Tuned Out

Engaging the 21st Century Learner

Disengaged and resistant learners don’t enjoy school, don’t achieve to the levels of their engaged peers, are problems for their teachers and, if not turned around, contribute to the alarming number of students who drop out of school before ever getting their high school diploma.

In Tuned Out Karen discusses five aspects of schooling where teachers can make a positive difference to student engagement. They are Competence, Creativity, Community, Context, and Challenge. Each of the 5 C’s comprise a two chapter section in the book. The first chapter describes ways in which students and the world are different in the 21st century and considers implications for teachers’ professional practice. The second chapter offers suggestions for actions that can be taken in a classroom, school, or district.

A central premise of Tuned Out is that if something is important to student engagement, it is equally important to teacher engagement. Therefore, some of the suggested actions are for students, some are for teachers, and some are for use by facilitators of adult learning.

The Tuned Out Online website is an interactive site that accompanies the print book. Through this site the reader has access to more than 170 items including downloadable resources, research reports, book recommendations, and blog posts.