When I taught middle school, I went to creative lengths to light that initial spark of curiosity. I once showed up dressed as William Penn—because what middle schooler is going to heckle their teacher in a colonial wig? On another day, I wired a secret doorbell into our classroom, giving students a special ring to get inside. Those tricks could get students laughing and leaning in, but the real reward came later, when curiosity turned into an “aha moment” of understanding.
We all know that moment when we see it: the smile, the nod, the sudden clarity on a student’s face. Yet it’s surprisingly hard to put into words. A quick activity might spark attention, but true engagement is about sustaining motivation and helping students reach those deeper moments of discovery.
That’s why, as our latest Education Insights Report reveals, engagement is not a simple concept. It’s multidimensional and often viewed differently depending on perspective, which is what makes clarity so essential.
Drawing on the perspectives of nearly 1,400 K–12 superintendents, principals, teachers, parents, and students across the United States, the report shines a light on the promise and the challenge of keeping students connected to learning. The report underscores an important reality — fueling student engagement requires a holistic approach that brings coherence to how it is defined, observed, and supported.
Perception Gaps Between Students and Educators
of Students Report
Being Highly Engaged in Class
Perspectives on assessing engagement vary between the groups we surveyed. This presents a challenge in increasing engagement across ages, grades, subjects, and students.
- Students say they are more engaged than teachers realize. There is an almost 20-point gap between students (63%) reporting that they are highly engaged and what teachers (45%) report.
- Quiet engagement is underappreciated. Teachers overwhelmingly point to outward indicators of engagement, such as asking thoughtful questions or contributing to discussions. More subtle signs of engagement, like silent reflection or creative exploration, are easy to overlook.
- Differences between surveyed groups are revealing. Superintendents (54%) are almost twice as likely as teachers (29%) to rank performance on assessments as a top engagement indicator.
This gap in the perceptions of engagement between students and teachers is an essential challenge to disentangle. When we lack clear, shared definitions of learning engagement, students risk being mislabeled as disengaged, even when they are fully invested in learning.
Educators Report Barriers in Promoting Engagement
Educators know all too well the obstacles that stand in the way of fostering greater student engagement. One of the biggest is the variation across students and contexts—engagement can vary by learner, subject, and even the day of the week. Teachers also point to the lack of time and resources as a pressing barrier to creating the conditions that promote student engagement.
In the Education Insights Report fewer than one in four teachers feel they have adequate time to reflect on and improve their instructional approaches, which can diminish their opportunity to encourage engagement. Another concern is inconsistent measurement: 99% of superintendents report systems for measuring engagement, but only 60% of teachers agree. This disconnect between leadership’s view of support systems and what educators experience in the classroom is another hurdle to overcome in fostering more engagement for all students.
As students progress from elementary school to high school, their self-reported engagement and teachers’ perceptions of engagement decline. In fact, 4 in 5 of all students say they struggle with boredom. However, across all grade bands, students are clear about what fuels their motivation. They want relevance: learning that connects with their lives and future plans. Across all groups surveyed, relevance consistently ranked as one of the most critical factors impacting engagement. Students also seek challenge. Nearly four out of five students say school often feels easy and want deeper, more meaningful work.
These perspectives echo what we hear from our partner schools at Discovery Education. When students have opportunities to connect their learning to the real world and pursue personally meaningful challenges, educators can turn curiosity into achievement. While educators are dedicated to providing these connections and challenges, persistent barriers make it difficult to sustain engagement throughout learning environments and contexts. Yet when those opportunities align, educators can build upon students’ curiosity and use it as a foundation to drive meaningful learning outcomes.
Fostering Greater Engagement
The Education Insights Report’s findings illuminate where student engagement can flourish — in learning that is personally relevant and hands-on, where students can see real-world connections and put their knowledge into practice. All the groups surveyed agreed that students put in more effort when learning is meaningful and connected to their lives.
At Discovery Education, we agree: the more deeply students connect with their learning, the more they grow and achieve. This insight informs the work of my Curriculum Instruction team, driving us to ensure that every standards-aligned lesson and resource we provide is built to support learning through engagement. We’re committed to partnering with states, districts, schools, and educators, helping them build coherent engagement strategies that:
- Clarify what engagement means for all. Moving beyond assumptions to shared definitions and frameworks.
- Recognize varied engagement backgrounds. Quiet, reflective, and multilingual learners may demonstrate engagement differently than students who are outwardly expressive or learning in their home language.
- Equip teachers. Providing the time, tools, and professional learning needed to deliver relevant, personalized lessons.
Through timely, standards-aligned, real-world content and adaptive digital tools, we help educators create classrooms where every student is supported and inspired to learn. Educators tell us that when their students use adaptive platforms like DreamBox, which meets each student where they are, engagement turns into learning. And when districts implement resources like Experience and Career Connect, students deepen background knowledge to contextualize what they are learning — bridging classroom lessons to real-world applications and future careers.
Embracing the Complexity of Student Engagement
As the report shows, engagement is essential and multidimensional. It can help enable and sustain the motivation students need to persevere through productive struggle, explore their interests, and achieve meaningful growth.
But, engagement doesn’t just happen. It requires clarity, alignment, intentional strategies, and purposeful resources. Educators, families, administrators, and partners like us at Discovery Education can help close the perception gaps around what engagement is, better recognize every form of engagement, and strive to ensure that every student has the opportunity to connect deeply with learning.
