TCM Table of Contents – Classroom
Management Resources – School
Climate – John
Shindler – TCM Workshops
Chapter 6:
Examining Motivational Strategies -- What Makes Your Students Care?
From Transformative Classroom Management. By
John Shindler. ©2009
Reproduction is
unlawful without permission
In
this Chapter:
- Comparison
of Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivational Methods
- Common
Extrinsic Strategies
- Motivational
Strategies that have Variable Effects
- Examination
of Intrinsic Motivation
- Motivation
and Psychological Movement
The field of human motivation is a complex
and expansive domain, not lacking in motivational experts or approaches. This
chapter offers a limited survey of several classroom motivation strategies and
endeavors to provide both theoretical and practical perspective for each. In the
following chapter, a coherent approach to building student intrinsic
motivation, or what will be referred to as a “psychology of success” is
detailed.
Chapter Reflection 6-a: What do you think of
when you hear the term “student motivation”? Is it the result of something that
the teacher adds to the equation, or something that the student brings to the
situation?
Intrinsic
Versus Extrinsic Motivation
When one thinks of the idea of classroom
motivation it often brings to mind strategies that are used to provide
incentives for students do something and/or do it with greater intensity. Yet,
when we examine motivation more closely we recognize that it is not always
something that is added to the situation. It can be something that comes from
within us (Ryan & Deci, 2006). While an absolute distinction can be
problematic, we might refer to some motivators as coming from the outside – or
being extrinsic; and others coming
from within – or being intrinsic.
Extrinsic forms are those in which there is something added that comes from an
external agent, such as a reward from the teacher (Alberto & Troutman,
2003). Contrastingly, intrinsic forms tap into internal sources. These forms of
motivation may reflect the meeting of a basic need, or can come from an inner
source of satisfaction, such as personal fulfillment. Figure 6.1 outlines some
of the fundamental distinctions between internal versus external sources of
motivation.
Figure 6.1 Comparison of Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation
|
Love of Learning/Intrinsic |
Desire for Reward/Extrinsic |
|
Assumes the learning activity itself is
satisfying |
Assumes that an extrinsic motivator is
necessary |
|
Transferable to other contexts and
situations |
Not transferable outside the context that
the reward is present |
|
Can take time to support and cultivate |
Can be relied upon after only a short
period of introduction |
|
Primarily process-focused |
Primarily product-focused |
|
Implies that the learning/task itself has
value and meaning |
Implies the learning/task is a means to an
end (the reward) |
|
Natural condition |
Manufactured condition |
|
Has long-term benefits |
Benefits are short-term |
|
Promotes a mentality that is useful when
transferred into the context of building relationships |
Promotes a mentality that may hinder the
inclination to invest in the relationship-building process |
|
Promotes ever-increasing levels of
self-motivation |
Promotes an ever-increasing need for
rewards |
|
Can be difficult to rely upon with a new group
of students who are not accustomed to using these sources of motivation |
Can be useful to incorporate to motivate a
behavior that is unfamiliar or unformed |
Examining the side-by-side comparison of
intrinsic versus extrinsic sources of motivation in Figure 6.1, we can see that
the advantages of extrinsic motivational techniques include their ability to
help initiate and shape behaviors, and that they can be relied upon after only
a relatively short period of introduction. In comparison however, supporting
the development of our students’ intrinsic motivation will have substantial
long-term advantages. Over time students with a more intrinsic motivational
orientation, working within a needs-satisfying environment, will tend to
outperform those who have become accustomed to extrinsic rewards,
reinforcement, and incentive (Dweck, 1999; Glasser, 1986; Ryan & Deci,
2006).
EXPLORING THE MOST POPULAR CLASSROOM
MOTIVATIONAL STRATEGIES
While it is true that there are few absolutes
in the field of motivation it may be helpful to the practitioner to classify
various motivational strategies into those that are more extrinsic and those
that are more intrinsic. Given that it is true that at any time there are a
multitude of motivational influences that exist inside and outside of any
learner, it is still useful to examine each strategy independently. In the
following section, many of the most common intentional strategies used in
schools to motivate students are examined. These strategies (outlined in Figure
6.2) are divided into those that are can best be characterized as extrinsic,
those that encourage intrinsic motivation, and those that will have a variable
effect depending on how they are applied.
Chapter Reflection 6-b: As we examine the most
popular forms of motivation used in the classroom, reflect on your own
classroom experience of each. Which forms of motivation did you find effective?
Were they typically those that could be classified as intrinsic or extrinsic?
In your mind, what were the benefits and problems of each type?
Figure 6.2 Survey
of Common Classroom Motivational Strategies
|
Group A:
Motivational Strategies that could best be characterized as
Extrinsic/External |
||
|
Form/ Strategy |
Advantages |
Disadvantages |
|
Grades
and Rewards |
Tangible, familiar, motivating to students
who value them. Similar to monetary motivators in that they work as rewards. |
Shift focus away from learning goals.
Increased levels of the reinforcement may be necessary to maintain effect.
Can rob students of intrinsic sources of motivation. |
|
Incentives |
Can be useful to define valued outcomes or
processes. Help clarify the focus of the effort. |
Can lose their value over time if used
repeatedly. Students may expect them after a while. |
|
Personal
Praise |
Feels good. Works to make student work
harder. Works in short-term. |
Can be addictive. Can reduce student’s
internal locus of control. Can be manipulative. |
|
Punishments,
Shaming and Threats |
Works in the short-term. Motivates students
who are used to that technique. Can help clarify the boundaries in a class. |
Can promote students’ merely avoiding
getting caught. Does not inspire high quality behavior. Can create hostility
and resentment. |
|
Public
Recognition |
Can reward behavior and effort that may not
be rewarded by peers. Feels good to recipient. |
Can reinforce pre-existing “haves” and
“have-nots.” Requires consistency and thought. |
|
Phone
Calls Home |
Can alert parents to patterns of which they
may not have been aware. Demonstrates a commitment to the student’s success.
Positive calls can have a profoundly positive outcome. |
Sends the message that the teacher may not
be able to handle the student alone. Parents may not be helpful, may be the
cause of the problem, or be enablers of the problem. Acts as public shaming.
Can appear as a sign of weakness. |
|
Group B: Strategies
that can promote either Extrinsic or Intrinsic Motivational Mindsets
depending upon how they are applied |
||
|
Form/ Strategy |
Advantages |
Disadvantages |
|
Positive
Reinforcement |
Helps shape the desired behavior. Can be
done quickly, efficiently and without much cost or planning. Can provide
useful feedback for self-improvement. |
Can create a dependence on the teacher’s energy
to motivate. Is external. If in the form of praise, essentially extrinsic. |
|
Assessing
Behavior/Effort |
Can promote high quality behavior and
effort. Begins working fairly quickly. Helps promote the concept of “good
behavior.” Can reward effort and process outcomes. |
Can be very manipulative. Can make students
dependent on an external evaluation of their behavior. Can be a tool for
favoritism and bias. |
|
Competition |
Can raise the level of interest in the activity.
