What Are Some Ways to Motivate Your Students to Learn?

Because each student is unique, it is essential to gain an understanding of the things that pique their interest. It’s possible that the things that motivate one student won’t motivate another. However, while some students are driven to succeed academically by their grades, others are more interested in the learning process itself.

In order for students to be successful in the environment of the classroom, it is necessary for teachers to determine which methods of motivation work best with their particular students. We’ve put together some suggestions that you might find useful for your course.

Keeping your students interested and engaged is one of the most challenging aspects of teaching.

There are a lot of different approaches to taking, and we hope that we can point you in the direction of the one that is going to work out best for you!

We have put together a list of potential methods that teachers can use to motivate their pupils, and you can find it here.

They can be as straightforward as handing out candies or playing music while the lesson is being taught, or they can be as involved as implementing a more complex point system.

So which of these options appeals to you the most?

This blog post will provide you with some strategies that you can use to encourage learning among your students.

These concepts were derived from research as well as the author’s experience in the classroom.

We have high hopes that they will be able to assist you in the implementation of innovative approaches to learning and teaching that are successful for both you and your students.

In Dr Study, we want your child to succeed, and our tutoring programs have been proven to help students reach their full potential.

With over 30,000 happy students, you can trust that we know what we’re doing.

How To Inspire People To Continue Their Education

To be motivated to learn is essential. You will need to develop strategies to help motivate learning, no matter whether you are a student trying to learn something or a teacher helping students learn.

The amount of effort that a student puts into learning will directly correlate to the amount of knowledge that a student acquires.

Therefore, one of the most important jobs of the teacher is to motivate and inspire their students to put in their best effort.

Even if the teacher creates a supportive learning environment, this can be a challenge for the students because many of the factors that influence student learning are affected by the personality of the student as well as the student’s overall attitude, likes and dislikes, feelings about a subject, activity, or school in general, and so on.

The use of both intrinsic and extrinsic motivators by educators is one strategy for boosting student motivation.

The significance of the material being studied and the act of learning itself, as perceived by the student, are two examples of intrinsic motivators.

The value of reinforcers or rewards for the student is what determines the effectiveness of extrinsic motivators.

Incentives

Overall Incentives

An example of animal learning can serve to illustrate the concept of incentive.

A hungry rat that is placed in a maze will quickly figure out which turns lead to food if given the opportunity.

This provides further evidence that Maslow’s physiological level of need is correct.

On the other hand, the rat will not take that specific route if the food is either absent or of inadequate quality and quantity to provide an incentive for the rat to go to the food. In this sense, an incentive can be understood as a pulling force, in contrast to a drive, which can be understood as a pushing force.

Let’s move on to the next topic, which is the individual’s motivation to learn.

The motivation to learn can either be innate, or it can be acquired through experience. To begin, ask yourself this rather intriguing question: If a student did not have to learn, would he or she still wish to learn?

There isn’t a straightforward response to this question because even students who don’t enjoy learning in the classroom will continue to pick up new information from their experiences in life and the activities that they find interesting.

Students who take pleasure in learning in the classroom may find that they no longer take pleasure in learning if there is no longer any opportunity for achievement.

The fact of the matter is that one’s drive to learn can come from either within or without, and different kinds of motivators will have a different effect on various kinds of learning scenarios.

Internal Or Intrinsic Incentives

In addition to the ones that have already been mentioned, there are additional motivations, most of which can be found within oneself.

These incentives are primarily connected with the individual’s attitude towards learning; as a result, the motivation of teachers ought to focus on developing and supporting the students’ own internal incentives.

The following are examples of possible incentives:

Taking satisfaction in one’s accomplishments – Students can gain a valuable sense of competence and find great satisfaction in a task that they have completed, both of which can motivate them to work even harder.

Statements like “I have done all those” or “I have done that” reveal a desire to accomplish something, as can be seen in the previous sentence. When a task is finished, not only does the person who completed it feel satisfied but also those around them may feel satisfied as a result of the task’s completion.

