Download Motivation Running Head: MOTIVATION Motivation in the

Motivation
Running Head: MOTIVATION
Motivation in the Classroom
Alice K. Gates
East Texas Baptist University
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Motivation
Running Head: MOTIVATION
Motivation is the force behind behavior and provides an explanation for why people do things.
Motivation influences what people do – meaning their choice of actions, as well as how they act; the
intensity, persistence, and quality of their actions. An individual’s motivation can vary depending on a
number of factors including personal characteristic- age, ability, experience, values and beliefs- and
contextual characteristics- subject matter(gym versus math), task difficulty, task features, task
structures, teacher expectations, and the quality of student-teacher relationship(Oka,2005). Motivation
for learning is not a unitary characteristic of which people have more or less of. Motivation for learning
is evidenced by academic goals that students set, the quality of their engagement in tasks, their choices
in courses, their persistence in the face of failure or challenges, their performance on learning activities,
and the pride with which they experience their accomplishments. Some explanations of motivation rely
on internal, personal factors such as needs, interests, and curiosity along with external, environmental
factors (Woolfolk, 2010). One distinction within motivation is the difference between intrinsic and
extrinsic motivation. In the present paper the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation in a classroom
setting will be investigated.
Intrinsic motivation involves doing an activity without the necessity of external prompts or rewards
because it is interesting and satisfies the basic psychological needs for competence, autonomy, and
relatedness (Deci, 2004). In the book, Educational Psychology by Woolfolk, intrinsic motivation is
described as the natural human tendency to seek out and conquer. Intrinsic motivation requires no
external compensation. An example of intrinsic motivation in a school setting is an athlete who plays
basketball because he or she finds it interesting and satisfying to learn new moves with the ball (Deci,
2004). Some manifestations of intrinsic motivation are when people are eager to take on challenges
partial to novelty, engaged with interesting tasks or stimuli and ready to learn; these manifestations are
critical for optimal development across the life span (Deci, 2004).
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Motivation
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When extrinsically motivated, individuals do not engage in the activity out of pleasure but rather do so
to derive some kind of rewards that are external to the activity itself (Vallerand, 2004). Avoiding
punishment also pertains to extrinsic motivation. An example in the classroom would be a student
completing their homework so they don’t receive a bad note home to their parents. When students are
not really interested in the activity for its own sake; but interested in what it will gain them is another
example (Woolfolk, 2010). The concept of extrinsic motivators is linked to behaviorist theories that were
prominent in the 1940 and 1950’s. Behavior modifications, for example, were based solely on extrinsic
motivators- do a desired behavior and get a reward (Deci, 2004). The essential difference between the
two types of motivation (intrinsic and extrinsic) is the student’s reason for acting. This “locus of
causality”, or the internal or external cause of the behavior, directly influences whether the motivation
is extrinsic (external locus of causality) or intrinsic (internal locus of causality) (Woolfolk, 2010).
Motivation is especially prized in learning situations, whether the instruction takes place in a fourth
grade classroom or on a soccer field. Without putting forth effort and actively engaging in the activity,
even the most capable of individuals will not benefit from the opportunity to learn (Oka, 2005). When
students are motivated to learn they put forth effort, are engaged, show greater persistence in the face
of failure, and take risks.
References
Deci, E. L. (2004). Intrinsic motivation and self-determination. Encycolpedia of Applied Psychology,
.Retrieved from
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Running Head: MOTIVATION
http://www.credoreference.com/entry/estappliedpsyc/intrinsic_motivation_and_self_determin
ation
Oka, E. (2005). Motivation. Encycolpedia of School Psychology.Retrieved from
http://www.credoreference.com/entry/sageschoolp/motivation
Vallerand, R. (2004). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Encyclopedia of Applied Psychology. Retrieved
from http://www.credoreference.com/entry/estapplied/intrinsic_and _extrinsic_motivation
Woolfolk,A.(2010).Educational Psychology.(11ed.,pp.375-390).Saddle River,New Jersey:Merrill.
Application to Classroom Improvement
As we learned from the excerpts of, “The Developing Mind”, children’s brains are made to couple with
adult brains through emotional communication. This concept is called, “Mind Sight”. As a teacher I feel it
is part of my profession to motivate students through my emotions by being positive, optimistic, and full
of energy. By having encouraging emotions in the classroom and through internal and external stimuli,
students will attune themselves to my emotional communication and begin to feel motivated. I feel
motivation is contagious. If teachers were motivated and enthusiastic about teaching and student
learning, students would “catch” the motivation.
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Motivation
Running Head: MOTIVATION
Another means of improving and generating motivation would be to make learning meaningful. In the
article, “Enhancing Interest and Performance With a Utility Value Intervention”, we read about “helping
students find value and meaning in their school”. For example, when teaching geometric shapes a
teacher may relate the shapes to street signs and driving; student motivation will increase because the
skill becomes a “necessary tool”. Another quote from this article I feel relates directly to motivation is
as follows, “ The development of self-efficacy beliefs is also hypothesized to interact reciprocally with
interest, with interesting activities leading to the development of competence beliefs and competence
leading children to explore and develop interest in activities”. By providing activities that peak interests
will promote student motivation. I feel in a classroom book work and copying notes should not take up
the majority of the day. By providing activities that require students to have hands on experiences, work
in groups and pairs, and use manipulatives will make the activities more engaging and students will feel
more motivated to complete them. There are strategies called, “Kagan Strategies”, that require students
to perform numerous activities while actively engaged and learning. My favorite of these strategies is
what is called, “Think,Pair,Share”. This specific activity requires students to create an answer, (when the
music starts) partner with other students around the room, (when the music stops) share what they
have learned or created, and continue again when the music begins.
When we read in our text of Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory we read of the importance of the Zone of
Proximal Development (ZPD). I feel by implementing the use of the ZPD in the classroom will improve
classroom motivation. Teaching in this “magic middle” what can be understood, with guidance and
scaffolding, will create excitement and challenges for the students. Motivated by challenge, many
students will strive to succeed.
Another application that I will use to improve my second grade classroom motivation, for those students
who are extrinsically motivated, is by keeping posters out on display that keep track of progress with
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Running Head: MOTIVATION
stickers or tallies marks. It’s silly to think a sticker, worth noting at all to adults, is all it takes to motivate
younger students. But in teaching the motto is, “whatever works”. Rewarding students has always
proven to motivate extrinsic learners. When discussing classical conditioning in class we discussed
reinforcement as a motivator. For second graders the most common reinforcer I can think of is candy. (It
does not have to be candy, anything that sparks motivation). I feel by using classical conditioning with
candy as a reward, initially, will promote motivation. Over time the candy can be taken away and
students will still feel motivated to complete assignments, do homework, etc.
In conclusion, motivation is what drives behavior and influences students to succeed in the classroom.
By focusing on motivation and providing multiple opportunities for it to be implemented will improve
students’ performance and determination in the classroom to succeed.
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Motivation
Running Head: MOTIVATION
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