A Powerful Strategy for Fostering Student Motivation (2024)

Whether in person, virtually, or in some blended or hybrid model, many teachers are finding it more difficult than ever to keep their students motivated to learn. If you’re a new teacher this year, student motivation can be an even tougher nut to crack. I’ve found it helpful to revisit ideas I explored during my teacher training, and one that has been helping me through today’s unprecedented circ*mstances is the ARCS Model. Developed by educational psychologist John Keller, ARCS highlights the importance of attention, relevance, confidence, and satisfaction in stimulating learners and maintaining their focus during learning activities.

For educators looking to improve student motivation, evaluating whether these elements are present in learning is a good place to start. From there, small steps can be taken to apply each element with the help of both tech-based and traditional tools, which can make a notable difference in motivating students and improve outcomes.

Attention

Like all of us, students are more willing to invest their time and focus when they are interested in a topic. Likewise, sitting through the same routine lesson structure day after day can quickly lead to disinterest.

Perceptual arousal: Capture interest with the element of surprise or uncertainty. Storytelling, humor, and active learning experiences are proven ways of grabbing students’ attention, but what about entering text upside down or in code on a slide, posing the opposite point of view from what is expected, or changing the environment, like switching up your Bitmoji classroom background? Give students a jolt of educational caffeine when their attention wanes.

Try this: Begin your lesson—or insert by surprise somewhere in the middle—a photo from the New York Times Learning Network “What’s Going On in This Picture” column or the National Geographic Photo of the Day. Allow conversations to spark interest and thought provocation, and then ride the momentum.

Interest arousal: Stimulate an attitude of inquiry by posing challenges or novel ideas. Project-based learning fits in here, as students are often driven by the desire to solve problems, explore, and create. Explore using shorter-term thinking challenges and brainstorming events that push kids to consider ideas beyond the ones you present.

Try this: Rather than a worksheet or quiz, have students create something during class to demonstrate their application of learning, like a game, a screen cast of their work, or a flipbook, then post their learning to a shared whiteboard space like Explain Everything or Jamboard. Students can then do a digital “gallery walk” through classmates’ projects, leaving feedback and sharing new learning from one another.

Variability: Following the same structure day in and day out can quickly lead to boredom, so mix it up. With kids on devices for much of the day, opportunity for variation is at their fingertips. Have them experiment with a new tech tool you’ve been hearing about, or ditch tech altogether and give kids a screen break from time to time with interesting paper-based instruction or projects.

Try this: Check out Genially, an all-in-one digital tool that enables users to create interactive presentations, animated infographics, games, and more.

Relevance

In order for students to want to learn, they must feel that what they’re learning matters to them. Understanding how a new skill or information is applicable to or will help them now or later on in life can make a big difference in motivation.

Relate to goals: Be explicit in connecting what students are learning with when, why, or how they can use this in the world beyond the classroom. Help students consider and define their own goals, and support them in making connections between their goals and what they’re learning.

Try this: Invite professionals to join your real or virtual classroom (or share sites like this one from The World Science Festival) to demonstrate how what you’re teaching matters in the real world.

Match interests/familiarity: When possible, allow learning methods to align with students’ interests. Author and professor Christopher Emdin, creator of the #HipHopEd social media movement, has integrated science and hip-hop to motivate high school students with great success. Understanding students is key to ensuring relevant instruction for them.

Try this: Engage your students with some fun get-to-know-you-better activities. Many interactive polling tools, like Mentimeter, enable you to poll your class about their interests and instantly display results.

Confidence

When students believe they can succeed and feel positive about their achievements and potential, their confidence increases and motivation improves. Clear directions, useful guidance, and consistent formative feedback help students know what is expected and how to make progress.

Success expectations: Build a positive expectation for success. Enable students to take knowledgeable ownership of their progress by providing them with the steps they need to take to succeed.

Try this: Deploy an interactive rubric, like SmartRubric, to help provide clear success criteria and meaningful feedback in an accessible digital tool.

Success opportunities: Facilitate successful learning by supporting or enhancing students’ belief in their competence. Help students strike a balance between effort and results by giving the opportunity to achieve success through varied and challenging experiences that build upon one another.

Try this: Challenge students to find success while thinking outside the box with a digital escape room. Explore the many great ones (including some that are free) from Breakout EDU or create your own.

Personal responsibility: Provide students with personal control over their success. When people feel their success is based on their own efforts and abilities, rather than on external factors like luck or the decisions of others, their confidence improves. Present choices when possible so that students can select the path for which they feel most prepared.

Try this: Create a digital choice board to engage students with different interests, strengths, and ability levels.

Satisfaction

To sustain optimal motivation, learners need to have positive feelings about their learning experiences and accomplishments. Satisfaction can come from a sense of achievement, value, or inherent joy in the act of learning; from external reward systems or praise; or from the belief in a sense of fairness.

