There are always students in our classes who we struggle to motivate. Being able to motivate students to want to learn rather than comply because we said so is difficult to do. Having students in your class learning because they are genuinely interested (intrinsic motivation) is what we all aim for. Sometimes we get there sometimes we don’t. I found this following presentation on ‘Motivating the unmotivated student’ which asks some interesting questions of us around student motivation.
Click here to visit the website showing the presentation.
Students respond best when they have an audience. They are motivated to learn when they know they are presenting information to others. This is more than just an oral report. Students need to be assisted with the access of learning and presentation materials and a review of their lesson may be necessary. This also provides an avenue for consolidation. It works with all the levels I have taught. If they are asked to present a fun activity to evaluate class learning they will love this more. This can reflect the thinking hats.
Allowing students to choose an interest area overcomes the grumps and groans as well.
Cheers Rosalie