[00:00:20] Brittany: Every teacher has had one. The student who shuts down the minute you say, take out your notebook, or who stares out the window for 45 minutes without ever writing a word. Reluctant learners aren't new, but in today's classrooms, they're showing up in new ways. Maybe it's disengagement, maybe it's anxiety, maybe it's resistance that masks a struggle. Welcome to the Teaching Toolbox podcast. I'm Brittany, and I'm here with Ellie

[00:00:59] Ellie: Hello?

[00:01:00] Brittany: And today we're unpacking who these students are, why they might be hesitant to engage, and most importantly, how we can help them reengage, build confidence, and start to thrive again.

[00:01:18] Ellie: So let's start with the basics. What do we mean when we say reluctant learner? It's not always the same student profile. A reluctant learner might be a student who avoids participation, keeps their head down, or appears to be checked out. They might be highly capable but unwilling to engage unless the activity interests them. And they might show signs of anxiety, perfectionism, or learned helplessness.

[00:01:44] Brittany: They might mask struggles with behavior, refusal, avoidance, sarcasm, my perfect one, or even jokes. They might be quietly overwhelmed and afraid to fail, so they just rather not try at all. And they don't always look disengaged. Some are high performing, but emotionally detached. Others are vocal about hating school. It's a spectrum and recognizing that is the first step.

[00:02:24] Ellie: The common thread is behaviors that show resistance to learning. Not necessarily because they don't care, but because they've learned that effort doesn't feel safe, productive, or rewarding.

[00:02:37] Brittany: so why do students become reluctant learners? This is the part we can't skip, the why. Because without understanding the root, the strategy won't stick. Some possible causes could include past academic failure. If a student has failed repeatedly, they might decide that trying isn't worth the risk. It's a protective mechanism. They might have a lack of connection or belonging. Students who don't feel seen or valued in class often disengage from the learning process. This is especially common in large middle school settings.

[00:03:23] Ellie: They may have unmet learning needs, struggles with reading, processing, executive functioning, or attention can all lead to disengagement when the pace or the format doesn't match their needs. And there can be a fear of failure or perfectionism. Some students would rather have a zero than risk trying and falling short of their goal.

[00:03:43] The pressure to be perfect can become paralyzing for some students, and in some cases, students have simply never had the experience of academic success. They have internalized the, I'm bad at this, so deeply and profoundly that they stop engaging before they can even start.

[00:04:02] Brittany: Our job isn't just to teach content, it's to help students rewrite those narratives.

[00:04:09] Ellie: right? So let's think about what we can do. There's no one size fits all fix, but there are powerful research backed strategies that can help turn things around. So first one is to build trust before you push performance. Relationship building is non-negotiable. Greet them by name, notice their interest, and find common ground.

[00:04:31] We talked a bit about greetings back in episode 14, if you wanna give that a listen. , A simple, I'm glad you're here, or you're good at this part, wanna help me explain? It can go a long way. Trust opens the door to risk taking. And I have to say, there are a few students coming to mind as we're talking about this, and I do remember just having the conversation with the student who had his head down or, you know, was

[00:04:58] trying to be a distraction or different things like that, but having the actual just like, instead of pay attention, do this, do that, having a conversation with them and you know, saying, Hey, what's up? Like, what's going on today? Those kind of small things, just, it's a little bit of a connection in the middle of class that might hit them differently than if you're simply saying, please pay attention and get this done.

[00:05:19] Brittany: Yeah, I got a lot of those kids throughout the years and it was just like, Hey bud, what's going on today? You know? Do you wanna talk? Is there some way I can help you? Is there something I can do for you? Just, you know, reaching out to them and offering to be there for them.

[00:05:40] Ellie: Right. And that's not to say that there are never consequences. It's not to say you can do whatever you want and I'm just gonna say, Hey, do you feel okay? Um, there's a lot like kind of a fine line

[00:05:51] Brittany: is a line. Yeah.

[00:05:53] but that's why it's so important to spend the first week or two of school on relationship building and working on systems and not diving into content. You also want to lower the barrier to entry, provide choices. Let them start with a drawing, a sentence stem, or even an oral response.

[00:06:14] Use scaffolds such as sentence starters, graphic organizers, or collaborative group structures to create a safer entry point.

[00:06:23] Ellie: Right. Start with what they can do, not what they haven't been doing, and then try to create momentum through success. Design some early wins, short, achievable tasks that have visible payoffs. Praise their effort and their progress, not just getting a correct answer. In math that's kind of hard to do, but by giving them the opportunity to explain how they got their answer, gives them recognition that they're thinking that they can have a good opinion, that they can explain what it was that they're talking about, you know, what it was that they're trying to figure out without having to necessarily be a hundred percent correct.

[00:06:58] Brittany: Right. Or saying like, you were doing a wonderful job throughout this section of the problem, you know, without focusing on the specifically.