Can bring the “team” aspect into an effort. Comparison is motivational to
those who aspire to the top. Brings a “game” feeling to work. |
Comparison can shift focus away from the
quality of the effort. Breeds “fear of failure.” Promotes shortcuts and
cheating to get the prize. Creates winners and losers. |
|
Teacher
Relationship |
Can send a message that the student is
valuable, accepted and special. Can help students care about academics. May
be the only thing that some students respond to. |
Takes time and energy. Can produce students
who become excessively “needy.” Can work against students’ developing more
internal sources of motivation. |
|
Instructional
Design |
Can promote a context in which students are
engaged, self-directed, feeling successful, invested and empowered. Can
create a context where success leads to a love of learning and self-efficacy. |
Can promote a context where students learn
that schoolwork is mostly meaningless and irrelevant to their lives. Can
reinforce the learning process to be an artificial exercise that involves
little critical thinking or a sense of purpose. |
|
Avoiding
Penalties |
If negative consequences are built into a context
of a social contract and clear set of expectations, students learn not only
to be responsible but also that there is a clear cause-and-effect
relationship between their choices and their opportunities. |
If negative consequences take the form of
punishments, lectures, threats, or public humiliation and shaming, they learn
to avoid the external agent of the penalty but do not learn any meaningful
lesson. Is founded in pain-based logic (see ch’s 11 and 19). |
|
Group C:
Motivational Strategies that could best be characterized as
Intrinsic/Internal |
||
|
Form/ Strategy |
Advantages |
Disadvantages |
|
Self-
Improvement |
Promotes intrinsic motivation. Helps
students clarify their own goals and desires. More long-lasting sense of
satisfaction. |
Takes a lot of time to promote. Students
who are used to more external motivation may not trust its value. |
|
Increased
Responsibility |
Can create cause-and-effect between
responsibility and freedom. Can increase responsible behavior. |
Have to give away power to students.
Creates more unpredictability in many outcomes. |
|
Problem-Solving
and Inquiry-Based Learning |
Can promote greater resourcefulness. Can
promote an emphasis on process. Motivational to students when they solve the
problem/reach the goal. |
Can be messy. Potentially less teacher
control of outcome. Requires a great deal of intention and planning. |
|
Basic
Needs Satisfying Environment |
Allows students to experience inner sources
of satisfaction. Activities feel inherently meaningful and as though they are
“going somewhere” psychologically; as a result there is little experience of
boredom. Promotes student creativity and sets the stage for communal bonds
among students. |
Requires the teacher to be aware of
students’ needs. Requires teacher to be purposeful and skilled at
instructional design and classroom management. Teacher cannot entirely
control other students who may undermine the quality of the environment. |
EXTRINSIC
MOTIVATION TECHNIQUES
The following section examines what could be
considered the leading principally extrinsic motivational strategies used
in classrooms historically. These include grades, rewards, praise, punishments,
public recognition and phone calls home. This section also includes
recommendations for applying these strategies in a manner that produces more
beneficial and effective results.
Grades
Grades are the most prevalent example of a
formal extrinsic motivator used in schools. Their primary purposes are: 1)
provide a concrete representation of either the completion of a task and/or the
quality of a performance, and 2) act as an incentive for later benefits and
opportunities. As representations of the level of quality performance, grades
have only a symbolic meaning. They only represent something of value (e.g.,
quality work, scores on a test, assignments completed, etc.), and have no
inherent value. Therefore, in practice, grades become more effective when they
are clearly related to a meaningful outcome (Reeve & Deci, 1996). This is
why grading systems that incorporate more authentic measures such as
performance assessment rubrics will be more motivational than more artificial
uses such as a total of the number of correct responses on a worksheet.
Moreover, the way that a grade is derived can help it become more meaningful
and tap into an intrinsic source, rather than being entirely an extrinsic
reinforcement (Reeve & Deci, 1996).
Grades also act as an incentive. As students
progress in their academic careers, grades have the effect of creating future
opportunities. These opportunities vary greatly depending on several variables
(e.g., importance to parents and/or schools, scholarship or financial aid
opportunities, etc.). Moreover, as we know, only some students are much more
influenced or even aware of these incentives. As a result grades are a more
motivational influence on some students than others. A survey of a typical high
school will support the wide discrepancy in how students view the importance of
grades. And those teachers who rely primarily on students’ being motivated by
grades are commonly frustrated with the number of students who are unaffected
by the threat of a poor grade if their performance does not improve. In most
cases, students who see a relationship between their grades and their ability
to reach their personal goals will be most influenced by this source of
motivation and therefore more concerned with the kinds of grades that they
receive.
However, students commonly see grades as
something “given” to them by the teacher (the external agent). Too often they
view grades as a representation of their aptitude, ability, or even self-worth
rather than the quality of their investment. While this is rarely the intention
of the teacher for giving the grade, it is common for students to perceive the
grade as such. So for example, when a student gets a C on a paper they may
perceive that grade as a reflection of themselves or their ability in that
subject. Given this reaction they find themselves in the position that they
must respond to the level of the grade by either accepting or rejecting it
as an accurate reflection of their ability. While each of these two
responses--accepting the grade as consistent or rejecting it as
inconsistent—may appear somewhat different, they are similar in that neither
will result in motivation to do better in the future. If the student views the
C grade as consistent with their academic self-concept, they will find no need
to do any better or adopt any different strategies in the future. If the
student perceives the grade as inconsistent with their academic self-concept,
they will likely feel shame, confusion, and inadequacy along with resentment
toward the teacher. Even if there is a great deal of intensity to the emotion
connected to this second response, if the cause is viewed as external and the
student does not feel that their grade reflects concrete and constructive
feedback, the result will be little or no motivation to change future behavior.
The result is the all-too-familiar phenomenon -- the student gets used to
getting Cs. As we will discuss throughout the remainder of this chapter and in
the next, there are very effective strategies for helping the student desire
excellence. Giving more Cs is not one of them.
Chapter Reflection 6-c: Recall your response
to various grades that you were given as a student. Did they motivate you to do
better? Did you view them as including a personal component (i.e., the teacher
either liked or did not like you)? Did they confirm or conflict with your
expectation and academic self concept?
In Chapter 10, we will discuss how the
assessment of meaningful learning targets that are clear and standing still
will produce better student performance as well as higher quality behavior. When
students recognize that their grade results from a valid representation of
their performance as assessed in relation to meaningful criteria, they are more
likely to experience the assessment process as meaningful and a process that
leads them on a clear pathway to achievement (Reeve, 2006).
Rewards Such as Tokens, Sticker, Stars and
Prizes
Another common extrinsic motivational
strategy, used primarily at the elementary level, is to give tokens and other
prizes to student when they perform a desired behavior. These extrinsic rewards
act as concrete representations that something of “value” has been
accomplished. Therefore they are intended to act as the reinforcement in the
process of operant conditioning. This technique originated in the field
of psychology called behaviorism, and
is most associated with one of its pioneers, B.F. Skinner. In operant
conditioning, the operant--or desired behavior that is being conditioned--is
reinforced by an extrinsic reinforcement/reward (Alberto & Troutman, 2003).
In this case the operant is the act of desirable behavior on the part of the
student, and the extrinsic reward is the token or prize (Reeve, 2006).
Incentives
Incentives can take many forms such as prizes at the end of the week for
successfully performing a task or refraining from an undesirable task, or group
privileges for being first or best, or rewarding students who do well on one
task the chance to opt out of a further task. They concretize the non-verbal
bargain: “If you (the student) do something that the teacher has determined is
good, you will get something that you should like.” In this way, incentives can
be helpful in clarifying what is desirable behavior. At their best they can
help promote good habits and shape more functional patterns of action (Hickey
& Schafer, 2006). For example, if a mother provides a child an incentive to
make the bed every day, the child may become comfortable with that behavior and
continue it throughout their lifetime, even after the incentive is no longer
present. In the case of healthy behaviors that become intrinsically satisfying
once they become habits, this can lead to positive long-term benefits. However,
with any extrinsic reward, we must question whether the incentive has
contributed to the development of good behavioral patterns, or has just bribed
students to do something that they would not have done without the bribe, and
will not do once the bribe has been removed. And if over time the students do
not experience any internal satisfaction from the behavior being induced, the
incentive will eventually lose its power.
Chapter
Reflection 6-d: Recall situations in which you were given rewards
for doing a task others wanted you to do, or to do better. Were you motivated?
What is your association with that task today?
