Instructors need to be able to 'reach 'the students. Find some common ground. hopefully, the instructor is in a course he/she feels passionate about and can put in perspective to the student why this info can advance the students future.
Hi Stephen,
Good strategies. Thanks for sharing them with us. I really like the one about food. Works every time.
Gary
I find motivating students is by bring their experiences into the class discussions.
The instructor is the actor of their classroom and requires interacting the class as an audience to be involved, excited, and wanting to know more about the topic.
The way to accomplish all of this requires a person who does not teach from a podium, but is constantly moving around the room, writes on the white board, and is dynamic and interactive.
The students will feed off the instructor's attitude and be motivated. This interaction will cause students to listen and learn!
I have a few things that work for motivation.
Guest Speakers and Field trips
I teach in the audio industry so I try to bring musicians in to let the students record ( I try to learn what a majority of students tend to listen to music wise and bring in an artist of that genre).
Food at the holidays (good for the days right before a holiday, it gives us all something to look forward to). I do not recommend candy, all students love it at first until they get sugar crashes and class then becomes painful.
If a lecture feels like it is dragging I will try to do something hands on for a few minutes to get people involved and moving.
Hi Byron,
Right you are. What are some of the techniques that you use to reinforce your students and help them feel they can have success in the class.
Gary
Effective Motivation Techniques include positive reinforcement and enthusiasim in the classroom.
Hi Christopher,
The use of stories and examples really help to drive home the content that you are sharing with them. Also, as you mention it keeps the motivation level high.
Gary
I think being excited about what you do is something that will motivate students. Other things can be showing them purpose in what they are learing as well as reinforcing their growth as the course goes on.
I like to mix in short stories within my lectures to help give balance and meaning for real world practicality. I Talk to my students individually thoughout the course to try to get to know them and see what makes them tick, by showing interest and concern it gives me a little advantage towards being able to motivate them.
I have found that motivating students visually is pretty effective, especially in my trade where i can show them a picture or an actual example of what they will be able to achieve at the end of the program.
I think short term goals seem to make students more motivated towards getting through that hurdle first and then handling the rest one at a time.
When they can apply what they learned in the class room to a real application, this helps.
Learning through Retention is what I would term connective learning...By using real life examples or funny ways of presentation, the students can connect the learning and recall it readily.
I used to have a quiz exercise in which I would ask the operation of different types of sensors and would use the names or wording that eluded to the correct operation of the sensors. When we reviewed the material at the end of the exercise, most of the students would laugh and recall the information for the particular type of electrical signal that the sensor produced or operated by...I knew that as they would see those sensors later in life the connected jokes and dialogue we had surrounding the material would result in a permenant retention of the componenets operation.
I have found that knowing a students' goals and showing them how the material they are learning in the course will help them achieve those goals helps a lot.
Secondly having a real passion and excitement for what I teach seems to be picked up by students and helps them develop or expand on their own excitement.
Especially now- when economic uncertainties abound.
Direct Correlation- to draw correlation with the topics learned and their direct transference to the industry is a must.
Identify opportunities-
opprtunites that allow someone entering the work force to get the most out of their talents.Including employment potentials in branch industries that may not directly relate to area of study
Expand Skillset-
To strengthen weakenesses so that further opportunities may be explored/ developed to broaden scope of potentials in the industry.
Broadened skillset = Broadened potential for successful employment. Develop skillsets that are transferrable.
in the old days a steel edged ruler and rote memorization with threats to tell your father worked very well, since father had a razor strap, but that was in the days of external motivation, now we have to sometimes practically beg to get the students into caring,
Hi John,
Thanks for sharing this real world project that walks the students through all of the steps of completing a major undertaking while giving them the course content. They get to see the beginning and then the end result which is the performance or showing.
No wonder the new students are already talking about it before they get into the class. This has a big wow factor to it.
Gary
I've found that students are motivated when they can apply what they already know to course concepts and when the feel that the information from class is relevant to the real world.
Working towards a common tangible goal or project in the course is often an effective technique. An example would be a project I assign in my Artist Management class. The project is for the class to sign an artist or musical group to a single performance contract and execute the performance. Throughout the quarter, they are learning the objectives to the course, which are all elements used to carry out the project. The students are extremely engaged throughout the course as their anticipation builds for the performance date. At project completion, the students have learned all course objectives and have real world artist management experience to put on their resume'.
The course has been so successful from a motivational aspect that new students are already talking about it before the first class period begins.
Being able to show the student how they are building on what they already learned and they know it makes them want to know more.
