FROM PAVLOV …..TO FedEx……. TEACHING IN PERU!    Is motivating students becoming more difficult?

By
Flor de María Vila
-
44
915
What makes students listen to us teachers, pay attention, and carry out the exercises we prepare? Motivation?
The immediate answer may be YES! And we may quickly say that to motivate kids means to grant rewards such as happy faces, candies, more points, etc. Nonsense!! First, answer this: Is there anything that you love doing? singing? dancing?, or anything that you will do for free?.  These activities you love doing show the intrinsic motivation that lies behind; nobody has to oblige you to perform any of these activities. That´s the kind of motivation we need to provide because that will help us to achieve our main goal: encourage students and get them to learn.
What happens with the motivation we have provided so far? Is it wrong?
No! It is good. In fact, giving rewards shows our knowledge of the Classical Conditioning Theory by Ivan Pavlov, which is useful in a way. Furthermore, doing this helps students achieve the simplest categories of the cognitive domain such as “remembering” and “understanding” classified in Bloom´s Taxonomy. But how long do we keep students motivated with this approach? Does it work on “difficult” days such as, let´s say, Monday or Friday? Does it work well enough in the last hour of a Friday´s class for instance?  No? Well, the reason must be that the extrinsic motivation provided by the “rewards” is not strong enough to keep them engaged. Actually, the extrinsic motivation generated by having the students associate the reward with “obedience” or “participation” does not have a long effect. Furthermore, we may find out that they are even less motivated if they have to work on activities that demand the use of more complex intellectual skills such as “evaluating”, “creating” or “analyzing” (Bloom, 1994).  For God´s sake! What can we then do?
Daniel Pink (1) points out how extrinsic motivation produces a result on people´s performance and how lasting its effect could be. He quotes Karl Duncker´s experiment, The Candle Problem, which has been used in Behavioral Science. This experiment proves that rewards narrow our focus. Giving rewards is useful when solving clear and simple tasks but not when it is necessary to solve insight, complex problems. In classes, narrowing students´ focus means keeping them working “motivated” to get the prize, NOT TO LEARN. Luckily, some students may learn, but only simple concepts such as new vocabulary. However, when it comes the time to do more complex activities, the stress caused by the need of obtaining the “prize” is too much. This stress narrows the focus, so learners are not able to perform the task. Not being able to accomplish a task causes DEMOTIVATION. Then, students stop trying and the reward is NOT appealing anymore.
So…what keeps students interested in our classes?
Indubitably, motivation should appear before, during and even after we propose any activity.
Before: for instance, the teacher must show a positive attitude from the very beginning. If you do not show enthusiasm for what you are doing, why should students? We need to be coherent, don´t we? Just picture yourself doing what you love doing: singing? dancing? That´s the attitude we should show!!! After: for example, when evaluating the outcome of an activity, make sure to provide feedback first on what was best, praise everybody´s participation and, if possible, find out together with learners what needs to be done to improve it. There are more ideas about motivating before and afterward, and they will be included in another article.
During: Among other things, using higher level of thinking is what keeps students engaged and happy for longer periods. In fact, that is what helps students learn and that´s our main objective, isn´t it? How can we achieve that? First of all, we need to change the focus: make sure that our students commit themselves rather than just obey us.  We need to give them self–direction (autonomy) and they will love carrying out the tasks suggested. Students need to feel that they are taken into account, that their ideas and choices are valued. So what we need to do is to include events such as the FedEx Day (2) , a day in which basically students themselves design what they are going to do (autonomy)  as long as they do something different. This is not utopian at all. Google and many other companies have implemented this kind of day and they have had great results. Schools around the world practice this and the results are amazing!!  Let students decide what to do on Fridays, for instance, and they will naturally feel more motivated; thus, more engaged with our classes. They can decide to do innovative and different kinds of projects of their choice and interest.  For example, they can do some research about their favourite video game, singer, sports, actor, group etc and prepare a talk about that. They can even decide to do the presentation with a video and/or music. They could act out a chapter of a book they are reading at school (part of a reading plan?) They could prepare a speech or debate about “zombies” or life in another planet!! They will need you to help them with the language or to guide them but with less intervention.                                                                                                                                     
These kinds of activities provide not only autonomy but also purpose and mastery. Having an objective is the engine that keeps the car moving. Mastery must be felt and that will lead to try to become better and better; thus, students won´t stop trying to make progress in what they find interesting.
Does FedEx Day really work in Peru?
It is very likely that we have done this on “project day,” for instance, and we may have considered it a waste of time. The students speak Spanish, not everybody works, and so on. How can we make it different? In order to make this FedEx Day more effective and have students use English the most, make sure they work in pairs or in groups of maximum three members. They could also work individually if that is what they need to feel more autonomous. Let them be! Make sure students choose what and how to work. Needless to say: monitor students´ work. Make sure you collect some evidence of both students´ work and the reasoning behind the activity. You can use the model proposed by Pernille Ripp (3). On the one hand, this can be useful to have some sort of evidence of students´ achievement, which may be required by the principal or our pupils’ parents. This may be necessary for them in case they cannot see the project itself.  On the other hand, students will need to use higher cognitive skills by creating, designing, evaluating, recommending, comparing or solving. Remember that the use of these skills is what makes motivation last longer. Isn´t that what we want? Suddenly, you will see your students waiting for FedEx Day. I am sure you will take advantage of that in many ways during the other days. It is worthwhile the try, is it not? Anyway, if you´ve got any questions on how to do this with your class, do not hesitate to write. I´ll be ready to help you take the FedEx flight!!