Personal aspirations – Some students enter college with a clear vision of their goals for the future, while others know only that they want to be successful and accomplish things during their lifetime. It’s possible that they place a high value on acquiring the skills necessary to construct a future that will bring them wealth, prestige, power, and other advantages.

Competing against one’s themselves – Students will often determine their standards as well as their own pace of work. They are providing themselves with an incentive by issuing a challenge to themselves in the form of this action. They could evaluate their success by contrasting their accomplishments or levels of advancement to those of others.

A feeling of command or being in charge – Students can feel more in control of their lives and gain a sense of power by improving their knowledge and skills. It is critical to give people the impression that they have some control over their surroundings if they are to avoid developing apathy and learned helplessness.

Involvement in the community and a sense of belonging – Students can develop a sense of participation and affiliation by contributing to the work of a group or class. This can help students feel more like they have a place in the world.

Relationships between individuals – Some students care less about being part of a community or group and more about making friends and having meaningful interactions with other people. For instance, a teacher may leave a significant impression on their students, and those students may find their motivation in the desire to earn that teacher’s approval and bring that teacher joy.

A student might be motivated by having one good friend who is also learning, and they will often be motivated to do well in areas that involve that other student or where the friend is doing well. If a student has one good friend who is also learning, this could be a source of motivation for the student.

Ethics and moral principles – There is a possibility that various pupils will approach education and learning with varying ethics and ideals. There are those who believe that getting an education is essential to a person’s sense of value and standing in society, as well as to their future success. Some people don’t think it’s all that significant. Others are more motivated by ethics that place a greater emphasis on independence and autonomy, while still others are motivated by ethics that place a greater emphasis on honouring family and showing respect for adults.

External Incentives

In the classroom, they may take the form of rewards for high grades, praise for accomplishments, or any other feature that may be integrated into the educational setting.

Other forms of external motivation can come in the form of societal and cultural norms and values, the expectations of one’s family, the possibilities of one’s career, or personal ambitions that can be advanced through education.

Motivators in the form of tangible prizes can be quite effective.

For instance, if a student is aware that they will receive specific prizes for learning or for certain behaviours in the classroom, this might be an effective reinforcer. However, material rewards are not necessarily the most important drivers of motivation.

In a workplace, factors other than monetary compensation, such as job stability and promotion opportunities, can be just as motivating.

Good grades aren’t the only thing that matters in school; often, having prestige, esteem, recognition, and the acceptance of one’s family can be just as significant. However, incentive systems produce outcomes, making them an important component of a teacher’s arsenal of motivational tactics.

On the other side, pupils may become less motivated to engage in learning behaviours if they are offered rewards. Peer pressure can have a huge influence on influencing how much a student will study and learn as well as how willing he or she is to behave in ways that promote learning.

Many kids who are otherwise capable and motivated do not perform to their potential because they want to avoid being branded “eggheads” or because they want to blend in with peer groups who do not value education or do well in the classroom.

The Connectional Nature Of Incentives And Encouragements

The value that the individual attaches to the goal, item, circumstance, or activity that serves as the source of their motivation is an essential component of the motivation that drives them.

In experiments with animals, the amount of food that is placed in the goal zone will have an effect on how quickly a rat is able to navigate the labyrinth. Do we not all put forth more effort in order to receive a better reward?

This is the relational nature of incentives, which, sadly, is frequently ignored. Incentives are designed to encourage certain behaviours.

Crespi (1942) showed that rats ran significantly more quickly after experiencing a shift from four food units up to sixteen units than after experiencing a shift from sixty-four food units down to sixteen units.

This was proved by the rats’ increased speed.

After the reduction in their food reward, several of the rats even refused to eat.

Tinklepaugh’s more dramatic depiction of the same kind of disappointment is illustrative of the same thing (1928).

He instructed the monkey to retrieve food that had been shown placed beneath one of the two boxes that it would be retrieving.

Tinklepaugh let the monkey watch him put a banana under one of the boxes, but behind the monkey’s back, he slid a piece of lettuce in its place.

The monkey did not catch on to the switch until it was too late.

