Do Teaching Methods Affect Student’s Attention Span, Engagement and Attainment?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29311/ndtns.vi20.4998Keywords:
Attainment, Belonging, Engagement, Impact, MotivationAbstract
Student engagement is essential for attainment, with one of the biggest challenges being attention span. There is clear evidence that attention has begun to wane in students over the past 50 years. This is thought to be due to external distractions such as mobile phones, but also the method of lecture delivery which could have severe repercussions on student engagement. This project aimed to investigate the measures that could be undertaken to enhance student engagement with lectures, by trying to understand some of the issues students currently face. This was achieved by completing a discrete paper-based questionnaire targeting student levels 3-6. Findings from the project revealed 49% of students lost focus due to the teaching approach being delivered, with 42% of students wanting more problem-based learning to enhance their engagement. Interestingly 49% of students were only able to focus for up to 45 minutes, suggesting the need for a shift from more static didactic lecture delivery to more engaging and interactive methods of delivery.
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