Regarding the above, please choose any of the following questions and share your thoughts.

1. Although it is true that intrinsic motivation lasts longer, do you think there could be some instances in which extrinsic motivation can be more effective?
2. What works better with you in class: commitment or obedience? Does it depend on where you work? (school or institute)
References:
(1)    DANIEL PINK- About motivation     https://youtu.be/8SXkUvIzMFw
Estimated reading time: 6 minutes, 36 seconds

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

44 COMMENTS

  3. Gracias por tu comentario María del Carmen. Efectivamente, la perseverancia está muy ligada a la motivación y como dice Samuel Jhonson "Los grandes trabajos no son hechos por la fuerza sino por la perseverancia". Ésta es muy importante en el logro de nuestros objetivos sean éstos los planteados en una clase o fuera de ella.

  5. Encourage our students by making them doing something they love definitely will awake their intrinsic motivation and it will last longer and be permanent if their work is prized with words that motivate them to continue producing. So candies can work well, but words be there forever in their hearts.
    I really enjoy the post!
    Regards,
    Diego S.

  7. It has happened to me that when I have given candies or points to my students, sometimes, they are more concentrated on the reward than in the activity indeed. That is why I have always tried to avoid giving these kind of rewards to my students even though, they can work well at certain point.
    On the one hand, I totally agree with the idea of promoting intrinsic motivation over extrinsic because when students enjoy what they do and find a purpose on it, they are definitely going to learn, and that learning will be memorable and meaningful,too.
    On the other hand, I consider there is a lack of knowledge of strategies about how to promote intrinsic motivation, that is why, we (teachers) opt for using the extrinsic one.
    Thank you for sharing this post. I hope you could share some of these strategies some day.
    Regards,
    Leydi C.

  8. when students bring ideas such as tasks, projects, etc.It's definitely assertive to enhance the motivation they could have by themselves..

    I consider both, first I need their obedience in a kind of conditioning way to get something bigger in behaviour and after I can get that , there's when commitment comes , in what way? through the reflection brought by them but where teachers and parent must work together.

  9. Catching Students attention is not so easy that´s the reason why we have to present a variety of activities and also we have to praise them . Rewards let the teacher to motivate students participation during the whole session but we have to be careful the way that we do it, that ´s the reason is better to improve in our student´s intrinsic motivation to make their learning process enjoyable and fun.

  10. What I really like from this article is the information about intrinsic and extrinsic information as a kindergarten teacher I used to prize my students with some happy faces, candies and some motivation words.
    Extrinsic motivation is more meaningful for students because the feel great when they know they're learning.
    According to the FedEx day I'm not agree at all , it's depends on the age and maturity of students.
    I think the kindergarten students are too young to plan what they are going to do in class, they'd think it's a break day instead of the really purpose.
    Kindergarten children work with semi-control and control activities because students need to be guided by a teacher.

    Regards

    Wendy Rosas

  11. I personally think that make the students feel that the lessons or activities they are doing are going to be useful for their lives in the future is really important. Because in that way students will attend to our classes not only to do the activities because they have to but to collaborate and work as a team with the teacher. Everything they know and the ideas they have are as important as what the teacher can provide to them so in that way teachers should always give students the opportunity to speak, help and sometimes guide the class.

    It's ideal in a class to make the students work for commitment than for obedience because it would be more meaningful for them and it will be something that forge a leader spirit en each student that will serve them for their future professional lives.

    Prof. Eleana Flores

  12. It was an interesting article that motivate teachers to find new ways to get more effective and efficient clases. I would like to apply this FedEx proposal because I want my students to feel really motivated,get autonomy and enjoy what they learn.
    Finally, Saint Augustine said, 'The ideal is always beyond', and this is what motivate us to try out this new proposal.

  14. It's very important to know and find out new ways to motivate our Ss and engage them in everyday's lesson. I think the FedEx proposal would be interesting to apply with our Ss but it depends also on the age of the Ss, it could be difficult for very young children to choose what they want to do and how to do it. But in general If Ss do things they really like, it would be more meaningful for them so they are really going to learn.

  15. It's very important to know and find out new ways to motivate our Ss and engage them in everyday's lesson. I think the FedEx proposal would be interesting to apply with our Ss but it depends also on the age of the Ss, it could be difficult for very young children to choose what they want to do and how to do it. But in general If Ss do things they really like, it would be more meaningful for them so they are really going to learn.

