Empowering Engagement

Chapter 1. Engaging in Learning: The Challenges and Consequences for Students from Disadvantaged Backgrounds.- Chapter 2. Indicators and Facilitators of Engagement: Going Beyond Linear Thinking.- Chapter 3. Access and Opportunity to Learn: Essentials for Academic Engagement.- Chapter 4. 'Opportunity to Connect': Social Skills as Engagement Agents.- Chapter 5. 'Opportunity to Read': Student Voice as a Reading Engagement Enabler.- Chapter 6. 'Opportunity to Aspire': Promoting Mathematics Engagement and Aspiration for Challenging Mathematics.- Chapter 7. 'Opportunity to Flourish': Reconnecting Pedagogy for Youths Out-of-School and Out-of-Work.- Chapter 8. 'Opportunity to Re-engage': Alternative Education Programs and Pathways for Youths who 'Don't Fit'.- Chapter 9. Engagement for What Purpose? Engagement Towards What Outcome? Empowering Engagement for Students from Disadvantaged Backgrounds. 

Clarence Ng, Ph.D., is Associate Professor and the Research Director of Learning, Learner Diversity and Reforming Classroom Practices at the Learning Sciences Institute Australia, Australian Catholic University. Clarence's core research areas include literacy engagement, motivation and learning, pedagogies and classroom practices. His current research aims at developing effective instructional practices to promote disadvantaged students' literacy engagement and their learning of higher-order literacy skills. Clarence's research in these areas has won funding support from the Australian Research Council and the Department of Education, Queensland. He has published widely in these fields. His recent books, published by Springer, are Reforming Learning and Teaching in Asia-Pacific Universities (2016) and Improving Reading and Reading Engagement in the 21st Century (2017).

Brendan Bartlett, Ph.D., is Chair Professor of Education, Faculty of Education and Arts, Australian Catholic University. Brendan is a Gellibrand Scholar, UNICEF Fellow, King Mongkut Medallist, award holder of the Rotary International Certificate for Significant Achievement in Education and of the Australian Learning and Teaching Council for services to Education. His current research aims at providing clearer understanding and help to children and youth moving through important contexts in their lives. He has major research accomplishments with BoysTown on reconnecting youth with histories of chronic transition failure from school to employment and/or further studies. His work on top-level structuring has been used in Australia and the United States' whole-of-school strategic learning programs, in text mining systems and in statewide assessment of students' reading and writing achievement.

Stephen N. Elliott, Ph.D., is an educational psychologist and the Mickelson Foundation Professor in the Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics at Arizona State