When the monkey was given the opportunity to select one of the two boxes, it made the appropriate choice by going with the one that was meant to be hiding a banana.

After uncovering only lettuce, the monkey flipped the second box over, which revealed that it was vacant.

The frustration got to be too much for the monkey, and it flung the lettuce at Tinklepaugh. The monkey felt that lettuce did not meet the standards set for a banana, so it hurled the lettuce at Tinklepaugh.

You shouldn’t have too much trouble remembering comparable examples from your own experience. However, keep in mind that a greater reward does not necessarily mean that there will be a larger amount of reward.

Additionally, it might allude to the increased importance that we take on being rewarded.

A rat will not exert much effort in order to obtain huge quantities of food if it does not particularly enjoy eating it. In a similar vein, a student may see a grade of B (or higher) to be an extremely motivating factor, whilst another student may not think this to be worthy of extra work.

It’s also possible that assigning one student a solo assignment and assigning another student group work will encourage them in different ways respectively.

The anticipation or expectation of a positive outcome is essential to a person’s level of motivation.

As a result, we evaluate incentives according to the value that we place on the outcomes that we anticipate and the expectations that we have for how they will play out.

Increasing One’s Own Internal Drive And Motivation

When a student is driven to study by causes that are within themselves, the act of learning itself becomes the student’s reward.

The end effect is that the student has fun learning and that fun and excitement can continue to be a part of the student’s educational experience throughout their entire lives.

As a result, the primary objective of motivation ought to be the enhancement of intrinsic motivation.

When rewards, or other extrinsic elements, are not provided or when they are provided in a lesser quantity, the motivation that is dependent on these rewards will dwindle or disappear altogether.

There is some evidence from research to suggest that relying on extrinsic motivation rather than one’s intrinsic motivation undermines the former.

On the other hand, extrinsic incentives can boost intrinsic motivation as well if the quality of performance is rewarded and the activity itself is not particularly enjoyable, to begin with.

The following are some methods that you might boost your intrinsic motivation:

• Creating interest and enthusiasm for the acquisition of knowledge by relating it to students’ everyday experiences or to the student’s areas of interest and abilities (for example: “Today we will look at ways to handle criticism – These can put you back in control of a situation, even if the criticism is intended to be hurtful”).
• Creating curiosity in students by surprising them, using uncertainty, contradiction, or prediction as a springboard into a topic, or displaying something you want to explain to them before you explain it.
• Students may be required to search for their solutions, conduct experiments, or learn about a process through hands-on experience when they are involved in a game or simulation.

You want the best for your children and that includes giving them a strong foundation in early childhood learning. With Dr Study, you can be sure that your child is getting the best possible early childhood education that is tailored to each their needs.

The Use Of Social Reinforcers As Motivators

When it comes to human motivation, social reinforcers like verbal praise, displays of approbation, and a comforting smile are more common rewards than food and water, which are essential when it comes to motivating an animal that is being denied in a laboratory.

Social reinforcers are used by a variety of people, including parents, instructors, friends, and employers, to encourage more effort.

Therefore, while grades may often appear to be the primary incentive for studying, it is possible that gaining social acceptability is equally as significant.

When applied without consideration or discretion, the value of the motivational force of social incentives tends to decrease.

For this reason, for instance, the instructor who praises each level of performance and everyone’s performance discovers that such praise eventually stops being helpful as a motivation for the students.

When a student is aware that the expected level of performance is high, even the slightest bit of praise is elevated to the status of a high compliment, and the student will put a great deal of effort into the assignment in order to achieve this goal.

It is not the absolute amount of praise or approval that we receive that determines the level of motivation; rather, it is how the amount compares with what has been received in the past or what one could reasonably expect to attain.

The more praise or approval we receive, the more motivated we are to continue working towards our goals.

Research has shown time and again how powerful social reinforcers can be.

Biswas observed that men and women are motivated by different things, both in terms of extrinsic and intrinsic factors. Using the terminology from Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, we can say that women have a stronger need than men for self-actualization, security, and the fulfilment of their physiological needs, whereas women have a fewer needs at work for the fulfilment of their social and esteem needs.