One
popular incentive strategy is that of Preferred
Activity Time (PAT) (Jones, 2000). PAT sets up the bargain that if you (in
this case, the student) apply yourself acceptably to an academic task now, you
will be given the opportunity to do something that you really like to do later. On the surface, this
strategy “works.” That is, it motivates the student to do what it takes to
attain their “preferred activity.” However, as we examine this strategy closer,
we discover that when put into practice, it has two undesirable by-products.
First, while it may work in the short run, like other bribes it will lose its
effect over time. Students will eventually return to their previous level of
motivation for the academic activity. Moreover, they will become accustomed to
the bribe and likely demand it. Second, it will reinforce the principle that
the work that is being done in the academic time is something that is
undesirable. If we bribe students with a preferred activity, we actually generate
the previously-unconsidered question, “preferred to what?” What is the
association that we are creating? Is it that academics are inherently
un-enjoyable? While this strategy is attractive, consider its costs and
long-term effects. And if you feel you need to bribe your students to engage in
learning, you may want to consider the alternative of making the learning
activities in your class engaging and inherently motivating.
Chapter Reflection 6–e: Reflect on the
following parable:
There
was once an old man who lived by a park and worked the night shift at the
factory. During the day he liked it to be quiet so that he could get some
sleep. He lived alone and did not like children very much. So when the children
began to play ball at the park and make lots of noise, he became angry. He
tried to ignore the noise, but it did not work. As he reflected on his dilemma,
he was struck by a cunning plan. The next day, he went to the field and
addressed the children. He told them that he loved the sound of their play, and
that he once had children and it reminded him of them (neither was true). Then
he told them that if they came to play faithfully, he would pay them each a
quarter. The children were pleased to say the least, and thought the old man
was the greatest. The next day the old man arrived and paid each child a
quarter. He did the same thing the next day. The children were very happy. The
next day he arrived right on time, but gave the children some bad news. He told
them how much he loved to hear their voices as they played and how it made him
so happy, but he did not have much money and could only pay them a dime each.
The children were a little disappointed, but agreed to come back and play for
the smaller amount. As promised, he paid them a dime for the next three days,
but on the fourth day he again had some bad news. He told the children that he
really hoped that they would come out and play, but that he was out of money
and could no longer pay them. At this the children were very upset. After a quick
conference, the children decided that they could not play if they were not
going to be paid, and they left, never to return. The old man went home and was
able to sleep in peace and quiet that afternoon.
Do you think the story represents a
valid reality? Can you think of an example of this same principle in your own
experience?
Adopting a More
Intentional and Effective Approach to the Use of Extrinsic Behavioral
Reinforcement
It is a well-established fact that human
behavior can be conditioned by environmental stimuli (Landrum & Kauffman,
2006; Reeve, 2006). While we can debate the extent to which one’s behavior is
externally conditioned or has its source in more internal drives, as educators
we need to recognize the power of environmental conditioning. If we examine an
effectively managed classroom, we will see a teacher who understands behavioral
principles (Landrum & Kauffman, 2006). That does not mean the teacher will
overuse extrinsic conditioning or even rely on it as a motivational strategy,
but will understand that the forces of behavioral conditioning are operating
continuously.
The starting point to making sense of behavioral conditioning is to
understand that in a conditioning situation there will be something that acts
as a focal event/action/operant and then there is something that happens
afterward to reinforce it (Landrum & Kauffman, 2006). For example if we
wished the family dog to consistently fetch a stick that we throw, we might
give the dog a treat each time he/she brought back the stick, and only if he/she brought back the stick.
In this case the dog learns that when she does the desired behavior (bringing
the stick back), it will be reinforced (obtaining the doggy treat). Yet it is
important to remember that in one’s efforts toward behavioral conditioning,
especially when it relates to humans, little or none of the actual
conditioning/learning that actually occurs will necessarily resemble the
conditioning/learning that was intended. For example if we examine most
punishments, the intention is to create a disincentive related to the unwanted
action. But what is actually learned is much more complex and typically takes
the form of a disincentive to interact with the source of the punishment
(person meting out) or the creation of a new set of skills to get around the
punishment in the future (Kauffman, 2005)
Under examination, the popularity of extrinsic rewards is
understandable; however, consider as well the reasons their byproducts are
considered undesirable. In most cases, they work in the short-term to motivate
behavior. But there are several questions that should be asked if one is to use
extrinsic reinforcements for an extended period. They include the following:
- Is
the motivation to perform the behavior increasing, or just the motivation
to obtain the reward?
- Will
the schedule of reinforcements be sustainable? Or will a greater amount of
reinforcement be needed in the future (see discussion on weed-pulling
later in the chapter).
- What
is ultimately being learned?
- Like
the man in the story above, are we replacing an internal source of
motivation with an external one, and as a result extinguishing our
students’ intrinsic motivation?
If you are attempting to develop a
student-centered 1-Style classroom, the frequent and/or sustained use of
extrinsic rewards will be inherently counterproductive. They will work against
the development of such outcomes as self-responsibility and the inclination to
reflect on what will lead to one’s personal growth and/or the common good of
the group -- dispositions that are essential to the 1-Style classroom (Kohn,
1999; Ryan and Deci, 2006). On the other hand, they can be part of a very
effective teacher-centered classroom and assist the teacher developing a
2-Style approach in his/her effort to promote more efficient student behavior
(Reeve, 2003).
For those who feel compelled to include
extrinsic forms of reinforcement among their motivational strategies, it may be
helpful to consider the following guiding principles for using them
effectively:
- Relate
the reinforcement to a clearly identified desired behavior. The primary
focus should be on accomplishing the desired behavior rather than
attaining the reward.
- The
closer in time the attainment of the reward is to the desired behavior the
stronger effect the reinforcement will have.
- Intermittent
and/or random schedules of reinforcement will be more powerful than
regular and predictable schedules of reinforcement.
- Reinforcements
that are given after the display of an “expected” behavior will be more
effective than arrangements and “deals” made before the desired behavior
is performed.
- Avoid
putting students in situations in which they are competing for rewards,
especially meaningful rewards. Only use competition in cases where all students
are in an equal position to display the behavior if they so choose.
Rewarding effort, good choices, cooperation and other things that students
can control can be effective at attaining more of those behaviors. But
competition that includes rewarding winners for ability, personality,
parental support, and/or academic performance will undermine the level of
motivation in the class and can even backfire with many students when it
comes to the desired behavior change.
Following these guidelines will not lead to
higher levels of intrinsic motivation, but they will likely be effective in
changing behavior in the short-term. Moreover, they will help reduce the
dependency of students on rewards and make it easier to remove them over time.
When we do gradually remove the reinforcements, we should be left with a
substantial amount of new “learned behavior” and only a minimal amount of
“withdrawal” from the students who have developed a dependency on the
reinforcement.
Below are three examples of typical but problematic
uses of extrinsic rewards followed by a more effective strategy in the same
situation:
Typical but Problematic:
“If you all do your work, I will give the
class a prize on Friday.” Problems
include: the reward is too far removed in time; the probability that a reward
is going to be needed for every desirable behavior; and when Friday comes, you
will likely be in a difficult spot. It is a certainty that some students will
have met their end of the bargain and others will have not. Do you see the potential
problem?
Better Idea:
“You have just spent the entire period
focused on a task; that is the first time you have all been able to do that. I
am going to give you all ___ (extrinsic reward or removal of a negative
reinforcer).” This is better because it was random, immediate, and will
promote behavior change. The students know what they did, so they will repeat
it. They will not expect it, but will exhibit behavior that they understand may
be reinforced. A lesson was learned, when we ___ (e.g., do our jobs), the
teacher will reward us.
