Based on this weeks reading and topic, I believe that a teacher must create a comfortable and inviting learning environment for all students. This environment should encourage students to be curious, ask questions, and participate without feeling threatened.
Personally, I try to be friendly and open to my students. I also try to foster respect in classroom relationships and create a safe, non-threatening learning environment. However, I still have students who seem unmotivated, afraid to participate in classroom activities, or even ask for help. I am continually asking myself, how you motivate the unmotivated? Any thoughts or suggestions?
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I remember when I was in college there was a girl in one of my classes that said that if she doesn't reach and teach every single student in her classroom she has failed as a teacher and might as well not be a teacher.
ReplyDeleteWhile that statement might have a small bit of truth I feel that as a teacher as long as you are constantly looking at how you teach and the atmosphere in your classroom you tend to do well. Students learn when they feel comfortable with their surroundings and are willing and able to ask for help. As a teacher you can create this atmospher for students but unfortunetly it is not always a catch all atmosphere. Consistently examining your methods and finding out what works and what doesn't with certain students in certainly probably the best practice.
Brandon, great question. Read my blog for this week - but despite what I know, I still have unmotivated students in every class. We have to remember that, fortunately, we are not the only teacher these kids have. We have to hope that some teacher, sometime, will be able to reach a particular kid and help them. I worry about the ones who don't know the language the most. How can I help them when I don't know their language and they don't know mine? That is one problem I have never been able to solve in the least. But for the others, keep doing what you are doing. That supportive, caring environment is so important.
ReplyDeleteI like what you do with your learning environment and how you make the student feel comfortable and non-threatened. Sometimes I think it also takes persistence from the teacher and great patience. Some students are so shy and timid, it might take them several months before they actually feel that they can open up enough to ask questions or express their opinions. I think that if we use the ideas for Master, Performance, and Social goal orientated students along with all the other things you and many others are doing - with a great deal of patience and persistence, we will eventually reach most of our students.
ReplyDeleteI agree that as teachers, we need to provide a safe and comfortable environment conducive to learning. This in itself can be very motivating to students. How do we reach the unmotivated? I think we can begin by assessing the motivation orientation and designing lessons with this in mind. Will we ever reach every student? Maybe not, but we can reach most of our students. Also, I believe this profession requires us to continually reinvent our approach to motivation. This is an ongoing process of casting aside what doesn't work and integrating and celebrating what does work. I think this is what makes teaching so interesting and exciting.
ReplyDeleteI really like your thoughts for this week. I don't know how to motivate every student, but I think that as long as we are thinking about how to motivate students, we are going to impact students. When teachers get too comfortable and stop trying new things, this is reflected in teaching and motivation. I don't think that it's possible to motivate and reach every student all the time, especially in public education.
ReplyDeleteI think that Piaget from last week would tell us that all students are in different developmental stages. Things that may not motivate one student right now, may motivate them in the future when they have matured developmentally. Thanks for your thoughts this week. They really made me ponder.