What are some effective ways to motivate a student that is faililing
demonstrate you care about his success.
Reward him in a form of praise when his scores improve.
Reinforce his learning behavior by giving him the necessary tools and materials to work with.
Devote time for him and check on him frequently to know his progress and help him solve his problems.Tell him some sucessful stories about people who failed but were able to persever and later on win their game.
As Albeit Eisten once said" a problem well defined is a problem half solve".
Make your class interesting by breaking your lecture materials into chunks.
Display genuine concern to the student that you care.
Molly,
Knowing the reason for their grade challenges is so important. The one on one conversation will yield a lot information about why they are not doing well and what they believe would help them to be successful. I find many of my students do not have study skills. They simply don't know how to listen to a lecture and take notes. Their grammar skills are very low and they self confidence is minimal. Helping them have early success in a course plus providing them with guided notes can help to get them moving forward and developing confidence in their abilities to be successful.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I have found that having a genuine conversation where you express your concern regarding their grades is key. I try to get to the reason for the failing grades. If they need one on one help I offer tutoring. I often find that all they need is encouragement and for the instructor to tell them they CAN succeed. Some just don't have confidence in themselves. Some don't get encouragement anywhere else.
It is important to point out to the student what they have done well; offer support through tutoring, or mentoring; let the student know that its not too late to complete the required work to pass the class and show understanding and faith that they can do it.
Hi John,
Good way to provide student support. By them knowing you have faith in them and that you want to help them be successful they can be if they are willing to invest the time and effort needed. This builds a strong foundation for student rapport and respect.
Gary
I agree about the early intervention; it takes time to correct problems and we are all painfully aware of how little of that we have with our students. I am also careful to find at least one positive aspect of the student's performance to reinforce before having a meeting so that it can end on an upbeat note. Often the student has forgotten or never learned basic skills associated with learning and needs extra help outside of class time to indentify and implement those skills (tutoring, extra supervised review, additional self-study material related to course, etc.). Without those skills they quickly lose motivation because even concerted but undirected effort brings no discernible improvement.
John Stuckey
First you must have a heart to heart conversation with the student and express your concerns regarding their academic studies. then offer ways you can help the stdent try to find their weakness. Then shower the student with all kind of opportunities for improving their grades, study habits, time management there are many things of daily life style that may be interferring with their sucess in school.
I believe it is good to bring the situation to the student's attention as soon as it is recognized by the teacher. Then point out to the student that there is time in the course to pull their grade up to passing standards. Ask the student for insight into why they have a failing grade at this point and what they think they can do about it. Encourage, encourage, encourage! Be available to clarify curriculum, offer tutoring, but the student is ultimately responsible for their learning.
Cathy
