitality, and community is the purpose of engagement—and school itself.

Authentic engagement is a choice students make every day to bring themselves to their learning, work, and relationships—rather than simply go through the motions of school. It means sharing experiences; asking questions; trying new things; making mistakes; and allowing themselves to be seen, heard, and cared for. It's an active choice that can lead to tremendous growth and satisfaction.

In Teach for Authentic Engagement, Lauren Porosoff shows how to design instruction that lets students with diverse interests, strengths, needs, identities, and values connect to their learning. Included are strategies, tools, and classroom anecdotes that help students

* Engage with the content so it becomes a source of meaning in their lives.
* Engage with their work so it becomes a source of vitality.
* Engage with each other so the class becomes a source of community.

It takes intellectual and emotional effort to teach in a way that fosters authentic engagement. But when students feel connected to the content, they engage with their work. And when they feel like their learning matters, they use that learning to understand and respect each other.

Lauren Porosoff is the founder of EMPOWER Forwards, a collaborative consultancy practice that builds learning communities that truly belong to everyone and where everyone truly belongs. Lauren has taught 2nd, 5th, 6th, and 7th grade in New York, Washington, DC, and Maryland. She has also served as a DEI coordinator, grade dean, and leader of curricular initiatives. Lauren's commitment to transforming the psychological experience of school has been a constant in her teaching practice, leading her to learn about values-guided behavior change in contextual psychology. Informed by research and practices, and by her 18 years as a teacher, Lauren develops tools and protocols that empower students and teachers to make school a source of meaning, vitality, and community.