Typical but Problematic:
“The group that does the best job of ___ at
the end of the day will get a prize.” Problems include:
this is competitive and there will eventually be some resentful people; the
work is done in anticipation of the prize -- the prize is primary and the
purpose of the behavior is secondary; and the reinforcement is not well
connected any particular repeatable behavior (good reinforcement promotes the
repetition of desired behavior).
Better Idea:
“I asked you to put away ____ and take out
______, this table did it right away without being asked again, so they will
get (thing, time, being first, first choice, etc).”
This is better because: it will change behavior, as the other tables will be
much quicker in the future anticipating that something similar might happen
again; it reinforces your expectations -- real learning took place in a very
concrete example; it was immediate and clearly related both in time and
causality; and the focus is on the “expected” behavior first and the reward
second.
Typical but Problematic:
A “token economy” or arrangements where
students get points for certain behaviors and the points are added up for some
reward at the end of a certain period. Problems include:
behavior done primarily for extrinsic rewards. This is essentially paying
students to do what they should be doing and what we want them to love to do
for its own sake. We are destroying
both of those goals. The schedule of reinforcement is continuous. Continuous reinforcement
leads to a gradual decrease of motivation. It ends up creating a lose-lose
decision, “Do I increase the reward to maintain the motivation level, or do I
slowly watch my students begin to demand an extrinsic reward for everything and
increasingly avoid behaviors that are not rewarded (including just about
everything that we want them to care about in our class)?”
Better Idea:
If you are committed to the use of a point
system:
- Use
it for a short duration at the start of the year (three weeks or less).
- Use
it to clarify your expectations. Relate your reward system to the critical
expectations that are necessary for the class to function, such as
listening, cooperation, efficient procedures. This process may be useful
when attempting to shift from a 2-Style to a 1-Syle classroom.
- Use
only random and/or intermittent reinforcement schedules. Random is the
best. That is, students realize what the desired behavior is supposed to
be (working cooperatively, listening, being on task, raising hands, etc.) but
they do not know when the reinforcement will occur (If you compare the
level of the desired behavior in a random reinforcement condition vs. a
fixed condition, you will be amazed at the difference).
- Give
points and take points away without warning. Warnings always weaken
reinforcements.
- Do
not give a large amount of attention to the points. Attach your emotion to
the accomplishment of the behavior rather than the attainment of the
points.
- The
ultimate reward cannot be meaningful or substantive. It cannot relate to
grades, your affection, or something of real material worth. In fact,
simply achieving the most points can be enough of a reward in and of
itself, and may be a preferable reward in our effort to emphasize that the
process was the point, not who won or lost.
- Make
it a game for fun and mutual entertainment, and focus on how it is leading
to behavior change. Again the extrinsic is always presented as a material
reminder of something of real and intrinsic value such as learning or
becoming a better class.
Chapter Reflection 6-f: Recall a situation in
which you were rewarded with points or prizes for certain behavior. Do you
remember if you won, or were rewarded with prizes? Do you remember what you
were asked to do to achieve those rewards? Which memory is more powerful? What
does your memory tell you about the source of your motivation to perform?
“Giving students extrinsic rewards for engaging in
learning tasks makes the implicit statement that the activity was not worth
doing on its own merits.“ - Alfie Kohn (1999)
Punishments/Threats/Avoiding
Penalties
The desire to avoid
undesirable conditions can be motivating. Therefore, punishments can have the
effect of changing behavior. As we will discuss in more detail in Chapter 9,
avoidance of a punishment is based in fear and founded in a pain-based logic.
There are a great many ways to alleviate the source or feeling of fear but only
one of these many is to change behavior to achieve or improve the behavior
others desire. Others include avoiding school, avoiding the teacher, giving up,
self-destructive behavior, and/or changing the definition of failure to success
(see negative identity student in Chapter 14). Like extrinsic rewards, punishments
lose their effect over time (Kauffman, 2005; Landrum & Kauffman, 2006).
Moreover, they do not support more positive forms of motivation or behavior as
they offer no pathway to success, only a source of discomfort for failure.
However, if the consequential penalty is
natural or logically related to the misbehavior
and is associated in the student’s mind with
his/her own choices, then it can have the effect of supporting real learning at
the same time as it represents a disincentive to misbehave (Reeve, 2006). And
as we will examine in the Chapters 8, 9, and 10, developing logical
consequences is a critical feature to creating a classroom social contract that
helps students become more responsible and the class more functional.
Positive
Reinforcement
When
asked about their favorite motivational strategies most teachers and
pre-teachers respond by saying something to the effect that they want to be
“positive,” and use a lot of “positive reinforcement.” On the surface, this is
encouraging, especially when compared with the possibility that they would rely
heavily on strategies defined by destructive criticism, shaming, pain-based
logic, and what we referred to earlier as “coercive power.” However, not all of
what we call positive reinforcement is the same or will have the same effect
(Lerman, 2003). Positive reinforcement is used to describe a wide range of
practices including the use of extrinsic rewards, praise and approval,
encouragement, having positive expectations, being warm and accepting, using positive
recognitions, providing increased opportunities, or using systems for rewarding
quality behavior (Landrum & Kauffman, 2006). On the one hand, these all
share a couple of features in common -- they are each given purposefully and
are controlled by the teacher and therefore external to the student. On the
other hand, they will have dramatically different effects on student behavior
and motivation. In our discussion above, we outlined the differences in the
effects of different extrinsic reward strategies. Some of what we might refer
to as positive reinforcement can remain largely external, while other forms can
lead to the development of more intrinsic sources of motivation. This
distinction will be made throughout the remainder of the book, yet is especially
compelling when it comes to the use of praise -- a practice that is
wide-spread, but largely misunderstood and misused.
A Closer Examination of Healthy vs. Unhealthy
Praise
Encouragement can take many forms. While we want
our students to feel appreciated, the language that we use to show that
appreciation can have dramatically different effects (Deci, Koestner &
Ryan, 1999). Many people in and outside of education use the term “praise” to
refer to generically supportive messages to students. As we examine the term
“praise” and the common uses of what might be considered praise, we will see
that different types of messages have very different effects on both the
student being praised and the class as a whole. Ultimately, we might compare
what is commonly referred to as praise -- essentially external personal
messages, to a more healthy and effective alternative -- internally focused
positive performance recognitions.
Problematic “Praise” Messages
What is commonly referred to as “praise” is
at its essence a personal comment from the teacher that conveys the message
that the student is “being and/or acting in a manner that pleases the teacher.”
For example when the teacher says, “Good work, Nasi,” or “I like the way Anders
is working,” they are using messages that sound very encouraging on the
surface. And the intention is to encourage good behavior. But as we look
more carefully at the messages, we will see that these types of messages have
potentially negative effects.
Messages such as “What a good boy,” or “Manuel is
doing such a good job,” have the effect of essentially giving “love” for
obedience. The message they send tells the students that the teacher gives
affection to those who please her/him. As we look more closely at these messages we find that they are
very “external.” That is, they originate from the wishes and desires of the
teacher. The net result could be best characterized as the use of the teacher’s
affection as an external reward. When we compare this type of message to what
was referred to in the previous chapter as “positive recognitions” we observe
that it is significantly less effective in the effort to clarify appropriate
behavior or promote learning. In fact, in the long run personal praise can promote
a very dependent and helpless pattern of thinking in students (Dweck, 1999). If
we are attempting to create externally motivated “affection addicts” then this
form of praise is an effective means. If we include disappointment for behavior
that displeases the teacher, we can be even more effective in creating
dependent ”failure fearers” and students who are easy to manipulate. As we
examine the effects of praise more closely we can see that the negative effects
reach beyond the object of the praise to the class as a whole.
Chapter Reflection 6-g: Have you observed a
teacher who used a great deal of personal praise? What was the effect?
