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The role and importance of motivation in learning
The role and importance of motivation in learning
The influence of motivation on learning
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Teaching theories are as much part of the classroom as the student and the teacher. The effect individual theories have on an environment depends how they are incorporated within the classroom in addition to the influence they have had on the curriculum construction. This essay will briefly look at how motivation theory, cognitive and social cognitive theory along with constructivism have impacted on education and the classroom. “Motivation is the process whereby goal-orientated activity is instigated and sustained” (Schunk, Pintrich & Meece, 2008. As cited in Eggen & Kauchak, 2010, p.284). Motivation comes in many forms and can be divided into two broad categories - extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. Extrinsic motivators are external factors which can motivate a student; rewards are an example of this. An issue with extrinsic motivators is that the desire for the learner to participate often lessens, once the rewards are withdrawn (McCullers, 1987). On the other hand intrinsic motivation comes from within - learning for the joy of it - where the desire to learn leads to a higher level of knowledge, and is a reward in itself. Kohn (1996, p.285) states that research suggests, “Rewards actually decrease interest in intrinsically motivating tasks, therefore sending the wrong message about learning” (as cited in Eggen & Kauchak, 2010a) Teachers are able to set clear goals for learning and relate that learning to the needs of the students therefore motivating the intrinsic learner. While teachers should predominately use intrinsic motivators in their classrooms extrinsic motivators do have their place in motivating the extrinsically orientated student. Extrinsic motivators though should be used with caution as students will only ... ... middle of paper ... ...0.1037/0022-3514.52.5.1027 Powell, K. Kalina, C. (2009). Cognitive and Social Constructivism: Developing Tools for an Effective Classroom. Education, 130(2), 241-250. Retrieved from http://proquest.umi.com.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/pqdweb?did=1937522441&Fmt=7&clientId=22212&RQT=309&VName=PQD. (Document ID: 1937522441). Shabani, K. Khatib, M. Ebadi, S. (2010). Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development: Instructional Implications and Teacher’s Professional Development. 3(4), December, 2010. English Language Teaching: Tehran, Iran. Retrieved from http://www.ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/elt/article/view/8396 Van Der Stuyf. R.R. (2010). Scaffolding as a Teaching Strategy. Adolescent Learning and Development. Section 0500A, November, 2010. Retrieved from http://www.sandi.net/20451072011455933/lib/20451072011455933/RTI/Scaffolding%20as%20a%20Teaching%20Strategy.pdf
Intrinsic motivation has several advantages over extrinsic motivation. First of all, intrinsically motivated learners are more likely to select challenging tasks. Second, evidence suggested that learners gain more knowledge when they read material that they consider intrinsically interesting. Third, the conditions that support intrinsic motivation also promote greater creativity and better conceptual learning. Fourth, intrinsic motivation is associated with greater pleasure and more active involvement in activities.” (p.
According to the text, “ Therefore, motivation to learn can be defined as the psychological process that direct and sustain student’s behavior toward learning.” (Moreno 328) In other words, motivation is a mental desire that comes from your mind when you find something familiar that matches with your comfort level towards learning. For example, when is child motivated? They are motivated when they are given the activities they are actually interested in. If the lesson is out of what they expected it to be, then, automatically they lose their interest on doing it. One claim that can be made is, Effective Learning occurs when teacher promotes Intrinsic Motivation in the classroom. “Intrinsic Motivation is defined as the
Learning is more controlled by the student rather than the teacher so that the student is learning what they are ready to learn and motivation comes from internal satisfaction of mastering said tasks. Goals may include choosing activities based on own interests, communicate in some way satisfaction of task mastery, and showing interest and working in various areas of the classroom (Sciarra, Dorsey, Lynch, & Adams, 2013, p.
Learning, “as an interpretive, recursive, building process by active learners”, interrelates with the physical and social world (Fosnot, 1996). “Assuming the role as ‘guide on the side’ requires teachers to step off the stage, relinquish some of their power, and release the textbooks to allow their students to be actively engaged and take some responsibility of their own learning” (WhiteClark, DiCarlo, & Gilchriest, 2008, p. 44). Furthermore, constructivism involves developing the student as a learner through cooperative learning, experimentation, and open-ended problems in which students learn on their own through active participation with concepts and principles (Kearsley,
The recommended or reference that is suggested to be served as a touchstone for constructivist theory would be the article titled Humanistic influence on a constructivist approach to teaching and learning. The learning experience presented in this article applies to both the teacher as well as the students. The examples of how the teacher presented the activity to the student and how the students interpreted and responded to the data was interesting, this lead the teacher to reflect on teaching methods as well as
Motivation is one of the biggest things when it comes to education today. Every student can be motivated one way or another to learn. Not all students are motivated the same so as an educator I need to keep that in mind. Motivation is important because it helps students become interested in what is going on in the class room and in the course work. When a student is motivated it also may have the student participate in more challenging opportunities and try to earn higher bench marks. Motivation I feel is one of the biggest things as an educator I can do for the students because if they are motivated they are trying at their full potential. Motivation can have some negative outcomes as well. Motivation can be a crutch for the student. What I mean by this is that the student may not want to do anything without a reason too. Or the student may not want to do anything without a reward. Personal beliefs with motivation interact by determining how you are going to motivate your students. Are you going to motivate them through bribing them? Or are you going to motivate them through making things in to a contest. So no matter how you motivate your students it can be a good thing to use if you use it correctly.
