Academics are important, but there’s more to an education.
Each day is a new beginning, a new day to learn. For some young people, this prospect is exciting and exhilarating. For others, it’s scary. Sometimes learning is difficult, but it doesn’t have to be scary. Help young people understand that academics are just part of the education they must complete to successfully attain goals. Find creative ways to show young people learning means more than studying for or worrying about tests. Learning is often as much about the life lessons as the text book lessons.
Here are the facts:
Research shows that young people who are actively engaged in learning exhibit more positive than negative behaviors. About 53 percent of Washington County young people, ages 11–18, say they are actively involved in their learning. It’s time to help even more young people discover—and achieve—personal success in and out of the classroom.
Tips for building this asset
Try this:
- Listen to youth and pay attention to the activities they most enjoy.
- Help youth tie their interests and goals to what they learn in school.
- Provide learning opportunities outside the classroom which compliment their interests. Example if your child is interested in a boxing video game, enroll them in a karate class.
Look for ways to address the curiosities of youth with learning opportunities.
The best way to keep young people engaged in school is to focus on their individual interests and goals. Listen to young people and pay attention to the activities they most enjoy. Once you’re aware of what they want (or need), help them tie their interests and goals to what they learn in and out of school. Show youth that learning doesn’t begin and end in the classroom, in a textbook or during a test. Learning doesn’t have to be difficult, scary or intimidating. Learning can be fun, exciting, stimulating and most of all – can happen any place at any time.