Effect of Praise on the Student
Being Praised
As we will discuss in the next chapter, both
academic achievement and academic self-concept are strongly related to the
degree of internal locus of control (LOC) that a student possesses (Ayling,
2007). Internal locus of control is essentially the mentality that our thoughts
and actions have consequences. And if we do certain things such as apply
ourselves to our learning, we learn more. When we make students dependent on
any external reinforcement, we rob them of that internal LOC. Any external
reinforcement is addictive, but the addictive quality of praise is special.
Students long for love and acceptance. When we say phrases such as “Good boy,
Darius,” what we are giving the student is our affection as a personal
reinforcement and the implicit pact is that as long as they do what pleases us,
we will continue to give them that reinforcement. The natural result is that
the student learns to approach each task with the mindset, “I wonder if the
teacher likes what I am doing?” They increasingly lose touch with their own
sense of value, their own sense of satisfaction for the learning, interest in
creativity, and their internal locus of control. As discussed earlier, if the
teacher adds messages of disappointment when students do not do what they
desire, the cycle of addiction is complete. Not only does the student begin to
increasingly crave the desired messages but they increasingly fear withdrawal
of the feeling they get from those messages. Over time they begin to act and
behave in ways that they have interpreted are most likely to achieve their
desired “dose” of praise. And as we grow in our understanding of how the brain
operates, the better we recognize that the chemical reactions within the
student’s brain are much the same for praise as they are for drugs such as
opiates. If we take a step back and examine student behavior within the praise
intensive classroom within this addiction framework, the clear parallels become
evident.
Some might say that if we are going to
successfully teach students, making some of them dependent on praise may be a
necessary evil in the pursuit of getting them to learn. This might be a
legitimate argument if praise were really useful in helping students learn. But
it is not. As we discussed in Chapter 4, personal praise is far less effective
than positive recognitions of performance. Praise is nearly useless in helping
students understand the task in a more meaningful way, and robs students of
their internal LOC. Consequently, over time it produces increasingly passive
learners (Deci, Koestner & Ryan, 1999).
Influence on the Class as a
Collective
The stated intention of praise is to send a
message to a student or a class that a desirable behavior has been performed.
As we discuss in the previous chapter, a message is effective in promoting a
behavioral expectation that succeeds in developing clarity of the desired
behavior and promotes a positive association with that behavior. Let’s examine
the effectiveness of the use of personal non-specific praise on those two
counts.
When we say “Good job, Terrance!” we assume
we are positively reinforcing Terrance’s behavior. But what actually occurs? In
essence, the rest of the class hears us say, “I like Terrance,” or “I like the
way Terrance is working.” The rest of the class hears nothing to help them
understand “why” we like the way Terrance is working, or what constitutes a
successful performance -- which is what they need. The net effect of the
message is the class heard another example of you expressing what they already
knew, that you have a positive view of Terrance.
As we examine this phenomenon more closely,
we notice that praise is promoting the addictive cycle described earlier within
the class as a whole. Students learn from watching the teacher giving praise
for behavior that pleases her or him. Therefore, if the students wants some of
that praise, they need to focus on pleasing the teacher. Over time we create a
class of students who try to “appear” good. Their locus of control has shifted
externally, they become less interested in what they are learning and more and
more interested in what the teacher thinks of them, and they begin to equate
success in school with the amount of praise they get each day. All of this
leads to a psychology of failure as we will discuss in the next chapter.
Another effect of praise upon the collective
is that as it becomes more desirable and more addictive, it becomes a scarce
commodity for which students must compete. Observe the dynamics of a classroom
society where an artificially induced high demand for praise has been created
(or any society with a scarce resource). The result will be competition (Reeve,
2006). Students’ perspectives will shift to whether they are achieving more or
less praise relative to the others. If they are receiving more, they will
(probably erroneously) view themselves as succeeding in school. If they are not
receiving as much they will (also falsely) view themselves as losing the praise
game. Those who are winning have an incentive to gloat. Those who are losing
have an incentive to fight back. This is frequently exhibited in the antagonism
projected at those who are viewed as “teacher’s pets.”
As is the case with any scarce resource,
those who do not have the skill or will to attain the resource by playing by
the rules (attempting to become a “good girl or boy”) will attain a counterfeit
version by another means. For example, if I cannot get the attention praise
brings by finishing my work, I can get attention by disrupting others’ work.
The counterfeit commodity I achieve may not sound as sweet as praise, but it
still feels like attention. And as we will discuss in Chapter 14 in our
discussion of the negative identity cycle, the opposite of love is not hate,
but indifference. Many of our students would much rather get attention by
misbehaving than by being ignored. If we have set up the rules so that good
behavior receives praise (i.e., external reinforcement shown as the teacher’s
love), and bad behavior receives disappointment (i.e., external punishment
shown as the withdrawal of love), we should not be surprised when a student
shows the resourcefulness to get the need for attention (counterfeit love) met
by making their own rules (i.e., give me real love or I will get attention on
my own terms). While we often view these students as our “problem students,” we
should give them credit for finding an ingenious solution to the problem
situation in which they found themselves. In addition, as we examine the
effects of our use of praise, we can see that we essentially created the
conditions for the problem by the implicit rules that we created in the class.
Figure 6.3 Comparison of Healthy vs.
Unhealthy Praise Messages
Unhealthy
Praise Messages
·
Give
“love” for obedience.
·
External
and addictive.
·
Your
value, not student’s.
·
Non-specific,
non-educational feedback.
·
Combined
with the overuse of disappointment, becomes highly manipulative/addictive.
Healthy
“Encouragement” messages
·
Praise
behavior, not student.
·
Authentic
and spontaneous.
·
For
accomplishment and/or effort.
·
Based
on student’s own goals.
·
Show
appreciation.
·
Public
attention to under-appreciated student.
·
Combined
with the use of authentic emotional investment, can show caring by the teacher.
Chapter
Reflection 6-h:
Recall a recent
case in which you observed a teacher, coach or parent use praise with a child.
Using the distinction outlined in figure 6.3, would you classify it as more on
the healthy or unhealthy side?
Phone
Calls Home
With all that teachers do in a day, it is often difficult to find the
time or energy to make calls to parents regarding their sons and daughters.
However, survey teachers who do make the effort to call, and they will most
likely tell you that it is time well spent. Nevertheless, all calls home will
not have the same effect. The following are a list of “ground rules” for home
phone calls that will help them become a worthwhile intervention.
- Make
many positive calls for every critical call to a home.
In fact, eliminating the critical calls altogether is best. It is a common
and understandable practice to save one’s energy for remediation. However,
it is usually a mistake. There will be situations in which a parent should
know that a student in your class has developed a pattern of behavior that
you want to work together to change. These calls can be effective. But
they send the implicit message that you as the teacher are not able to
solve the problems in your class independently. However, a phone call home
to the parent(s) of a student who has demonstrated a dramatic improvement
in the quality of their participation or has made a remarkable
contribution (see Chapter 20 related to assessing process/participation)
will have a profound effect both in the short and long-term. First, it
acts as an intermittent positive reinforcement. Second, it promotes a
collaborative and supportive relationship between you and the parent.
Third, it makes the school, you, and the student all look good, which is
welcome in the cycle of learning. Finally, it demonstrates to the student
that you will freely choose to make the effort to recognize their effort,
even when it is not required of you. It shows them that you do not take
their progress toward high quality behavior for granted.
- Be
specific about what you observed of the student in your call.
General praise or criticism is rather useless (see discussion of praise
above). It will help make the phone conversation more effective if the
parent has a copy of your class’s expectations that was sent home earlier
in the year. Be specific and emphasize one or two areas that you observed
the student demonstrate well. For example, if you have noticed that the
student is now making a much more consistent level of effort than in the
past, give an example of the past behavior and then of the current
behavior. Then describe to the parent what you see as the benefits the
student is experiencing as a result of this improvement. When making a
call regarding a behavior pattern that needs to change, be constructive
and have a plan for how the change will best come about.
