Reclaiming Our Students’ Attention in the Age of Distraction: A Discussion

Keywords: Attention Spans, Engagement, Technology Addiction

Abstract: This proposal details a discussion session on reclaiming our students’ attention. It aims to stimulate an ongoing conversation on working with digital natives in the classroom. In order to set up this proposed discussion, I first provide the results of a “phone break-up” activity that I performed with my students which was inspired by Catherine Price’s (2018) How to Break Up with Your Phone. This topic is personal for me because as an educator who prides myself on my ability to engage a classroom, I’m finding that task more difficult with each successive year.