Going with the “Flow”: Student Engagement and Beyond

“You know that what you need to do is possible to do, even though difficult, and sense of time disappears. You forget yourself. You feel part of something larger.” - Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi speaking on “flow” during a recent TED Talk What does it mean to truly be absorbed in an activity? In an article posted on Edutopia, Elena Aguilar, a former teacher and instructional coach describes a state of attention beyond engagement termed “flow.” Coined by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the state of “flow” requires motivation, clear, attainable goals, high challenge and skill levels, and constructive feedback allowing one to adjust. And, it’s essential to mastering a subject. “Flow” in an educational setting should be a two-way stream. “When [our students] experience flow, we will too,” writes Aguilar. “When they're in their student zone of flow then the same will most likely be true for us: our goals are clear, the challenge is high, our skills match the challenge, and we're getting immediate feedback from kids and adjusting so that we can meet their needs and accomplish the goal.” Aguilar encourages educators to create goal-oriented lessons appropriate to individual abilities. For gifted students, flow can be difficult to achieve in school because tasks are not always challenging enough. If the material or activities are not differentiated, the challenge level does not match students’ skill level. This is why tasks need to be rigorous and differentiated and there need to be regular check-ins and formative assessments. What activities absorb the attention of your gifted child or students? What signs of student engagement—or disengagement—help you gauge their “flow-o-meter”?