- Make
regularly scheduled calls. If
forgetfulness and/or lack of time are problems, consider setting aside a
time each month or mid-term to make calls home.
- Be
respectful and professional. Show
appreciation for the parent’s contribution and the complexity of raising a
child. One the one hand, never talk down to parents. One the other hand
(note this especially for some younger teachers), there is no need to
apologize or be submissive. This contact will in many ways define their impression
of you and the school as a whole.
Chapter
Reflection 6-i:
Recall
situations in which a teacher called home to your parents. What was the effect
on your relationship with that teacher? Did the contents of the phone call have
an effect?
MOTIVATIONAL TECHNIQUES WHOSE EFFECT WILL VARY GREATLY
DEPENDING ON HOW THEY ARE USED
Teacher Relationship
The
saying “students do not care what you know, until they know that you care,” is probably
is both intuitively obvious and supported by research. Relationships are at the
heart of the 1-Style classroom, and it begins with the teacher’s emotional
investment. Our ability to develop community, a psychology of success and
outcomes that would qualify as a “transformative,” will be dependent on our
ability to show that we have a genuine positive regard for our students, and
that we believe in them.
So
all teacher-student relationships are positive, right? Clearly, we know of many
that are not. So what defines a good relationship? Good intentions are a start.
Many teachers describe looking back at their early years of teaching and
recognizing that while their attempts were clumsy and even ill-advised, their
positive intentions and desire for the welfare of their students produced a
great deal that was positive. Love can overcome bad strategies to a great
extent when it comes to motivating children. But it does not undo a mistake and
it does not always lead to success. Some of the best intentioned and brightest
teachers leave the profession because the love they had for their students and
for sharing their subject was not returned by the students. Below is a list of
suggestions for how one can get the most from their teacher-student
relationships:
- Show
unconditional positive regard for students. Separate your acceptance of
them as people from their behavior and their achievement. There is never a
time when withdrawing positive regard (i.e., love) achieves a lasting
positive result. This frees you to be honest and objective with your
feedback related to their work and behavior.
- Being a friend
is fine. The idea that one should not “smile until Christmas” is
ill-conceived. But being a buddy and/or too familiar runs the risk that
students will misunderstand your position and role, and as a result there
is a loss of position power.
- If your class is
about “you,” you will struggle to create healthy relationships with your
students. It is easy to fall into the mindset that you are going to
pretend that you are invested while in reality you are un-invested
emotionally. It may be helpful to recall the Pygmalion in the classroom
phenomenon. Can we treat all of
our students as rising stars?
- Likewise, avoid
the trap of using excessive personal praise, disappointment, and rewards
for good behavior. It indicates that your motivations are rooted in your
own needs rather than those of your students. It may seem effective, but
beware of creating a classroom full of “reward addicts.”
- Using humor can
be motivating and can keep students more engaged and on your side. But be
careful not to use victimizing humor. Self-deprecating humor, recognizing
absurdities, having fun with your own mistakes and surprises, and tasteful
jokes can be effective ways to bond with your students and show that you
care enough to account for their basic need for fun.
- Make the effort
to take an interest in your students as individuals. Knowing about them,
their interests, and what they are doing outside of your class can have a
powerful effect.
Chapter
Reflection 6-j:
Reflect
on a teacher who had an effect on you. What was it that they did? Did you feel
empowered or valued? Why?
Assessing
Behavior
Most
teachers at some point consider the idea of assessing student behavior. Many
end up incorporating it on a minimal level, many others are turned off by its
potentially manipulative properties, some use behavioral assessment systems
that do more harm than good, and very few use take full advantage of its
transformative potential. For this reason, Chapters 19 and 20 are devoted to
using student behavioral assessments effectively and why not to use undefined
“participation points” or deficit model systems such as colored behavioral
charts or names on the board.
Used
purposefully, assessing process and participation can have a dramatic effect on
the quality of process investment, effort level, or any other behavior that is
included in a well-developed system. It can be a useful adjunct to the class’s
social contract and democratic operating procedure. Used unsystematically or as
a deficit model it can have a harmful effect that may be invisible but
profoundly destructive. A thoughtful implementation can promote the intrinsic
sources of motivation on the part of the students. Used carelessly, it can feel
like just another external source of teacher oppression and domestication.
Competition
By
definition, competition creates a scarcity of rewards and a sense of urgency to
obtain that reward. This can certainly be motivating to many students. Used wisely,
competition can increase the level of intensity and fun in an activity.
However, used unwisely competition can create a whole host of negative side
effects such as increasing students’ fear of failure, increased cheating,
over-emphasis on end results rather than process, increased mistrust among
students, promoting the advantage of the advantaged, and creating an
emotionally unsafe emotional climate in the class.
Because
competition is such a widespread motivational strategy, and because its use can
have such powerful effects, Chapter 18 is entirely devoted to the examination
of what it is and how it can be use most effectively.
Instructional Design
Chapter
Reflection 6-k:
Recall a
teacher who created especially engaging lessons. What was the effect on student
motivation? Did the teacher need to use a lot of extrinsic rewards to get
students to care about their work?
In
Chapter 11, we will examine the relationship between our instructional choices
and the effect on management and motivation. It is likely that the single most significant factor in
achieving a class who is working hard and caringly is the selection of the type of work that we have them doing.
Conversely, when there are motivational problems and/or behavioral problems,
most often it is the type of instruction that is the main culprit.
INTRINSIC
MOTIVATIONAL TECHNIQUES
Intrinsic Motivation is the
inherent propensity to engage one’s interests and to exercise and develop one’s
capacities (Ryan & Deci, 2006)
Intrinsic motivational techniques cannot be as
easily explained as separate techniques or strategies when compared to
extrinsic techniques. Like any successful methodology, they must be developed
intentionally, but a holistic approach is most effective. Much of the process
of promoting intrinsic motivation involves the removal of barriers to students’
abilities to access their inner motives and satisfiers. Rewards, pain-based
motivators, meaningless tasks, learning in isolation, and a lack of support all
act to block intrinsic sources of motivation. For one’s intrinsic sources of
motivation to grow, the learning context must support them.
It may be most instructive and practical to examine
many intrinsic motivational ideas within a single structure -- that of basic
needs. Inquiry and Problem-Based Learning, Increased Responsibility, and
Achieving Personal Growth all make much more sense when we examine them within
the context of how they meet basic needs. Yet when students experience a needs
satisfying environment, they think of it less as a source of satisfaction and
more of a context for being more fully alive. Reeve (2006) describes it this
way, “When [students basic needs are met] however, students do not typically
say, “I feel competent’ or “I feel autonomous.” Instead, they say, “that is
interesting, “that is fun,” or “I enjoyed doing it.”
Unlike extrinsic forms of motivation, intrinsic
forms are less about adding something. For instance, intrinsic basic needs
simply exist, and we all possess them. During the school day either they are
met within the context of the learning environment or students will be forced
to meet them in alternative ways. In some cases the alternate means students
use to meet their needs manifest as disruptive behavior and problems for the
teacher or unhealthy habits for the student.
Basic Needs
Each of us has fundamental basic needs that we must
find a way to satisfy (Glasser 1980). If we are unable to satisfy them, we will
experience some type of dissonance. While theorists vary slightly when
identifying the core areas (Curwin & Mendler, 1986; Glasser, 1980; Reeve,
2006), the basic human needs for love and belonging, power, competence,
freedom, and fun seem to be inherent and universal.