Intrinsic satisfaction: Provide opportunities to apply new learning in personally meaningful ways and foster personal recognition. Allow students to showcase their efforts to increase a sense of accomplishment and share the positive benefits of their learning.

Try this: Teach students how to set up a paper or digital portfolio, and encourage them to add their work to it over time. Portfolios are fun to share with others and work as archives for projects and personal reflection.

Rewarding outcomes: Positive reinforcement and motivational feedback can lead to extrinsic motivation that many students desire. Grades, privileges, certificates, and other tokens of achievement can provide motivating recognition for efforts. Likewise, feedback from peers, teachers, parents, and members of the community at large can be highly satisfying for students who have put forth effort and want others to know.

Try this: Publishing to an online site (with permissions, of course) allows students to see themselves as content creators with ideas worth sharing.

Fair treatment: To feel satisfied, students must feel that there was equity in the objectives, activities, and grades in a learning activity. If they suspect favoritism, bias, or unfairness, students are more likely to be turned off and lose the motivation to learn.

Try this: Elicit student feedback often. Create a quick feedback survey with Google Forms to share with students regularly or to include with major projects. Surveys—anonymous or not—can often give quieter voices a forum in which to be heard and can tune teachers and other students in to perspectives other than their own.

A Powerful Strategy for Fostering Student Motivation (2024)

FAQs

What are some great strategies for student motivation? ›

A List Of Simple Ideas To Improve Student Motivation
  • Give students a sense of control. ...
  • Be clear about learning objectives. ...
  • Create a threat-free environment. ...
  • Change your scenery. ...
  • Offer varied experiences. ...
  • Use positive competition. ...
  • Offer rewards. ...
  • Give students responsibility.
Dec 11, 2021

What is one of the strategies for influencing learner motivation? ›

reinforcing key learning throughout the lesson, which increases self-efficacy as students are clear that they are making progress. giving frequent, positive feedback focused on elaborating what students have learned and understood. attributing success to effort and strategies rather than ability.

How do you foster intrinsic motivation in students? ›

How to Spark Intrinsic Motivation in Your Students
  1. Empower your students with a feeling of conscious choice. ...
  2. Set a greater goal. ...
  3. Reinvent the system of rewards. ...
  4. Forget negative motivation. ...
  5. Beef up your learners' self-esteem. ...
  6. Provide honest and instructive feedback. ...
  7. Encourage collaboration.
Nov 18, 2021

What are the 5 motivational strategies? ›

5 motivational techniques to help you achieve your goals
  • Set yourself a bigger goal.
  • Set smaller goals along the way.
  • Do your research.
  • Get support.
  • Stay positive.

What is the most effective motivational strategy? ›

Praise and recognition

One of the simplest, yet most effective ways to motivate employees is to recognize them for their work and provide positive feedback. Recognizing employees for their efforts will communicate that these employees are valued and appreciated, and that their work doesn't go unnoticed.

How do you foster motivation in children? ›

How to Motivate Children: Science-Based Approaches for Parents, Caregivers, and Teachers
  1. Follow babies' lead. ...
  2. Elicit curiosity. ...
  3. Encourage children's playful exploration. ...
  4. Prioritize social interaction during learning. ...
  5. Challenge children just enough. ...
  6. Give children agency. ...
  7. Provide incentives only when necessary.

What are motivational strategies? ›

Motivational strategies are techniques that promote the individual's goal-related behaviour. Because human behaviour is rather complex, there are many diverse ways of promoting it – in fact, almost any influence a person is exposed to might potentially affect his/her behaviour.

What are the 3 steps of fostering intrinsic motivation? ›

By fostering students' sense of mastery, autonomy, and purpose, teachers can boost their desire and dedication to learn. Author and researcher Daniel Pink divides intrinsic motivation into three components: mastery, autonomy, and purpose.

What are the four strategies which a teacher generally used to motivate students? ›

Positive Outcomes

Give verbal praise for successful progress or accomplishment. Give personal attention to students. Provide informative, helpful feedback when it is immediately useful. Provide motivating feedback (praise) immediately following task performance.

What strategies could a teacher use to help motivate an unmotivated student? ›

11 (more) tips to encourage unmotivated students
  • Better student self talk. ...
  • Stay motivated yourself. ...
  • Work to your students' interests. ...
  • Change layout regularly. ...
  • Know what to say. ...
  • Provide a “why” ...
  • Encourage goal-setting. ...
  • Be clear with instructions.

What are motivational techniques in teaching? ›

Use active learning methods such as the following: (1) Stimulate discussions. (2) Use Socratic teaching (ask the students questions about the topics being covered (3) Assign hands-on or lab tasks. (4) Assign in-class writing, e.g., stating the most important thing the student learned in class today.

