I enjoy sharing with my students feedback that I have received from clinical sites, other instructors, or from other students. I try to recognize every student's success and share with the class.
Pari,
Adults are just taller children. My students love to play games and be competitive when it comes to showing off what they know. Winning prizes such as candy goes a long way in establishing a positive and supportive learning environment for students. So keep up the good works and the handing out of prizes.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I think each student needs to be recognized for their strengths. I do things like give awards. I also split them into teams and play games that relate to the subject matter. If their team wins, they receive a prize, such as candy or something small. They love to play educational games. That is when I see them the most excited.
Termila,
What are some successful strategies you have used to reward and motivate your students? Thanks for your input on this.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Telling them they will do well and give them advice on how they will excel in there filed.
Rewarding students is an effective form of motivation for students.
Taking their input into consideration when it comes to handouts/tests. Involving them in the teaching process. I hand back tests and we grade them together this way we can discuss the tests results also.
I sometimes have specific activities that are related to the course; however, they don't necessarily get a grade...it is a method for them to use the skills taught in the lecture and see the application. I then meet with them individually and go over their work. If I see a common thread throughout the students' work, I then specifically take time to address a "common" issue they had.
Darryl,
Great way to make your content come alive for your students while giving value to it as well. This is what will help sell your content to your students. You are giving them a glimpse on what is waiting for them upon graduation and this is a great motivator as you say.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
share any of your personal experience related to the topic or a story to derive the aim of the lesson as motivation.
I agree with this post also. When I see/hear the excitement in the students I'm more motivated in doing more to get them stimulated.
What I will occasionally do for motivation for the students and myself is to find companies that are great places to work and are developing new technologies. I will display an article on the projector about the company and show the students what they could possibly be doing in the future. I will then show them that the companies need people with the knowledge they are acquiring and they too could work there if they continue to work hard. Google is a great example for motivation.
DOUNIADEH,
Your support of the learning efforts of your students is to be commended. This is how they build confidence while gaining in skill development. Keep up these most important ways of providing motivation to and for your students.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
As a VN clinical instructor, I motivate my students by giving them positive feedback after performing a skill. If I have students who are weak at performing a skill, I motivate them by telling them " you can do this! you done it in skills lab." I let them perform the skill at clinical and if they have some areas they need to improve in, I find another patient who needs that skill to be done and let my student perform it again. By doing this, my student gets motivated to improve, and builds self-esteem.
I absolutely agree. The attitude and motivation level in the students can be a direct reflection of what we bring into class that day.
James,
Students as you have noticed really perk up when you share a story or example with them. These stories and examples increase the value of the course content because they show both application and relevance to what is being offered.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Using real life examples and especially current events as demonstrating the discussed topic tends to keep the students motivated.
Jennifer,
Good way to support their input and to encourage them to be a part of the discussion process. This method helps them to build their self confidence in relation to success in the class.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
An effective motivational technique I use is when discussing a topic being covered with the students I listen to their take on it. I like to state "great observation" and you "definitely got it." This allows the student to be part of the lesson and gives them confidence that what they have to say is important to me.
Hugh,
This is a great way to use the assessment as a learning tool beyond just quizzing them through the answers they give. They get to talk about the assessment and discuss what the answers are and why they are the correct answers.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