These basic needs exist continuously both in and
outside the classroom. The evidence that a student comes from a home in which
their basic needs have been met is usually quite apparent. Most likely they act
more confident, centered, and trusting. The time spent at school can often have
an even more determinant effect on students’ ability to meet their basic needs
than their time away from school. The activities in which they are engaged are
more structured, limiting their ability to meet their needs more naturally, and
in many cases, meeting one’s need is more challenging at school. As a result we
discover that students find numerous creative ways to get their needs met
during the school day. Quite often these means become labeled “inappropriate
behavior.”
As teachers we have no choice but to recognize that
students have basic needs, and that those needs will manifest themselves, one
way or another. Most students have the ability to deny their needs for a short
period of time, but to do this day after day would be intolerable. And more
importantly, students should not have to
endure a school environment that denies their basic needs. For some
teachers it may require a paradigm shift while for others it may help clarify
their perspective. But a critical ingredient to successful classroom management
is to initially view all problems though the lens of basic needs. For example,
if we look out at our class and see faces wrought with frustration, a common
but highly ineffective response will be to view that reaction as inconvenient
to us and our plans. A more effective reaction, one that will lead to a
solution, is to ask ourselves, “What basic need is lacking right now?” When we
view student misbehavior and unconsciously use the lens, “I need them to know
that their behavior is inadequate,” it will lead us down a management dead end.
While we are not obliged to meet every student’s basic need, when we examine
the behavior and/or emotional climate in our class through the lens of basic needs, problems become
illuminated, diagnosis gains coherence, and solutions become more evident.
When basic needs are not being met, the reactions by
the students (i.e., the coping mechanisms) can take either internal or external
form. As each basic need is examined more closely, these reactions become more
evident as well as how each basic need can be met in the classroom.
Love
and Belonging
Each of us needs to feel that we are loved
and that we are a wanted part of a group. The desire to be accepted by the
group is considered by many theorists as the fundamental human drive (Driekurs,
1974). Moreover, our sense of self acceptance is greatly influenced by factors
within our environment. If we feel perpetually unloved, alienated or isolated,
common internal reactions include a sense of guilt, worthlessness, loneliness,
and lowered self-esteem, while common external reactions include acting out,
over-achievement, clowning, and pleasing. Teachers can give students a greater
sense of love and belonging by recognizing unique qualities and talents,
creating an emotionally safe community environment, and showing genuine care
and respect.
Power
Each of us needs to feel that we have some
control over our destiny. If we do not experience a sense of “agency” in our
lives we feel helpless. As we will discuss in the next chapter, a sense of
power is fundamentally related to the development of an internal locus of
control. If we feel we do not have any power, common internal reactions include
becoming withdrawn and passive-aggressive, while common external reactions
include rebellion and hostility. Teachers can give students a sense of power by
giving them choices, giving responsibility and opportunities for leadership,
giving ownership for the development of class procedures and the social
contract, and refraining from 4-Style management strategies.
Competence
Each of us wants to feel a sense of
self-efficacy. We need to feel that we are capable and have something valuable
to contribute. Much of our identity is connected to what we can do, and how
well we can do it. If we feel useless, unvalued, incompetent or unappreciated,
common internal reactions include losing motivation and/or a sense of
inadequacy, while common external reactions include bragging, acting overly
competent, attention-getting, and excuse-making. Teachers can give students a
greater sense of competence by focusing on progress and not products, removing
conditions in which comparisons among students are used, recognizing
incremental achievement and original ideas, expressing high expectations, and
helping students achieve the goals they have set for themselves.
Chapter Reflection 6-l: Recall a situation in
which you felt very competent. How did you act? How would you describe your
level of motivation? Conversely, recall a situation in which you felt little if
any sense of competence. How did you act? How would you describe your level of
motivation?
Freedom
Each of us needs
to feel that we are autonomous and have freedom of choice. We must feel a sense
of liberation to be able to express our individuality. If we feel too
restricted or imprisoned, common internal reactions are becoming withdrawn or
resentful, while common external reactions include fighting back, active
resistance and/or seeking paths around authority. Teachers can help students
experience freedom through supporting autonomy and creativity, avoiding
personal praise and disappointment, validating differing viewpoints within the
class, and fostering the attitude that the teacher does not have nor must have
all the answers, and the idea that everyone makes mistakes.
Fun
Each of us needs to be able to have fun and
experience wonder and joy. Fun may be difficult to define. What is fun for one
person may not be fun for another. Yet we all feel the need to experience
enjoyment and whimsy. If we are put in a repressive and/or tedious environment,
common internal reactions include boredom, frustration and daydreaming, while
common external reactions include making one’s own fun, engaging the teacher in
(off-task) games, and hostility. Teachers can promote students’ sense of fun by
the use of humor, providing opportunities for creative play, making learning
engaging and interesting and a thoughtful use of healthy competition.
Chapter Reflection 6-m: The word “fun” draws different reactions from those
in different positions. Sometimes the idea that learning needs to be fun can
feel oppressive and fill us with guilt or disdain for those who tell us to make
things more fun (such as our students). But take a closer look at the idea of
fun. What makes you happy? What feels like fun? When do you see a look of joy
on the face of your students? Fun need not involve big laughs and a party. How
could you meet your students’ need for fun, without betraying your values as a
teacher?
As
we examine the conditions that meet basic needs we find that they have the
effect of promoting intrinsic motivation and vice versa. When we assist
students on a path of personal growth, we inevitably meet the needs of power
and competence. When we give increased responsibility, we are not so much
adding something or giving something to the student, we are allowing the basic
needs for power, contribution, and belonging to be fulfilled and the student
therefore to bloom. And as we examine the effect of instruction on motivation
in Chapter 13, it will be evident that creating a learning context in which
basic needs are met is a more effective means to achieving student motivation
than bribing students to do work they find meaningless and unsatisfying.
CONSIDERING
MOTIVATION AS MOVEMENT OR FLOW
Recall a situation (group, class, team,
committee, etc,) that consisted of a series of meetings in which you felt
consistently motivated and eager to take part in the activity. In this
situation, would you characterize what was going on as “going some place?” Now,
recall another situation in which you felt your participation was out of a
sense of obligation. In other words, you were just putting in time, and as a
result you found yourself finding ways to entertain yourself in ways that may
not have been part of the stated agenda. In this second case, how much
psychological movement did you feel the situation provided? In other words, how
much did you feel like there was a flow (Csikszentmihalyi, 1991) or that things
were “going somewhere” and you were part of that movement? It is a good bet
that it was very little. Recall what you did to meet your needs and entertain
yourself.
Examining these two situations should give us
some insight into the reality of our students and the needs that they bring to
our class. If there is not a sense of movement in our class, it is very likely
that our students will create that movement with behavior that may appear to be
a “problem” to the teacher. And as we discussed earlier (regarding socially
constructed reality) these “problem behaviors” could go in the category of
problems “manufactured” by the teacher. We cannot expect the same level of
behavior from powerless, joyless, bored students as we would from student that
are “going somewhere” that they feel is meaningful to them. It has been
indicated that we as teachers “make the weather,” and regardless of whether we
are aware of it, we create more or less psychological movement in our class.
Let’s examine the components of psychological
movement. There are essentially two factors, 1) the direction of the movement
and 2) the rate at which the movement takes place. The graphic below (Figure
6.3) depicts this concept.
Figure
6.3: Depicting the Factors that Affect One’s Sense of Psychological Movement
Rate of
movement/motivation ->
(~amount of reinforcement, schedule,
and proximity to outcome)
Define the Determine
your collective goal starting point
Variable A: Clarity of the goal
The sense of movement that a group feels will
be related to how well the goal of the activity (or series of activities) is
internalized. But as we will see later all goals will not achieve the same
outcomes and/or kinds of motivation. For example, consider the two cases you
examined from your own experience. Which case held more intrinsic interest to
you? It is a good bet it was the first one in which you felt that it was “going
somewhere.” Be careful when selecting your goals. It may be helpful to examine Figure
6.2, the chart of motivational strategies, earlier in this chapter for some
ideas. It is highly likely that the goals that ultimately lead to extrinsic
rewards will not last as long or maintain their effectiveness over time as
those rooted in sources of internal satisfaction. Again consider the event that
you recalled for the first case. How would you characterize your goals?