How can teachers foster intrinsic motivation? ›

Asking students what they're going to do instead of telling them what to do is a way to instill in them self-direction and, eventually, intrinsic motivation. The key, Palank says, is that students have the ability to choose for themselves.

What are the 3 types of intrinsic motivation? ›

The Three Keys of Intrinsic Motivation
  • AUTONOMY – “the right or condition of self-government”
  • MASTERY – “comprehensive knowledge or skill in a particular activity”
  • PURPOSE – “the reason for which something is done”
May 21, 2017

How do you build extrinsic motivation in students? ›

Extrinsic motivation is external factors that help motivate students to work towards a task. Praise, grades and money are all examples of extrinsic motivation. Teachers using positive phrases is often used in the classroom and is used as extrinsic motivation.

What are the 4 P's of motivation? ›

The 4 P's for lasting motivation are - Passion, Positive Thinking, Patience and Perseverance. You have to be able to know how to motivate yourself to stay with your goals while you are losing weight.

What are the 6 C's of motivation? ›

Turner and Paris (1995) identified 6 factors to consider in your own course design to improve student motivation: Choice, Constructing Meaning, Control, Challenge, Consequence, and Collaboration.

What are the four types of motivational strategies? ›

The combination of these two factors, focus and source, leads to the identification of the four types of motivational strategies: positive-internal, positive-external, negative- internal and negative-external.

What are the three strongest motivators? ›

But it turns out that each one of us is primarily triggered by one of three motivators: achievement, affiliation, or power. This is part of what was called Motivation Theory, developed by David McClelland back in 1961.

What is the most powerful form of motivation? ›

Consistently, prominence, inclusiveness, negativity prevention, and tradition were cited as the most compelling motivators that will humans to strive toward ambitions.

What are the three encouragement strategies? ›

Educators can help boost students' excitement about school work by focusing on three main strategies — using intrinsic motivation, removing extrinsic motivation, and helping learners build self-management skills — as outlined by learning consultant Mike Anderson, according to an article from ASCD.

How do you foster student growth? ›

10 Ways teachers can foster a growth mindset in students
  1. Avoid praising intelligence and sheer effort. ...
  2. Use diverse teaching strategies. ...
  3. Introduce simple gamification elements. ...
  4. Teach the values of challenges. ...
  5. Encourage students to expand their answers. ...
  6. Explain the purposes of abstract skills and concepts.
May 24, 2022

What does it mean to foster motivation? ›

Motivation is an internal state characterized by the adoption of goal-directed behavior (Valle, Núñez, Cabanach et al., 2009). Motivation plays a role in learning because it arouses students' attention and impels them to learn particular content and skills (Glynn, Aultman & Owens, 2005).

What are 3 extrinsic motivational strategies? ›

Extrinsic Motivation Techniques

These include grades, rewards, praise, punishments, public recognition and phone calls home.

How can teachers engage and motivate students? ›

Give specific feedback - give students feedback that focuses on their strengths instead of their weaknesses and be as specific as you possibly can. Make the connection between classroom activities and real-world situations - if students can see why they are studying a specific topic it helps them engage with it better.

What are the three types of engagement that educators can use to motivate students? ›

Student engagement encompasses all the ways in which students interact with school or school-related activities throughout their time in the school system. More specifically, student engagement is made up of three individual facets: behavioral engagement, emotional engagement, and cognitive engagement (Lester, 2013).

How do you motivate an unmotivated child in the classroom? ›

And there are a number of things parents can do to help motivate kids to try harder.
  1. Get involved. ...
  2. Use reinforcement. ...
  3. Reward effort rather than outcome. ...
  4. Help them see the big picture. ...
  5. Let them make mistakes. ...
  6. Get outside help. ...
  7. Make the teacher your ally. ...
  8. Get support for yourself.
Feb 20, 2023

What is the role of a teacher in motivating students? ›

Teachers play a vital role in creating an environment that supports students' learning. They often do this through their support for students' autonomy. By supporting students' choices and interests, teachers help students develop personal interest, involvement, and ownership of their work, which aid in motivation.

What strategy can a teacher use to build student autonomy? ›

Example Strategies:

Offer choices rather than mandating a single option whenever possible. For example, consider having students choose assignments or assessment formats from a menu of different options.

What is an example of motivation in teaching? ›

An example of intrinsic motivation is a student learning new vocabulary words because they love to read. Extrinsic motivation, however, is learning because of external factors. Students may be motivated to learn to pass a test, to gain a reward, or to avoid a punishment.

Should teachers focus more on fostering intrinsic motivation or extrinsic motivation? ›

Intrinsic (or inner) motivation is the reason that drives students, such as passion and curiosity. To be an excellent teacher, we should be able to foster our students' intrinsic motivation and have them appreciate the subject we teach even if it doesn't have evident extrinsic rewards.

