Distracted: Why Students Can't Focus and What You Can Do About It

Dr. James Lang has six recommendations in this podcast about how we can better understand student attention and how we can get their attention while we teach - even when teaching online. This important topic will help all of us become better teachers in challenging times. Check out the show notes and links at www.coolcatteacher.com/e724 Today’s sponsor: Advancement Courses. Choose from over 280 online graduate-level PD courses in 20 subject areas that are self-paced with up to six months to complete. Go to advancementcourses.com/coolcat and save 20% off each course by using the code COOL20. That’s just $120 per graduate credit hour or $160 for 50 clock hours. You can also receive graduate credit through CAEP and regionally accredited university partners for continuing education requirements. Never stop learning! Dr. James Lang - Bio as Submitted James M. Lang is a Professor of English and the Director of the D’Amour Center for Teaching Excellence at Assumption College in Worcester, MA. He is the author of six books, the most recent of which are Distracted: Why Students Can’t Focus and What You Can Do About It (Basic Books, 2020),  Small Teaching Online: Applying Science in Online Classes (2019) Small Teaching: Everyday Lessons from the Science of Learning (Jossey-Bass, 2016), and Cheating Lessons: Learning from Academic Dishonesty (Harvard University Press, 2013). Lang writes a monthly column on teaching and learning for The Chronicle of Higher Education; his work has been appearing in the Chronicle since 1999. He has conducted workshops on teaching for faculty at more than a hundred colleges or high schools in the US and abroad, and consulted for the United Nations on the development of teaching materials in ethics and integrity. He has a BA in English and Philosophy from the University of Notre Dame, an MA in English from St. Louis University, and a Ph.D. in English from Northwestern University. Dr. Lang's Website: www.jamesmlang.com  Dr. Lang's Twitter: @LangOnCourse Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a “sponsored podcast episode.” The company who sponsored it compensated me via cash payment, gift, or something else of value to include a reference to their product. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I believe will be good for my readers and are from companies I can recommend. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."