Based on recent research, historically the social constructivism (SC) approach to teaching is more successful than traditional teaching (Cetindamar, Phaal, & Probert, 2009; Ryu, Parsons, Li, Sheng & Javed, 2009; Kundi & Nawaz, 2010). For example, traditional lecture has faced scrutiny as not actively engaging students in the subject matter (Ryu, Parsons, Li, Sheng & Javed, 2009). Studies have confirmed that th...
Seifert, K. (1999). Constructing a Psychology of Teaching & Learning. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.
There are two basic classifications of motivations that teachers use. And they are both very important to the students learning. They are intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation occurs from curiosity, needs, interests and enjoyment. ‘Intrinsic motivation increases the effectiveness of learning, and is therefore more desired’ (Fulk, 1994). Lumsden (1994) notes that ‘when students are intrinsically motivated, they tend to use strategies that require more effort and involve processing of information on a deeper level’.
Students play a key role in the process of learning. Teachers have to organize classroom environment which provokes and stimulates student’s interest to enhance students’ learning. Organizing group activities and debates in the classroom will strengthen student’s cognitive level. For instance, teacher is organizing a group activity in the classroom on a certain topic. In such activity, students interact and share their own understanding on particular topic. In the process of discussion, students construct their knowledge by themselves. Teacher acts as a facilitator. According to (Mayer, 1996), “Constructivist teachers create classroom conditions that invite students to construct their own knowledge by determining students’ prior knowledge and building on it. They are facilitators who mediate between learners’ current and emerging understandings.” So, students are active participants in their learning experience rather than passive vessels to be filled with
Constructivism postulates that the key player in a learning activity is each individual student, not the educators who give information or set up the learning environment (Inoue, 2012). The recorded class is a typical student-centered constructivism class. Although the teacher in the video not only conduct constructivism teaching style into her class, she also steered the dark side of constructivism skillfully.
One hundred years ago, Jean Piaget (1896-1980) was a young man developing new insights about learning. He was one of a handful of constructivist-minded writers and educational theorists of the time. Learning theories open educators up to new ideas. They are necessary to expand our knowledge of how learning works. Piaget’s work is a well-tested and educators around the world should be aware of Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive development in particular because it will improve the quality of their teaching. Once a teacher knows this theory, they can plan lessons appropriate to their students’ cognitive ability and build upon students’ earlier knowledge in a constructivist way.
Pintrich (1991) stated that the external factors of extrinsic motivation could be rewards or grades that attack the learners to achieve their tasks. The motivated learners may not be interested in the task, but they still put their need to reach the goal. However, when the goal is achieved, the extrinsic motivation will be missing.
Information processing focuses on learning from the outside in. In constructivism, the learner constructs knowledge as they “actively impose organization and meaning on the surrounding environment” RD 40. They actively attempt to create meaning. The learning theory started to gain popularity in the 1940’s with Piaget. Lev Vygotsky was also a major influence and contributed to an iteration called social constructivism. Social constructivism emphasizes that learning is collaborative in nature. Taken together, constructivism and social constructivism focus on student-centered instructional strategies, active collaborative learning, and increased student engagement (Sivec 8). Proponents of constructivism focus on the active role learners can take in discovery and learning in meaningful contexts. Those against these principles focus more on the need to teach to the test, as well as how constructivist principles may not be best for all learners. In a 2010 study, Overbay, Patterson, Vasu, and Grable focus on the increased belief in constructivist principles and how that relates to classroom technology and it’s ever increasing presence in the classroom. In an authentic constructivist environment, they assert that technology should be “utilized in such a way that it engages students and pushes them to make deeper connections with the material under study, to generate meaning, rather than
Constructivism is the base of much educational practice at the current time, although many teachers may not be aware of the theories themselves. It is, however, useful for understanding the way in which a child may progress educationally, which is important when supporting a child to succeed. Constructivism can also be very useful for helping to identify the next stages of progress for the individual, and can also help to identify when success has been attained. In addition, child-centred learning is said to improve motivation, peer collaboration, and behaviour in the