What are the three motivational drives? ›

According to the Theory of Needs by David McClelland, there are three main drivers for motivation: a need for achievement, need for affiliation and need for power.

What factors motivate behavior? ›

Motivations can be intrinsic (arising from internal factors) or extrinsic (arising from external factors). Intrinsically motivated behaviors are performed because of the sense of personal satisfaction that they bring, while extrinsically motivated behaviors are performed in order to receive something from others.

How do you motivate students without extrinsic rewards? ›

So how can teachers spark their students' intrinsic motivation?
  1. Know your students. ...
  2. Give them ownership of their environment. ...
  3. Make sure they have a solid foundation. ...
  4. Practice setting goals. ...
  5. Give specific feedback. ...
  6. Tap into their innate curiosity. ...
  7. As much as possible, allow students choice in their work.
Jul 3, 2018

How to move students from extrinsic to intrinsic motivation? ›

Ways to cultivate intrinsic motivation in students:
  1. Rethink Reward. ...
  2. Atlassian Autonomy. ...
  3. Make Mastery Cool. ...
  4. A Higher Purpose. ...
  5. Make students feel like education is a choice, not a requirement. ...
  6. Don't use fear of punishment as a motivator. ...
  7. For learning management, expect self-direction, not compliance.
Sep 4, 2013

What causes lack of motivation in students? ›

Students are demotivated by the structure and allocation of rewards. Students do not perceive the classroom climate as supportive. Students have other priorities that compete for their time and attention. Individual students may suffer from physical, mental, or other personal problems that affect motivation.

What strategies would you use when working with an unmotivated student? ›

Got an unmotivated student? Try these 12 tips
  • Identify their “type” ...
  • Stop effusive praise. ...
  • Highlight the positive. ...
  • Foster a threat-free classroom. ...
  • Take the focus off extrinsic motivation. ...
  • Embrace routine. ...
  • Encourage friendly competition. ...
  • Get out of the classroom.

What is the most powerful motivation for students to succeed? ›

“In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure.”- Bill Cosby. This is one of the many motivational quotes for students to study hard, inspiring students in every possible way. Remember, it is okay to fear failure, but do not let it drive you away from working hard.

What are the four basic types of motivational strategies? ›

The combination of these two factors, focus and source, leads to the identification of the four types of motivational strategies: positive-internal, positive-external, negative- internal and negative-external.

What is motivational strategies in teaching? ›

Motivational strategies – a set of strategies used by teachers to encourage students to engage more enthusiastically in learning activities. Motivation is a person's desire to engage in an activity. Everyone is motivated to do something, whether it be watching TV or running a marathon.

How do you motivate a child who is academically unmotivated? ›

And there are a number of things parents can do to help motivate kids to try harder.
  1. Get involved. ...
  2. Use reinforcement. ...
  3. Reward effort rather than outcome. ...
  4. Help them see the big picture. ...
  5. Let them make mistakes. ...
  6. Get outside help. ...
  7. Make the teacher your ally. ...
  8. Get support for yourself.
Feb 20, 2023

How do you motivate unwilling students? ›

How to Engage a Reluctant Learner
  1. Get buy-in. One of the best ways to engage reluctant learners is to involve them in the decision-making process. ...
  2. Focus on what each student does well. ...
  3. Relate lessons to learners' interests. ...
  4. Present new concepts in bite-size pieces. ...
  5. Be there to support your students.

How do you motivate an unmotivated child? ›

Set reasonable expectations with challenging but achievable tasks. Make sure your children know exactly what is expected of them. For instance, if your unmotivated kids often struggle with homework, make it a habit to go over and explain what is expected every time they have homework.

What motivational techniques a teacher can use to motivate the students in the classroom? ›

Strategies to Motivate Students in the Classroom
  • Build relationships with your students. ...
  • Use examples as often as possible. ...
  • When possible, hand over control to the student. ...
  • Use all types of technology available to you. ...
  • Provide specific praise to students for little things and big things. ...
  • Set up a token or points system.
Oct 4, 2016

What are the 6 P's of motivation? ›

It's imperative that the Six Ps are covered. - Purpose, Process, Process owner, Payment, Periodical review and Payout.

What the most important item for student motivation is? ›

Reward success.

Both positive and negative comments influence motivation, but research consistently indicates that students are more affected by positive feedback and success. Praise builds students' self-confidence, competence, and self-esteem.

What is the most powerful motivation? ›

There are many things that motivate us. But the most powerful motivator of all is fear. Fear is a primal instinct that served us as cave dwellers and still serves us today. It keeps us alive, because if we survive a bad experience, we never forget how to avoid it in the future.

Who is the best motivator for students? ›

Teachers' effectiveness lies in understanding the motivation of learners. The subject teacher is the best motivator at school. Subject teachers are skilled in their specific subjects like Mathematics, Science, Social science, etc. Subject teachers must plan their lessons carefully for effective teaching.

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