I really like the topic of motivation, and I believe it plays an extremely important role in the classroom. I really believe in both intrisic and extrinsic motivations. I think intristic is most important, and is something that hopefully people have throughout their lives. I think in younger grades it is important to have extrinsic motivation here and there. I did not agree with the teacher in the case study that we read on Thursday. Though I thought he had it all figured out and truly felt he was doing the right thing it really didn't sit well with the students and hurt their motivation more than helped it. Stickers on papers or little things like that are great from the classroom. I really believe in extrinsic motivation being group oriented. If the class as a whole does better than their previous tests, or if the averages grades go up then the class gets rewarded as a whole. When the class as a whole is working toward the same goals it becomes a collborative situation instead of a competition. Extrinsic motivation is going to get the students to work towards something, and I think if teachers carefully pick what this reward is it can be a great motivation process. I really don't want my students to expect to have a reward for everything they do, and my main goal is to help them develop intrisic motivations within themselves. I am really interested in learning how to help students develop intrinsic motivation because I think it can take you a long way. I think self efficacy ties into the idea of intrinsic motivation. Like we said in class younger kids believe they can do anything and have a high self efficacy which means they are willing to try, and if they fail its not embarrassing its just another reason to try again. If we as teachers can help improve students self efficacy, or find a way to keep it high I think it would lead to a lot more intrinsic motivation. This of course, is way easier said than done! I really think that teaching can have an influence on intrinsic motivations, and I am very interested and learning how I can help my students develop it. I found an article called "The Impact of Teaching Strategies on Intrinsic Motivation" that discusses and researches different concepts, ideas, and situations in which teaching can or cannot influence intrinsic motivation. The author states "self-motivation (intrinstic) can lead the student to go beyond the scope and requirements of an educational course because they are seeking to learn about the subject, not just fulfill a limited set of requirements." This article also gives models and ideas to enhance intrinsic motivation. This is so interesting to me, and if I can find a way to help my students in this area I would love it!
Bomia, Lisa., L.Beluzo, D. Demeester, K. Elander, M. Johnson, and B. Sheldon.
"The Impact of Teaching Strategies on Intrinsic Motivation." ERIC. 1997.
I think one of the biggest struggles of teachers is fostering intrinsic motivation, because we can try and try and never be really sure what motivates some of our students. It's definitely a challenge, and I wonder about it often.
ReplyDeleteI like your focus on group rewards and collaboration - I can see how teaching your students to work together as a team could really help develop interpersonal skills that would aid them as they grow. Great idea!
Christina,
ReplyDeleteI totally agree that a teacher's ultimate goal should be to help foster intrinsic motivation in their students. However, I think you also had some great ideas about utilizing extrinsic motivation. I think it is very important to reward students for improvement rather than simply just rewarding them for receiving a specific grade. To me, it makes sense to reward a student who brings their grade up from a 60 to an 85. However, I wonder what to do about the student who makes a 100 on nearly everything. I guess maybe give them more challenging work? I want to encourage all my students to improve, but I don't want that improvement to stop just because they reach a certain level.
I agree with you in thinking that intrinsic motivation is the most important idea of motivation in regards to a classroom. It is important for children to understand that they should want to do well in school for more than just stickers and candy, although sometimes they can help :).
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