I try to motivate students by explaining to them that they can have so many experiences in their lives if they work hard. I give them examples of what they can earn if they work hard.
Showing the student your passion for the subject is a great motivator, I fell most students that come to school have some level of motivation weather its self motivation or from the outside (parents, work etc). It is part of our position as teachers to try to nurse this passion turn it to motivation and get the student on the road to be a sucess.
Another way of motivating some students is to bring in guest speakers from the industry, as well as former students of the program and have them speak about how they have achieved their accolades and positions, and stress that at one time they sat in theses seats and listened and paid attention to their instructors and that once in a while something that you said during a lesson or task came back to them when they needed the information. And for those that may not have been paying attention to the instructor when they should have.
I also reflect back on my own experiences, good and bad, and use this as a lesson for what to do and not to do.
Is this motivation? Perhaps it will motivate and stimulate conversation and just maybe it will possibly steer one student to set the example for all and return one day a great success story??
Hi Ann,
Excellent way to mix the different age groups you have in your class but still meet their individual needs. You are doing a great job of customizing your instruction so they can as you say find "ownership" in the course.
Gary
It is often difficult to tie lessons in Huamnities courses into relief experiences of students whose career paths have taken them away from Humanities. Many students are career students precisely because they had no real world relationship with speculation or rumination.
It has helped me clarify things when I simplify the things that may threaten them. For example, many students are befuddled and, thereby, disinterested in the rules of punctuation. Allowing for the complexities and variations that textbooks explore, they can be routed to key rules, seminal rules that can help them more than get by ir not make them "ex[ert."
Being able to use real world examples or create real world assignments helps students experience first hand that what they learn they will use in the job. However, I have found that the real world activities tend to work best mostly with the older students because they have the life experience to pull from. Younger students tend ot be overwhelmed because they are able to yet connect on the same level with professional world.
In these circumstances, I like to use class ownership. I do activities like create a "House" and "Sentate" to have the class develop policies that we will follow such as some deadlines, types of assessments, late work policy, late to class policy et... I find this allows students who don't have the same level of real workd experience because to develop some in a safe environment so they are more comfortable branching into the workforce for experience.
The key for me is to find out the mix of students I have and create a variety of motivation strategies throughout the term.
Hi Heather,
Good job of tying previous experiences you have had to current situations with your students. This helps to show them how real the content is that you are sharing with them. Plus the real life experiences help them to see application.
Gary
I think showing a passion and excitement for the material being presented is a big motivating factor. Also, we as instructors have to know (or at least appear to know) what we are talking about. My students used to love hear my "horror stories" of when I worked in a large inner city ER during night shift. I'd apply current concepts and course work to that experience and later they'd recall the information based on the story that stuck in their longterm memory. :-)
In my classes, I make sure to change my pitch, volume, and tone. In addition, I also continuously move from the front to the back and call on everyone by their name. I try to obtain as many guest speakers as I can for the subject of the day. Also if possible, I try to arrange field trips in order for the students to see the connection between the material and also the application in the real world. My classes have round table discussions at every meeting, and I ask each student their opinion to get them involved.
Hi Katie,
I like the use of the "Cyber High-Five". You are using their field to give them reinforcement. Way to make it relevant.
Gary
Setting goals, both personal and as a class. Also, talking about what each student wants to achieve and how we can get there. I really think having an idea in mind is a big part of motivation that will be there until the goal is reached.
having expertise on the field and passion for teaching and sharing information with others, as well as being enthusiastic and demonstrating empathy for students needs and expectations.
A clear example would be to offer extra help explaining an assignment to a student that is scared of failing because he/she has not been in school for a long time. This will show you care and you are willing to go the extra mile.
I like to break the tension sometimes by using items often found in traditional settings and placing in a cyber world. Such as, when a team really captures the essence of working together, I will post a "Cyber High-Five." Also, providing timeline reminders can be helpful and useful. Reading the participants cannot be overstressed as each course and learner is so unique! Therefore, adapting to each student is imperative! Katie
Hi Shannon,
Right you are. If students can see application and relevancy they will start to see the bridge between their career area and the liberal arts.
Gary
Being an instructor of Spanish, gives me great satisfaction when my students take the language beyond the classroom walls. Many of my students come from very different career paths. By knowing and using some basic expressions and language, students are able to communicate at a very basic level with their “clients” My students get to see the relevance of their studies and also the fruit of their efforts.
By getting a response to their statements, to their efforts, they feel very empowered and successful.
I teach the liberal arts side of things. So although I teach at a career college, my field is a little different because my classes are not in their field of study or specialty. However, one good example of effective motivation techniques is taking field trips. There's no better way to see how something really works in the real world.
The biggest motivation technique is to relate how the information the are learning in class relates to their future career goals. There are several ways to convey this information. One is to envite industry professionals to come in and talk to the class about the skills that they desire in a potential employee. Another is to share your own professional experiences and how the class material help you to be successful.
Hi Keegan,
Real life examples are important to be shared with students. They can see through these examples of how their own career opportunities will unfold. Great motivators as well.
Gary
Instructors can give real life examples of the skills students are learning being put to use on the job. Personal experience from the instructor or stories about former graduates and how they applied what was learned in the class to their careers.
I have found that the breaking up of the class into smaller groups to enable the more hesitant students early in the class will allow them to become more confident.
The use of real life scenarios including yourself in the experiences is very strong and attention getting. It allows the students to get closer to the situation and to ask more personal questions regarding the story. It also allows them to see and ask about being successful when they can be that close to it. It gives them the desire to achieve knowing that it can be done.
