In an era marked by constant digital stimulation, the challenge of engaging students in complex texts is formidable yet crucial for developing critical cognitive skills. This article delves into the transformative power of boredom as a tool to combat student apathy and enhance executive functioning, illustrating how periods of doing nothing can foster an environment conducive to learning and empathy-building. As instructional designers in the eLearning industry, leveraging insights from traditional classroom experiments can offer pathways to innovate digital learning experiences.
We’re halfway through “Parable of the Sower” by Octavia Butler, and we’ve arrived at a crucial turning point in the plot. The main character, Lauren Olamina, loses her family and home to an arson attack. I wanted my students to fully experience the severity of this loss, so instead of continuing with a workshop model I’d been using throughout the unit thus far, I decided to read to the class:
I sat where I was for three weary, terrifying hours. Nothing happened to me, but I could see and hear things happening. There were people moving around the hills, sometimes silhouetting themselves against the sky as they ran or walked over the hills…I heard a lot of gunfire–individual shots and short bursts of automatic weapons fire…
“Why are we reading this?” a student interrupts. The class remains quiet. I look up to see most resting their hands against their heads. They look bored and glance up at me with their faces downcast. I see some of them begin to turn their phones over, and others reach into their pockets.
“Because it’s important. This world isn’t that far off from ours,” I say.
Another student responds, “But it’s not that bad.”
“But what if one day it is?” I ask. “Don’t you think that matters to you?”
Another student shrugs. Another stares at me blankly.
Parable of the Sower was written in 1993, yet some would argue Butler’s predictions are bone-chillingly accurate. Unfortunately, none of that matters if the only thing students want to do is go back to their phones.
For many of my students, reading is not a precursor to revolutionary action, but a cumbersome task that is always a preamble to another tedious assessment. Even if this is the case, reading has been shown to be a tool for building empathy. Empathy is how we learn to care for people we will never meet. In this case, the expediency of technology has created a sense of immediate gratification that stands opposite to the empathy that reading can cultivate.
When I discuss the apathy I notice among my students with my colleagues, it becomes apparent that dense language and complex themes are significant deterrents in engaging students with literature. Faced with daunting passages, disinterest sets in quickly.
Encouraging Executive Functioning Through Boredom
Our contemporary reality, despite not mirroring the dystopian survivalists of Butler’s world, bears its own set of crises, including threats to democracy and ongoing hunger crises worldwide as I write this. Boredom, contrary to its negative connotations, can be cultivated as a necessary skill to enhance focus, creativity, and presence according to recent studies.
Practiced intentionally, boredom becomes a pivotal part of the educational process where students learn to tackle dense texts without retreating to familiar digital distractions. In my classroom, I advocate for settings that encourage sustained silent reading (SSR) without comprehension tests. This initiative aims to bolster reading stamina and genuine interest in literature, offering a pathway to improved executive functioning skills.
The benefits of SSR and boredom extend into executive functioning improvement, teaching students to resist immediate distractions and derive focus and presence from intrinsic motivation. Over time, as students become accustomed to embracing the quietude of boredom, the urge to reach for their phones in response to challenging tasks decreases.
Engaging Students with Connection
Boredom drives foundational growth and introspection in learners, yet the disconnect between students and societal issues persists. To make Butler’s narrative more relatable, coupling literature with current events has proven beneficial. Within the Bay Area, discussions about wealth disparity, housing insecurity, and climate impacts create pertinent real-world parallels that deepen engagement.
“What’s the point? The world is going to end anyway,” they often retort, reflecting a palpable sense of hopelessness. Even if the world were nearing the brink, empathy remains a binding force crucial for any post-crisis rebuilding, as epitomized by Butler’s protagonist, Lauren.
…If we’re willing to work, our chances are good here. I’ve got some seed in my pack…What we have to do at this point is more like gardening than farming. Everything will have to be done by hand–composting, watering, weeding, picking worms or slugs…We work together, we can defend ourselves, and we can protect the kids. A community’s first responsibility is to protect its children–the ones we have now and the one we will have…
Our role as educators and designers is to equip students with the competencies they need to navigate the uncertainties of a fractured world. Empathy necessitates impulse control, and mastery of this skill arises from enduring and thriving within moments of discomfort.
Ultimately, my aspiration is for a classroom where students engage with texts meaningfully, exploring narratives that broaden their understanding of diverse lives. But for this vision to materialize, effective self-regulation is essential to counter the immediacy offered by digital alternatives. Despite ongoing challenges, I remain hopeful that even a single student acknowledging the transformative power of literature signifies progress.
To explore the original context of these insights, read more from the article at EdSurge: https://www.edsurge.com/news/2024-10-09-how-boredom-helped-my-students-overcome-apathy-and-build-executive-functioning.