It would be interesting to find out how something like this would be implemented in a classroom setting.

However, some teachers indicate that female students typically meet their primary social requirements outside of the classroom and that female student frequently place a great deal of attention on addressing esteem needs in the classroom.

This is something that some teachers report.

How To Instil A Love Of Learning In Your Students

Put Your Faith In Them

If you have doubts about whether or not a specific student will do his job, you should generally assume that he won’t.

Therefore, you should abandon the presumption that they won’t and instead adopt the attitude that they can and will succeed.

Be Very Encouraging To Everyone Around You

Students that give the impression of being unmotivated or lazy may be disappointed or irritated because they have difficulty learning.

Our words have the potential to be very effective in motivating them, but more importantly, we can encourage them by providing them with individualised assistance and demonstrating that they are capable of putting in the effort required and achieving success.

When students realise that even minor accomplishments are within their reach, it can make all the difference in the world.

It is also crucial to point out their triumphs and demonstrate to them that their hard work is paying off, so make sure to provide them plenty of words of encouragement.

You may even take it to the next level by producing personalised diplomas and awards for the participants. (Canva has a wonderful free certificate creator) It’s possible that you’ll never realise the significant impact that your encouragement has!

Make It A Point That Your Students Are The Ones Who Are Putting In The Effort

But obviously, the person who is working is the one who is learning, so if you want your pupils to learn more, you should make sure that they are actively working in your class and not simply sitting there passively listening to lectures the whole time.

You should schedule periods during which the pupils will be working, and you will circulate among them to offer individual assistance.

Using writing as a tool for learning is yet another simple yet effective strategy that may be implemented to boost student engagement.

Use Memory Exercises And Recitation

We are aware that working with one’s memory has experienced a decline in popularity over the past few years; however, this does not imply that it is not an effective technique.

When a group of students in your class recites information or passages together, it is virtually impossible for them not to learn the material.

You also don’t have to resort to the “drill and kill” method. You have the ability to make it exciting (can we say “drill and thrill?”?). By saying things rapidly, changing the tone of the students’ voices, varying who says it, saying it multiple times during the day, etc.

Make Learning Fun.

It is not necessary to engage in complicated activities in order to maintain a positive attitude towards learning.

Simply show that you are passionate about the subject you are instructing, and your students will pick up on that. Include some comedy and tell stories that are relevant to the topic.

And all you have to do is show the children that they are capable of doing it.

Students have a much better time learning when they believe they are making progress.

Take Your Time And Do Your Homework Wisely

There is no guarantee that doing extra homework will result in an increase in learning.

Therefore, in order to be respectful of the student’s time spent with their families, you should only offer homework that is beneficial and essential.

If you restrict the amount of homework your students have to complete, you will have more time to concentrate on its quality and will be able to ask more of them.

Expect them to finish every assignment, and have clear consequences in place for when they don’t (ideally something more substantial than merely deducting points from their total).

In the event that it is feasible, you should require that they do the assignment at some point during the day.

Have One-On-One Conversations

When a student has an ongoing issue, you should draw them aside and have a conversation with them.

Ask them questions to try to understand why they are having trouble, and ask them what needs to change so that they can be successful in what they are doing.

Together, devise a plan, and then do your best to get them to follow it.

Invite The Participation Of The Parents

Don’t give up on this idea just yet, even though it may seem unattainable at the moment.

There are occasions when parents who appear to have absolutely no interest in assisting their pupils are just at a loss as to what actions to take.

Therefore, you should provide some concrete things that they may do to assist their student and then see the results.

When you communicate with them, make sure to focus on finding solutions rather than pointing out the problems that exist.

Give Your Students The Tools They Need To Become More Organised

For students, there are few things more discouraging than completing their schoolwork only to have it go missing after they turn it in.

Therefore, you should make an effort to assist students in organising their folders, bookbags, and lockers to the best of your ability.

Think about using your whole brain when teaching.

It is highly recommended that you learn more about whole brain teaching if you are not already familiar with it. It is difficult to describe, but the fundamental premise is that when you have taught a subject to your students, they should then explain it to each other.

