In 2025, the phenomenon of ‘attention’, and the challenges posed by attention resources within educational settings, have been the focus of discussion with our teaching community.
Within second language acquisition, the ability to turn learners' attention to input and promote noticing of salient features is one of the most widely accepted hypotheses for second language learning. The ‘noticing hypothesis’ leads to concrete practices in materials and classrooms - from underlining on the board to input enhancement in coursebooks through bold and colour, the use of boxes and icons to direct attention. At the same time, the discussion of attention within educational settings is often found in collocation with deficit. We notice attention when there is a lack of it, and we want to help students in the spectrum of attention disorders with interventions and practices. We also use other D words: Distraction, Division, Demands.
We have come to accept that this ‘shrinking of attention spans’ and ‘attention scarcity’ is the new reality.
According to the World Economic Forum 2023 one of the jobs of the future will be a 'Distraction Prevention Coach'. As attention is positioned by social commentators as one of the most precious resources in the 'attention economy era', we are struggling within educational settings for students' availability of their attentional resources.
In most educational and work environments, the constant switching between apps and multitasking has fragmented attention. Pop up notifications direct our attention to emerging issues that we may or may not need to know, but by the time we evaluate urgency and importance, we have been pulled out of task focus. The 'Do not Disturb' mode seems to be the productive, mindful way of learning and working.
Attention is not a uniform concept
It is about control and selection, it is about self-regulation, inhibiting distractors and coordinating participation in multiple simultaneous activities.
Attention Matters
At LANGUAGECERT, we believe this is a conversation worth having—one that mirrors what educators observe daily in their classrooms. That’s why, during our Spring webinar season, we invited expert speakers to dive into the cognitive demands placed on learners today. Together, we explored:
- How attentional mechanisms interact with memory
- The cognitive load of digital learning environments
- Visual strategies that sharpen focus
- How to rebalance the brain for deeper, sustained learning
Our webinar series, Attention Matters, is a space for reflection. It acknowledges the shifting reality of how learners process information and provides practical approaches for balancing moments of fragmented attention with opportunities for focused engagement.
📺 Watch the full Attention Matters series on our YouTube channel
Join the Conversation
We invite you to share your experiences and strategies for supporting student focus. Connect with us on social media using #languagecertforteachers so we can see your post.
Let’s work together to design learning experiences where students feel safe, attentive, and confident—ready to engage meaningfully with the world around them.