Motivation in Schools
The topic I originally planned to look into for my Action Research Paper was the affect of reward systems on a student’s academic performance. My idea was that a student’s performance could be influenced by the presence of a reward system. I was interested in seeing if certain subject areas were more likely to use such systems than other subject areas. I strived to see if a student’s academic performance could mean more than just their exam scores and ability to complete assignments. I wished to see if a reward system could change the way a student was motivated in the classroom; to see if their overall attitude could be changed. I also thought to look into their attendance in classes where motivation was present. I wanted to see if they were less frequently absent and if they participated more. And lastly, I thought it would be interesting to see if students felt they could in turn change their “destiny” in education, or if they simply believed they are predestined for something else.
As I was looking further into my topic at hand, I decided to go a different way with my paper. I got away from the “reward system” and decided to look into student motivation as my topic, focusing on the teacher-student relationship. In high school, I can remember one teacher that changed the way I saw science and it affected me greatly. Before this teacher, although I was always in advanced science classes, I never achieved high grades. I always struggled to keep up with other students, and when I performed poorly on exams, my previous teachers never thought to why I had done so. She approached science in a way I had never seen before, and she offered recognition and praise. She set up the classroom in such a way that I never felt I was being left behind, and she encouraged us always to work up to our potential, and then some. I was motivated to do well and in a way I had never cared for before.
I chose to look from the student’s point of view, instead of talking only to teachers. I thought it would be more useful to see what the students thought, as I am pursuing my graduate education in Secondary Education. My ultimate goal, to be a teacher, could only benefit from the research I was setting out to collect. I wanted to know what circumstances student’s felt most...
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...ving them the option to say what they feel a teacher should be could be a positive growing experience for both them and myself. Each class could want different things, and I feel it is my job to realize their needs and try to address them as best I can.
I know it sounds corny, but I truly feel that education in the classroom is a two way street. Teachers and students can only flourish when able to both get to where they are going by removing obstacles that would limit their driving experience. I look forward to my teaching career, and although I know I’m bound to have a few fender benders along the way, I hope the journey as a whole is a productive one.
Works Cited
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McDevitt, T. & Ormrod, J. (2002) Child Development (2nd Ed.). Columbus, OH: Pearson Prentice Hall.
http://216.239.57.104/u/nydoe?q=cache:OaYbZiCK2GkJ:www.emsc.nysed.gov/repcrd20
http://www.alfiekohn.org
Crandell, Thomas. Crandell, Corinne Haines. Zanden, James W. Vander. (2009). Human Development. New York: McGraw-Hill.
The case study titled "School Officials from Marshall Metro High School Attempt to Motivate Students & Teachers to Achieve Higher Performance" is about the different ways the school system used to motivate the students to come to school (Kinicki & Williams, 2013, p.405). It is also a good example of how rewards and behavior can affect the outcome of the situation.
Human Development. Ed. Deborah Carr. Vol. 1: Childhood and Adolescence. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2009. 50-55. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 21 Nov. 2013.
Having a system for managing students’ behavior is important for the students and for the teacher. Students need to be acknowledged when they do something well so they can do it again. Even as adults we sometimes need acknowledgement. I know at my job we are always acknowledged when we get a customer to apply for a credit or debit card. If the students are not being acknowledge for their good deeds they wouldn’t want to try harder to do that same behavior again or even try harder. They need a system that challenges them and lets them know what would happen if they behave well. Having an effective system in place also keeps the teacher prepared for certain situations and with a system in place the students will strive to do well so they can receive the benefits of the system in place.
Sroufe, Alan L., Cooper, Robert G., DeHart, Ganie B. (1992). Child Development, Its Nature and Course (2nd edt.). New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc.
McDevitt, T. M., & Ormrod, J. E. (2010). Child development and education. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.
... (2009) The science of development. In R.V. Kail & A. Barnfield (Eds.), Children and their development (pp. 8 – 22). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Marshall, Jean, and Sue Stuart. Child Development. 1st ed. Oxford: Heinemann Educational Publishers, 2001. 96.
Peterson, Candida C., James L. Peterson, and Diane Seeto. Child Developement. Vol. 54. N.p.: Blackwell Publishing, n.d. JSTOR. Web. 29 Sept. 2011.
Wood, A. E., Wood, E. G., & Boyd, D. (2007). Child development: The world of psychology.
This being my first year of teaching I feel there are so many things that I have learned, and have helped me too become a good teacher. Yet I have so much more to learn, I still believe that students have the ability to learn and as a teacher it is my job to find ways to help them to become the best person they can be. Through being a reflective teacher, using professionalism, respecting diversity and having collaboration and community connecting this can be accomplished. When I am having fun teaching the student will have learning that material, this will help them to be relaxed and engaged in that lesson. I feel it is important to connect what they are learning to things that they have experienced in the real-world.
Student motivation can be affected by several factors. These elements include parent involvement, teacher enthusiasm, rewards, peers, the learner’s environment, personal experiences, personal interests of the student, and self-esteem and self-image.
As we reminisce and reflect back either on our childhood or academic career, we tend to have that one teacher who was memorable to us in some way - for their sense of humor, their stellar personality, or perhaps having that charisma and charm no other teacher had to make a difficult subject and it 's concepts fun to learn. While knowledge is power, I firmly believe that it is rather the exchange and distribution of knowledge that is power. When one can educate the masses there is no doubt that together we can accomplish great things. Becoming a teacher would mean the opportunity to be able to witness the shaping and molding of the minds of the future generations and the satisfaction knowing that you have helped your students set themselves onto the right path and provide guidance towards the creation of a better tomorrow. Choosing to become a teacher will allow me not only to educate my students, but also educate myself to be a better teacher throughout my career. I believe it is a function of human nature to want to change the world for the better. In adulthood, I have learned that the improvement of the welfare of the world must begin with
Being a teacher is not an easy task as many people could think. To be a teacher does not only imply to know the subject to be taught, it also includes being willing to constantly improve oneself integrally, as much as updating the resources and materials one uses in teaching. Reflecting and analyzing over and over again the best way to teach to learn and how to make students to extend what has been learned. The many hours spend in the classroom will never be enough to plan lessons, prepare materials, review pupils tasks and exams, as well, all the administrative requirements one has to cover for whatever institution we work. Besides all this a good teacher, a professional one, will have to find the time to keep preparing to improve oneself.