It’s really interesting, and it keeps the pupils interested throughout the whole thing.

Therefore, even if you don’t want to use the whole brain teaching approach in your classroom, you should at least think about implementing some of its aspects. Struggling with your VCE exams?

Dr Study has a range of experienced and qualified tutors who will help you feel more confident in your abilities and be able to approach your exams with ease.

Content Summary

• Because each student is unique, it is essential to gain an understanding of the things that pique their interest.
• In order for students to be successful in the environment of the classroom, it is necessary for teachers to determine which methods of motivation work best with their particular students.
• Keeping your students interested and engaged is one of the most challenging aspects of teaching.
• We have high hopes that they will be able to assist you in the implementation of innovative approaches to learning and teaching that are successful for both you and your students.
• You will need to develop strategies to help motivate learning, no matter whether you are a student trying to learn something or a teacher helping students learn.
• The use of both intrinsic and extrinsic motivators by educators is one strategy for boosting student motivation.
• The fact of the matter is that one’s drive to learn can come from either within or without, and different kinds of motivators will have a different effect on various kinds of learning scenarios.
• These incentives are primarily connected with the individual’s attitude towards learning; as a result, the motivation of teachers ought to focus on developing and supporting the students’ own internal incentives.
• If a student has one good friend who is also learning, this could be a source of motivation for the student.
• Ethics and moral principles – There is a possibility that various pupils will approach education and learning with varying ethics and ideals.
• However, incentive systems produce outcomes, making them an important component of a teacher’s arsenal of motivational tactics.
• This is the relational nature of incentives, which, sadly, is frequently ignored.
• The anticipation or expectation of a positive outcome is essential to a person’s level of motivation.
• As a result, the primary objective of motivation ought to be the enhancement of intrinsic motivation.
• Extrinsic incentives can boost intrinsic motivation as well if the quality of performance is rewarded and the activity itself is not particularly enjoyable, to begin with.
• The following are some methods that you might boost your intrinsic motivation:Creating interest and enthusiasm for the acquisition of knowledge by relating it to students’ everyday experiences or to the student’s areas of interest and abilities (for example: “Today we will look at ways to handle criticism – These can put you back in control of a situation, even if the criticism is intended to be hurtful”).Creating curiosity in students by surprising them, using uncertainty, contradiction, or prediction as a springboard into a topic, or displaying something you want to explain to them before you explain it.
• Students may be required to search for their solutions, conduct experiments, or learn about a process through hands-on experience when they are involved in a game or simulation.
• Research has shown time and again how powerful social reinforcers can be.
• It is also crucial to point out their triumphs and demonstrate to them that their hard work is paying off, so make sure to provide them plenty of words of encouragement.
• Use Memory Exercises And Recitation.
• Make Learning Fun.
• It is not necessary to engage in complicated activities in order to maintain a positive attitude towards learning.
• Simply show that you are passionate about the subject you are instructing, and your students will pick up on that.
• There is no guarantee that doing extra homework will result in an increase in learning.
• Therefore, in order to be respectful of the students’ time spent with their families, you should only offer homework that is beneficial and essential.
• If you restrict the amount of homework your students have to complete, you will have more time to concentrate on its quality and will be able to ask more of them.
• Therefore, you should make an effort to assist students in organising their folders, bookbags, and lockers to the best of your ability.
• Think about using your whole brain when teaching.
• It is highly recommended that you learn more about whole brain teaching if you are not already familiar with it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Author

Dr. Olga Abeysekera

Dr Olga Abeysekera, founder of Dr Study Tutoring and the Dr Progress Group Pty Ltd, is passionate about transforming education through innovative and personalised tutoring. With a PhD in Management from Monash University and a background in both academic research and private tutoring, she has a deep commitment to helping students excel.
Her holistic approach at Dr Study Tutoring emphasises not only academic success but also the development of lifelong skills, ensuring that each student receives the best education and support possible. Dr Olga’s dedication to continuous improvement drives her mission to inspire a love for learning that lasts a lifetime.

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