Variable B: The amount and schedule of reinforcement
The rate of movement will vary to the degree
that there is reinforcement for the attainment of that goal. This reinforcement
can be either external or internal. It can be about a tangible product or a
clearly satisfying experience. And given what we know about reinforcement, we
can assume that the more intermittent the schedule of that reinforcement the
stronger it will be. In addition the more closely the reinforcement is related,
both in time and logical relationship, to the achievements necessary to attain
the goal, the more effective it will be. For example, if immediately after
successfully playing a tune on the piano we are reinforced, we will be more
motivated to keep at it. That reinforcement could be either extrinsic (i.e.,
money or praise for example) or intrinsic (i.e., a sense of satisfaction or the
joy of making a wonderful sound), yet in either case, our motivation in the
future will be related to how immediate and substantial the reinforcement is.
Comparison Case Examples
A case example might help clarify the principle.
Imagine if you were given the task of pulling weeds. For most of us the task
alone is not inherently reinforcing, so we would likely only do it for payment.
Let’s say we are getting paid as our reinforcement--assume that we agreed to do
the work for $50 a day. What would our motivational level be for our first day?
Assume that we were paid the same amount no matter what our rate or quality.
What would happen to our motivation? In comparison, let’s say that we were paid
per weed. How would that affect our level of motivation? What if our supervisor
stopped by every once in a while and gave us a bonus if they observed an
exceptional level of effort? All of these variables would affect our level of
motivation. They would not change the stated goal, but they would affect our
psychological sense of movement toward that goal.
However, consider this case from another
perspective. We might ask as a result of the motivation provided in each
condition, are we more or less likely in the future to engage in weed pulling
without being paid? And what will the result be to our motivation to take part
in work that is similar to weed pulling? This example illustrates that with a
well-conceived plan of reinforcements we can increase motivation by
manipulating the reinforcement schedule and the clarity of the goal. But while
we can obtain a high level of motivation in the short-term with an extrinsic
type of goal such as the one described, we have to ask what the long-term cost
of any motivational program would be.
Now let’s paint a picture that may look
similar to the one that you envisioned earlier in the situation in which you
felt like things were “going somewhere.” How would you characterize the goal of
the work -- as very meaningful and very clear? You knew what you were aiming
for and you had a desire to attain the goal. But why? Possibly you were being
given an external reinforcement, but it is also likely that you saw a real
value to the work. It was relevant to you. The reinforcement could simply have
been seeing progress toward your goal, and the feeling of getting better and/or
accomplishing something. And if there were others involved, part of the
reinforcement may have been the feeling of working together to achieve a common
goal.
When we examine the activity in any classroom
we can quickly determine if there is a feeling that things are going somewhere,
and whether there is momentum. Do the students know where they are going? Is
there something satisfying about the goal and the steps along the way to achieving
the goal?
As we consider our basic needs, consider how
the satisfaction of getting needs met affects one’s level of motivation and a
decreased necessity to engage in what Driekers calls “mistaken goals.” These
are goals that give us a sense of satisfaction and psychological movement but
are unhealthy for all concerned. As you examine the idea of self theories
(Dweck, 1999) and the development of a “mastery orientation” to work, in the
next chapter consider how one’s orientation to the task can create more or less
of a psychological sense that one is “going somewhere” in the effort. If we
find joy in the “getting there” and experience learning as a means to growth we
will feel a deeper sense of motivation. If we feel that the goal is just a
means to an end (i.e., we want to feel a sense of relief, we want to avoid
failure, we want to make sure others are pleased, etc.) we will only experience
a limited degree of motivation as we take part in the task. Those who know
where they are going and feel a deep sense of satisfaction in the getting there
rarely feel bored. When we look out at a sea of bored faced we know that
students either do not know what the goal is, don’t care about the goal, or
view the work (for whatever reason) simply as an obligation.
CONCLUSION
Putting the elements of this chapter
together, consider using the lens of “success psychology” as a way to think
about what makes a task satisfying, motivational, and something that you would
do without a lot of external reinforcement. A practical guide to the
development of a success psychology within a class is outlined in the following
chapter.
Journal Prompts:
1. Would you say that your education to
this point has been more defined by intrinsic or extrinsic forms of motivation?
2. As you examine your education and
the classrooms that you have observed recently, would you classify them as
“basic needs satisfying” places?
Chapter Activities:
1. In small groups, discuss your example
of a situation in which you felt was “going somewhere.” What made it feel that
way? Why was it different from other educational situations you have been in?
2. Examine a class other than one that
you are teaching. Identify anything that you would consider a problem (e.g.,
lack of control, boredom, inattention, conflict, hostility, alienation, etc).
Given these problems, can you recognize the unmet basic needs that are at their
root?
3. As a class, discuss the story of the
man who wanted to take a nap. Do members of the class see the principles of
this parable manifested in classrooms that they observe?
4. Create a section in your Classroom
Management Plan or Teaching Improvement Plan that addresses motivation. In a
few pages outline what kinds of principles and strategies you will use to
support the motivational levels in your class. You might reflect on the
following questions:
·
Why
will your students be motivated in the short term? In the long-term?
·
How
would you characterize your motivational style?
·
Why
will your students care about the work that they are doing?
·
Why
will your students care about each other?
·
What
effect do you want your motivational strategies to have on your students?
REFERENCES
Alberto,
P., & Troutman, A. (2003) Applied
behavioral analysis for teaching (6th ed.)
Ayling, G. (2007, in submission) Report of an adolescent transition, a possible intervention for the
stress response
and diseases in adult life. International Journal of Epidemiolog.
Curwin,
R., and Mendler, A. (1986) Discipline
with Dignity.
Csikszentmihalyi,
M (1991) Flow: The Psychology of Optimal
Experience. Harper.
Deci,
E. L., Koestner, R. , & Ryan, R.M. (1999) A meta-analytic review of
experiments examining the effects of extrinsic rewards and intrinsic
motivation. Psychological Bulletin, 125,
627-668.
Driekurs,
R. (1974) Discipline Without
Tears. Hawthorn Books
Dweck,
C. (2000) Self-Theories; Their Role in
Motivation, Personality and Development.
Glasser.
W. (1990) The
Hickey,
D.T., &
Jones.
F. (2000) Tools
for teaching: discipline, instruction, motivation. Jones Publishing
Kauffman,
J.M. (2005) How we prevent the prevention of emotional and behavioral
difficulties in education. In P. Clough, P. Garner, J.T. Pardeck, & F.
Yuen. (Eds.) Handbook of emotional and
behavioral difficulties in education. (p.429-440) London Sage.
Kohn. A. (1999) Punished by Rewards: The Trouble with Gold
Stars, Incentive Plans, A's, Praise, and Other Bribes. Houghton Mifflin
Landrum,
T. J., & Kauffman, J.M. (2006) Behavioral approaches to classroom
management. In C.M. Evertson & C.S. Weinstein, (Eds.) Handbook of classroom management. (pp. 47-71).
Reeve,
J., & Deci, E.L.(1996) Elements of the competitive situations that affect
intrinsic motivation. Personality and
Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, 24-33.
Reeve,
J (2006) Extrinsic Rewards and inner motivation. In C.M. Evertson & C.S.
Weinstein, (Eds.) Handbook of classroom
management. (p. 645-664).
Ryan,
R.M., & Deci, E.L.(2006) Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic
motivation, social development and well-being. American Psychologist, 55, 65-78.
Skinner, E.A., &