Is boredom the real epidemic in our schools?

Me and my mother

I was at a large conference in the fall when the presenter asked the audience of more than 1000 educators to say the first word that comes to mind when thinking of high school. As if rehearsed for church choir, the audience responded.

Their answer? 

BORED!

I was thinking, wow! We all know this truth yet seem to accept it as just the way things are. When I tell this to other educators, some push back sharing all sorts of positive memories they had of high school. Still that doesn't negate the fact that a room full of pedagogical strangers came up with one answer to describe their high school experience. This hit home for me. 

When I was just three years old, my mother was called into my pre-school because they were concerned that there was something seriously wrong with me. In fact among other things they thought I might be "retarded." The conclusion was made based on warning signs they observed such as my not paying attention in class.  Fortunately, my mother got a second opinion and found the cause behind my lack of focus wasn't a mental condition, but in short, it was simply that I was bored. 

You can hear the story from my mother here:

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