Student participation can completely change the energy of a classroom. When students raise their hands, share opinions, ask questions, and react to what is happening, we feel that energy too. The conversation begins to flow, connections grow, and the language starts to feel purposeful.
But when students remain silent, teaching can feel incredibly difficult.
We may begin wondering:
- Why aren’t they participating?
- Is the activity not engaging enough?
- Are my students unmotivated?
- Am I doing something wrong?
In this episode of Growing With Proficiency: The Podcast, I sat down with educator and teacher trainer Justin Slocum Bailey to explore a different possibility.
Sometimes, the problem is not the activity, the students, or the teacher. The problem may be that the stakes are not quite right.
What Does It Mean to Get the Stakes Right?
When Justin talks about “getting the stakes right,” he is asking us to consider how risky—or how worthwhile—participation feels to our students.
When the stakes are too low, students may think:
- Why should I answer?
- What is the purpose?
- There is nothing interesting for me to contribute.
When the stakes are too high, students may think:
- What if I make a mistake?
- What if everyone judges my pronunciation?
- What if I lose points?
- What if I do not want to share that information about myself?
In both situations, participation decreases.
We may assume the activity does not work with our students. We may start searching for another game, another routine, or another exciting idea to save the lesson.
But before replacing the activity, Justin encourages us to pause and become curious.
The question is not simply, “Did the activity work?” The better question is, “What made participation feel too risky or not worthwhile enough?”
That small shift can help us adjust what we are already doing instead of constantly starting over.
Before Blaming the Activity, Ask Better Questions
When an activity falls flat, it is easy to move immediately into judgment.
- We blame the activity.
- We blame ourselves.
- Sometimes, we blame our students.
Curiosity gives us another path.
We can ask:
- Is the topic relevant or interesting to my students?
- Is there a real reason for them to communicate?
- Do students have the language they need?
- Are they ready for this type of participation?
- Does the question require them to reveal more than they want to share?
- Are they afraid of being evaluated or embarrassed?
- Can they participate without speaking in front of the entire class?
These questions help us look beyond the surface behavior.
Silence does not automatically mean that students do not care. It may mean that we have not yet created the right conditions for them to participate.
When the Stakes Are Too Low: Give Communication a Purpose
Think about some of the traditional partner activities we have used in language classes.
Students may be asked to:
- Tell a partner what color shirt they are wearing—even though the partner can already see the shirt.
- Introduce themselves to classmates whose names they already know.
- Describe something that is visible to everyone in the room.
Technically, students are using the target language. But they are not necessarily communicating.
There is no new information to discover.
Justin recommends creating an information gap. In other words, students should have a real reason to listen or respond because they do not already know the answer.
Instead of asking students to describe something everyone can see, we can ask questions that allow them to discover something new about another person.
The language may remain simple, but the purpose becomes more meaningful.
Communication becomes more compelling when students are genuinely learning something they did not already know.
Ask for Opinions, Not Only Facts
Another way to make participation more meaningful is to invite students to share opinions.
Students do not need advanced language to discuss an interesting idea.
A question can be cognitively engaging while still allowing for a novice-level response.
For example:
Do you believe everything happens for a reason?
That is a deep question, but students may begin with a simple answer:
- Yes.
- No.
- Sometimes.
- I believe that.
- I don’t believe that.
From there, the teacher can provide additional language, ask a follow-up question, or invite students to share an example.
Our students do not need to possess all the language before the conversation begins. We can provide the language they need to participate.
We can:
- Write possible responses on the board.
- Model a complete answer.
- Use gestures.
- Translate strategically.
- Point and pause.
- Allow students to combine words, drawings, and short phrases.
Instead of deciding, “My students cannot talk about that,” we can ask:
How can I make this idea comprehensible and give students an accessible way to respond?
Also a dictation can create high levels of participation when we add predictions to facts.
When the Stakes Are Too High: Respect Students’ Privacy
There is another side to participation.
A topic may be interesting, but it may also feel too personal.
Language teachers regularly ask students questions about their lives:
- What are you afraid of?
- Who is your best friend?
- What is your least favorite class?
- What did you do this weekend?
- Who do you have a crush on?
- What is happening in your family?
We often ask because we want to create connection and use the language for authentic communication. Our intentions may be wonderful.
However, as Justin reminded us, some of the information we ask students to share is simply none of our business.
Students may not want to answer honestly in front of their classmates. They may not know us well enough yet. They may have social anxiety, difficult experiences, or personal circumstances we know nothing about.
Even a question that seems harmless to us may feel risky to a student.
That does not mean we must avoid meaningful topics. It means we need to consider how we frame them.
Create Distance Without Removing the Meaning
Imagine that you are preparing students to read a text involving fear.
You could ask:
What is your greatest fear?
That question connects directly to the theme, but it also asks students to reveal something vulnerable in front of the class.
Instead, you might ask:
- What are some common fears people have?
- What is something many people fear that you do not?
- What fear might a character in this situation have?
These questions preserve the theme and much of the same language, but they create distance between the student and the topic.
Students can participate without revealing something deeply personal.
Justin also suggests using contrasts and exceptions:
- Everyone else likes this, but I do not.
- Many people are afraid of this, but I am not.
- I used to believe this, but now I believe something different.
These prompts are often more interesting than a basic personal question, and they allow students to decide how much they want to share.
Authentic communication does not require unlimited access to our students’ personal lives.
Plan for the Students at the Margins
In many classrooms, we unconsciously plan for the student in the middle.
We imagine a student who:
- Feels comfortable at school.
- Trusts the teacher.
- Enjoys speaking.
- Processes questions quickly.
- Does not mind sharing personal information.
But that is not every student.
Some students need more time.
Some students are neurodivergent.