[00:07:10] Ellie: It gives them a little bit validity in the fact that they're thinking through the process and so that makes them feel better even though they might have the wrong answer. You can highlight their improvements publicly and privately and just like, you know, you've added more to your writing every day this week.

[00:07:24] Awesome growth, things like that.

[00:07:27] Brittany: That's great. And then we can introduce growth mindset language without making it like cringey. Don't say, mistakes help us grow, we're learning every day, or, you know, those sayings. Instead try to model it. Like, I tried this last week and it totally flopped for me, so I made a change and let's see what happens now.

[00:07:51] You know, so you're modeling how growth mindset actually works, not necessarily using those catch phrases.

[00:08:01] And then praise strategies and persistence, not traits. Instead of you are so smart, try you stuck with it even when it got tricky. That's what great learners do.

[00:08:13] Ellie: mm-hmm.

[00:08:15] Brittany: Reframe failure as feedback. You didn't get it yet.

[00:08:19] But look how much closer you are than last time,

[00:08:22] Ellie: Right.

[00:08:24] Brittany: Ellie. Don't you have a blog post about using math mistakes as a teaching tool without crushing the confidence of kids?

[00:08:32] Ellie: I do. I think that's part of the title, like using mistakes without Crushing Confidence. Yeah. And I also have a couple other math mindset related posts that we can link in the show notes. I know one is like thinking about math mindset, the first week of school and how to foster math mindset, things like that.

[00:08:47] So we can link those up.

[00:08:49] Brittany: Nice.

[00:08:50] Ellie: And then once you've built in some growth mindset, you could use reflective check-ins to build self-awareness. Have students regularly answer short prompts, like, what part of class made sense today? What's something that confused me? What's one thing I'm proud of from this week?

[00:09:08] Just keep it low stakes and private to start. Over time this can build academic identity and it normalizes reflection.

[00:09:16] Brittany: I love the reflection. Another way to do this is to co-create some personal goals and then make sure to revisit them often

[00:09:25] Ellie: Mm-hmm.

[00:09:26] Brittany: invite students to create a short term goal, like I wanna finish one task a day without giving

[00:09:33] up. And talk about what kind of support they may need. Maybe they need a reminder each day.

[00:09:40] Maybe they need like a thumbs up or a pat on the back. Something just simple. Keep it visible. A post-it, a corner of their folder and check in weekly. How's it going with your goal? Wanna tweak it? You might even wanna check in daily.

[00:09:57] Ellie: Right. That's a great idea. And even better, you can help students start creating some systems that will help them reach those goals. Once they get some systems in place so they know how to get to those goals, that's helpful for any goal then that they wanna set up. I do have a blog post about helping students set up systems too.

[00:10:15] Brittany: Cool. We'll link that one in the show notes as well.

[00:10:18] Ellie: You'll also wanna create opportunities for students to feel smart in non-traditional ways, like use games, puzzles, or creative projects where success is not tied to a worksheet or a test. I have to say that's the one thing I love about using the pentominoes on the first days of school, is because it's a puzzle and students who might not have the same

[00:10:41] math number confidence that other students have do really well with it. Spatially they might be better, and they do a really good job with it and, and it makes them feel better or confident almost right away, which is fantastic. Um, you can also highlight strengths that don't always show up on grades.

[00:10:59] Art, leadership, humor, empathy, tech skills, and then publicly acknowledge when a student shows insight or creativity, even if it's outside the standard rubric.

[00:11:09] Brittany: And then give space, but not silence. Sometimes reluctant learners need less pressure, not more. Offering quiet time, think then talk routines, or even an optional journaling prompt will help them process before participating. But then follow up with consistent nudges that say, I still see you, you matter here.

[00:11:36] Ellie: Hmm.

[00:11:37] Brittany: I also wanna add that consistency matters. These students are looking for evidence that school is safe and worth their energy. If we're inconsistent with expectations, feedback, or emotional tone, they will retreat.

[00:11:54] Ellie: And one more powerful option is to give students some leadership or helper roles. Even small responsibilities like passing out papers or choosing the class playlist or organizing materials can help them feel like they belong and have some value in the classroom.

[00:12:10] Brittany: Reluctant learners aren't trying to make our jobs harder. They're just protecting themselves from something that feels risky. When we shift our mindset from how do I make them care to, why does this feel unsafe for them we start to change the game.

[00:12:30] Ellie: And with the right mix of structure, patience, and empathy, we can help these students to reengage. Maybe not overnight, maybe not even in the year that they're with us, you never know, but moment by moment until they begin to believe in themselves again. Do you have a reluctant learner you've helped turn around or one you're still trying to reach?

[00:12:50] We'd love to hear your stories, wins ,and challenges.

[00:12:54] Brittany: And if you found this podcast helpful or meaningful. Please leave us a review so other teachers can find us as well. In the meantime, we'll be back shortly with some more tools for your teaching toolbox. Have a great day.