Are you finding it harder than ever to attract and keep your student's attention during class? Have you noticed that your students are more easily distracted than in the past? Attention Deficit Trait may be the culprit. First introduce by Dr. Edward Hallowell as a very real but under-recognized neurological phenomenon, the core symptoms are distractability, inner frenzy, and impatience. ADT sufferers have trouble staying organized, setting priorities, managing time, and staying focused. We have continued to research the effects of ADT and have uncovered interventions that have produced positive results in the classroom. Dr. Todd Pourciau will present results of some of this research at the American Association for Teaching and Curriculum conference this coming October in San Antonio. This topic was previously discussed in a post in April that highlighted the idea of switching in the brain (what many have described as multi-tasking). Our research begins with the assumption that you cannot change something if you are unaware of its existence. In this case, many students are unaware that forcing their brain to switch very quickly between many tasks is actually "training" this behavior. Obviously this type of habit is not conducive to deep learning that is required for complex tasks in a college setting. Dr. Joe Kraus contends that we are creating and encouraging a culture of distraction mostly linked to the plethora of technology available to everyone. This phenomena illustrates that teaching is a complex process that requires its practitioners to continuously learn and practice and the CT+LE is here to help on that front. Dr. Naomi Eisenberger argues that the brain reacts to social pain much as we react to physical pain. She lists five social rewards and threats that are deeply important to the brain: autonomy, certainty, fairness, relatedness, and status. It explains why people receive feedback in a negative way because it is an attack on a person's status. This aligns with research by Dr. Barbara Gross Davis that grades are a sigh of approval or disapproval and can be taken very personally. She says, "If you devise clear guidelines from which to assess performance, you will find the grading process more efficient, and the essential function of grades–communicating the student's level of knowledge–will be easier. Further, if you grade carefully and consistently, you can reduce the number of students who complain and ask you to defend a grade." What would classrooms look like if teachers asked fewer questions and students asked more? That is the premise of the book Make Just One Change: Teach Students to Ask Their Own Questions by Dan Rothstein and Luz Sanatana. They argue that is our adult learners are not asking questions in class or even learning how to refine that skill, how will they ever participate at a more macro level as active citizens of a democracy? They suggest that it also explains why many people never ask questions when visiting a doctor or a banker.