  16. Thanks for sharing your ideas. I agree with you in that both are important and that it is necessary to get students´ commitment little by little if that is what you mean. I just wonder which one should come first. Students´ age may be an important factor. For instance, what if you´ve got teenagers, would they always be willing to obey? Let´s think about that.

  21. I couldn´t agree more with you Wendy. FedEx Day is not meant to be for little kids the way I propose it here. Still you may consider taking some ideas from it and adapt them to your classes. Since one of the characteristics of this kind of project allows us to contextualize the language to be taught, we can have the kids practise descriptions by asking them to choose their favourite toy and talk about it, for instance. You will probably need to teach some phrases or words though. One FedEx day for them could be "Talk about your favourite toy". Another could be "Talk about your favourite friend" and so on. The idea is to adapt activities, exercises, etc. Kindergarten students may not be able to follow all the steps but they can still enjoy the day according to their cognitive level and language proficiency. Come on! It´s worth the try!! Keep me posted.

  25. Very interesting! It brought me back memories of my days as a classroom teacher. Motivation is key. I love this innovative FedEx day proposal. We need to empower our students to explore and perform hands on activities. When they are the authors of their learning the whole motivation changes because they own the product. As a parent, I will try this at home. I am sure that age is not a limit, when a challenge is presented, all the juices in our brain star flowing. Thank you Ms Vila for sharing this awesome article. Judith

  26. Definitely, extrinsic motivation is crucial in our Student`s performance in class but it depends how teacher deal with. Teacher`s attitudes is the main key in how succeful will be our students´s extrinsic motivation and why not intrinsic, too. Our main reason as a teacher is to changes student`s mind, let and tell them everyday they`re the best, not only as a pupil if not as a person too.

  27. As a public school teacher, find different ways to motivate my students is a must and the FedEx Day proposal is a great idea. But in my cause I will apply during the achievement day.
    About the extrinsic motivation, what I do is that during the class I play music during the class and I start singing or dancing and in some moments my students too and now I have just realized what relevant was that.

  29. Definitely, the teacher´s role is very important since s/he helps to construct, in most cases, students' knowledge. That's why we need to be prepared and offer our students the best ways to achieve their goal (and ours' ) : learning a language, for instance. Thank you for sharing your ideas Karen.

  30. It's a great idea to play music while students are working. We need to keep in mind that our students are digital natives (Mark Prensky, 2001) which means that they belong to a generation which has grown up with this new technology. Taking into account our students' characteristics, their likes and their needs will help us build a better classroom atmosphere. Thus, motivating them will become easier. Thanks for sharing your experience and ideas Ms. Blanco.

  32. I think all the ideas from this article are interesting, because it make us remember that we should teach our students with things they love,so students are going to feel motivated with the language

  33. I think all the ideas from this article are interesting, because it make us remember that we should teach our students with things they love,so students are going to feel motivated with the language

  38. I consider that both kind of motivations are quite favorable but intrinsic motivation engage students to work or perform an activity just for their own effort and behavior without the desire for some external reward so it is personally rewarding rather than being motivated to perform an activity to earn a reward due to this, the students could be getting used to working just for being rewarded. It’s true that intrinsic motivation lasts longer because it makes students autonomous and confident and you need to improve strategies. Apart from this, as a teacher you should show them enthusiasm, confidence and be respectful. : )

  40. Yes, it is motivation. Although, we as teachers think the extrinsic motivation is that works.
    The sight of this should change, because everybody loves working on tasks, which really enjoy. And, this is called the intrinsic motivation. We must change our believes and thoughts to create new ways to achieve our aims, it means we have to encourage our students to perform activities that they really love and at the same time they learn the language.
    The extrinsic motivation is to reward our students when they perform what we want. Therefore, we praise them with points, candies, etc. when they get the aim of the class or when they obey us or participate in class efficiently. However, when the problems come when they need to get activities that are more complex. For instance critical thinking or evaluating, etc.
    The intrinsic motivation comes from inside. It means, the desire to reach a goal comes from your internal pleasure. To reach this we should show that we really take pleasure in teaching. It helps them to enjoy the class. Moreover, students need to feel that their opinions are taken into count during the development of the class. In this way, they will commit themselves with their learning.
    The fedEx day is an incredible event because they are going to get the autonomy, and they are going to enjoy with the activities that they have chosen.
    Actually, we tend to use extrinsic motivation because it´s easier to have control our activities and students. Even though, we must try to use the intrinsic motivation. I have tried in different activities and I totally agree with you. They commit themselves with the goal of the class. So, I also invite everyone to try it because it is worth.

  41. I think that both of them are important. Extrinsic motivation accurs when we are motivated to perform a behavior or engage in an activity to earn a reward, for example: Studying because you want to get a good grade.
    Itrinsic motivation involves engaging in behavior because it is personally rewarding, essentially, performing an activity for its own sake rather than the desire for some external reward.For example: Solving a word puzzle because you find the challenge fun and exciting.
    Thank you for sharing this article.

Comments are closed.