“When McGraw-Hill Education polled more than 600 college faculty in 2017, 70% said students were less willing to ask questions and participate in class than they were five years ago.”

I’m with the 70%. At some point in every class, I say, “What questions do you have about this?” Seldom do students respond. However, if that same question is included in a quiz, about a third ask for more information or for help with something.  According to Jean Twenge, professor of psychology at San Diego State University, an abundance of research shows that people born between 1995 and 2012 “are scared of saying the wrong things” and consequently it takes “more reassurance and trust to get them to actively participate in class” (307). It’s clear we need some new strategies.

Twenge, Jean M. iGen: why today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy — And Completely Unprepared for Adulthood. Atria Books, 2017, p. 307.