Some students are processing the language and the social situation simultaneously.
Some students are afraid of being wrong.
Some students have learned that school is not always a safe place to take risks.
When we plan for the students who may need the most support, we often create a better experience for everyone.
That may mean:
- Changing the question.
- Giving students time to think.
- Providing possible answers.
- Offering several ways to participate.
Speaking Is Not the Only Form of Participation
When we picture participation, we often picture a student raising a hand and speaking in front of the class.
That is one form of participation, but it is not the only one.
For many students, immediate public speaking is one of the highest-risk tasks we can ask them to complete—especially in a language they are still acquiring.
We can lower the pressure by allowing students to respond in different ways:
✏️ Writing on a mini whiteboard
🎨 Drawing a response
✋ Showing a number with their fingers
👍 Using thumbs up, thumbs down, or a continuum
↔️ Selecting between two options
📝 Writing before speaking
👥 Sharing with a partner before sharing with the class
👀 Holding up an answer so only the teacher can see it
Mini whiteboards are especially powerful because every student can respond at the same time.
The teacher can walk around, notice patterns, identify interesting answers, and provide support before asking anyone to speak.
Once students have written something, speaking often feels more manageable because they no longer have to create an answer on the spot.
The teacher can also narrate students’ ideas in the target language.
A student may hold up a response without saying a word, but their idea still becomes part of the classroom conversation.
Students can have a voice in the class even when they are not ready to use their physical voice.
Be Careful When Grading Participation
When participation is low, we may become desperate.
We may reach for the clipboard.
We may start assigning points every time a student speaks or threatening zeros when students do not participate.
I understand why this happens. When we have 30 or 35 students and feel like no one is responding, we want something that will make participation happen immediately.
But visible, constant evaluation can raise the stakes even more.
Students stop thinking about the message and begin thinking about the grade:
- Am I being evaluated?
- Did that answer count?
- Was my grammar correct?
- Did the teacher write something down about me?
The interaction becomes less natural, and students who were already hesitant may feel even more pressure.
There may be moments when positive reinforcement is useful. However, we need to consider the classroom culture we are creating over time.
Compliance can produce visible participation, but it does not always produce authentic communication.
Try the Invisible Item
Justin shared one playful strategy he has used for years: the invisible item.
Students imagine that they are holding an invisible:
- Favorite drink
- Stuffed animal
- Other comforting object
They might occasionally pretend to sip their invisible drink or hold their invisible stuffed animal while participating.
It sounds simple—and maybe even a little silly—but that is part of why it can work.
The imaginary item creates a playful atmosphere. It may also function like a fidget or a small safety blanket, giving students something to do while they think.
Play helps students get out of their heads.
They are not focusing only on:
- Their pronunciation
- The possibility of making a mistake
- What everyone else might think
They are participating in a shared imaginary moment.
Sometimes, the activity does not need to change. The emotional environment surrounding the activity does.
Start the Year by Creating a Nonjudgmental Classroom
The beginning of the school year gives us an opportunity to establish the conditions that will support participation later.
Justin recommends communicating clearly that language development will happen gradually.
We can tell students:
- You will not be expected to say everything immediately.
- I have strategies to help you understand.
- I have strategies to help you communicate.
- You will have different ways to participate.
- We are going to grow together.
But saying these things is only the beginning.
Students must experience them.
We need to:
- Check for comprehension.
- Slow down.
- Support meaning.
- Provide language.
- Accept different forms of participation.
- Respond to errors without making students feel judged.
Students need evidence that our classroom is a place where they can be themselves, take small risks, and grow without constantly being evaluated.
That culture is not created through one first-day activity. It is created through the way we respond to students every day.
Curiosity Before Judgment
Perhaps the most important takeaway from this conversation is not a specific activity or strategy.
It is the invitation to become curious.
When students do not participate, pause before deciding that they are lazy, unmotivated, disrespectful, or incapable.
Pause before deciding that you are not a good teacher.
Pause before throwing away an activity that may only need a small adjustment.
Ask:
- Is the content meaningful?
- Is there an immediate reason to participate?
- Does the student have the language they need?
- Is the question too personal?
- Is the student afraid of being wrong?
- Could I offer another way to respond?
- Could I make this more playful?
Our curiosity allows us to adjust. Our judgment often closes the door before we understand what is happening.
Final Thoughts: Participation Begins with Safety and Purpose
No one comes to class hoping to feel unsuccessful.
Our students want to belong. They want to feel capable. They want to know that what they think matters—even when they are not yet able or willing to express it in complete sentences.
Increasing participation is not about finding one magical activity.
It is about creating communication that feels meaningful enough to be worth the effort and safe enough to attempt.
So, the next time an activity falls flat, do not immediately replace it.
Pause and look at:
- The content
- The question
- How students are being asked to respond
And ask yourself:
Are the stakes too low, too high, or just right?
That reflection may not only help your students participate more. It can also help you create a more communicative, compassionate, and sustainable language classroom.
Listen to the Full Conversation
Listen to the full episode of Growing With Proficiency: The Podcast for more insights and practical strategies from Justin Slocum Bailey.
In this episode, you will learn:
- Why low participation is not always a motivation problem
- How to make classroom questions more meaningful
- Why some personal questions may feel too risky
- How mini whiteboards can increase participation
- What happens when we grade every interaction
- How the “invisible item” can add playfulness and lower anxiety
- What teachers can do during the first weeks of school to create a culture of trust
Resources Mentioned
- Learn more from Justin at Indwelling Language
- Connect with Claudia on Instagram at @claudiamelliott
- Explore training, curriculum, ready-to-use resources, and ongoing support inside Growing With Proficiency: The Spanish Teacher Academy
- Explore more resources in our TPT Store
