Understanding and Supporting Introverted Students

Becky is a third grade student who is very shy and acts introverted, meaning she is engrossed with her inner thoughts and feelings than those in her immediate environment (Mosby’s Dictionary of Medicine, 2012). Becky has issues with school, claiming she does not “like” it and does well in many of her subjects such as reading which is her favorite subject. She internalizes a lot of her thoughts, which can lead to misunderstandings that hurt her feelings and overall, she is very unmotivated to participate in school. As a teacher, there are various things that can be done to overcome some of Becky’s issues with school such as setting achievement and social goals; these goals may be impacted by Becky’s attribution style and temperament. As a

She is able to communicate with her peers and does well when she does interact with them, however, she feels as though she has no incentive to talk with others. The best means of motivating her without seeming to force her into conversation is through cooperative grouping. Cooperative grouping is a teaching strategy utilized in various classrooms in which the classroom is split into small groups in order to complete a task or accomplish a goal (Balkcom, 1992). Implementing activities that include cooperative grouping will assist in the development of willing communication with her peers. A mix of students in a small group allows for introverted students to express their ideas at their own pace. In Becky’s case, starting out slow would probably be the best recourse due to her low confidence level. She is going to be less likely to engage in conversation because she has low self-esteem, which has a severe impact on her motivation to do anything. Starting out slow with easy activities that incite participation such as polls and working up to more difficult tasks such as working together to create a presentation should assist in the communication and social skills bringing Becky closer to her goal. Despite these strategies being effective, Becky’s approach to situations and attitude can impact the

She feels no motivation to do well in school and also feels no need to socialize with her peers. A teacher can assist Becky with her areas of struggle through the use of common techniques that are utilized in classrooms all over the world. Boosting her confidence and using praise may positively affect Becky as a means of inspiring and encouraging her to put some effort into her academics. Using cooperative grouping may be solution to assisting her socially. Setting goals for Becky is easy, but factoring in her attribution style as well as her temperament may affect the progress of the goal. Becky needs is a strong, educated teacher who will push to educate her in the correct way. Using the techniques listed, a teacher can change Becky’s academic