Student Motivation and Engagement

Strategies for 1st Graders

Kelly Champ
ELM-250
August 27, 2017
Instructor Kristina Hesch-Grover
 Motivation in the Classroom
 “Motivation is something that energizes, directs, and sustains behavior; it gets
people moving, points them in a particular direction, and keeps them going. We
often see students’ motivation reflected in personal investment and in cognitive,
emotional, and behavioral engagement in certain activities” (Ormrod, 2014, p.
334).
 Student motivation supports the learning process and challenges students to think
beyond what they are capable of.
 Student motivation can enhance performance in many different ways. Some of
these may include:
- Demonstrating more effort and focus when learning
- Having higher academic achievement
- Displaying more positive emotions
- Becoming interested and engaging in learning opportunities
- Exhibiting a higher level of self-confidence
 Motivation in the Classroom

 There are two types of motivation in students: extrinsic and intrinsic

 Examples of extrinsic motivation (more concrete and tangible):
- Awards
- Grades
- Promotion to next grade level
- Praise
 Examples of intrinsic motivation (come from within; starts with understanding ‘self’):
- Participating in specific activity because of enjoyment
- Taking part in meaningful learning experiences
- Wanting to become better at a certain skill
Strategy #1: Developing Respect and Trust
 Developing a teacher-student relationship built on mutual respect and trust sets
the foundation and tone for a positive, engaging learning environment
throughout the year.
 Building respect and trust means:
- Teacher takes the time to connect with each student (as individuals and
learners)
- Having meaningful conversations (i.e. interests, difficulties, etc.)
- Understanding and supporting students’ needs, both personally and
academically
- Creating a safe classroom environment where all students can feel
comfortable to take risks and make mistakes
 Through respect and trust, students will be able to understand that the teacher
genuinely cares, wants to help, and will consistently support.
 Builds confidence in student and demonstrates commitment to their overall well-
being.
Strategy #2: Reflection and Efficacy Beliefs
 It is essential that teachers constantly visit and reflect upon their own viewpoints
about their efficacy abilities.
 This belief has a direct effect on how a teacher may give instruction, model, and
plan lessons.
 According to the article, “Rural High School Teachers’ Self-Efficacy in Student
Engagement, Instructional Strategies, and Classroom Management”, authors
Shoulders and Krei, restate, “Teachers are more willing to try innovative
instructional practices when they have confidence in their teaching ability and
are highly satisfied with their practice (Rubie-Davies et al., 2012)” (Shoulders &
Krei, 2015, p. 52) .
 When teachers have this understanding of self, he/she is able to better meet the
needs of students through:
- Adaptation of instruction based on one’s own strengths
- Practice, improve, and build confidence in areas of weakness
- Differentiation of instruction
- Creating novel learning experiences that focus more on the process of learning
 Strategy #3: Set High Expectations
 At the beginning of the year, teachers should set high expectations for students.
 These should be realistic, yet challenging enough to push students beyond their limits and own
expectations.
 It is important that the teacher makes it clear and concise and reexamines on a regular basis to
validate and remind.
 Within the boundaries of setting high expectations, students need to learn to take responsibility
and own their education.
 Two specific strategies that teachers can implement to support students include:
- “No Opt Out”
- When a student does not have an immediate answer, the teacher will come back to him/her
for another opportunity to respond.
- “Wait Time”
- Teacher waits 3-5 seconds to allow students to think and compose a
thoughtful answer before allowing them to discuss aloud.
[From Lemov’s, “Teach Like a Champion: 49 Techniques That Put Students on the Path to
College”]
 When used in sequence of “Wait Time” then “No Opt Out”, students have the opportunity to
process the question first, respond appropriately, and if necessary, [teacher] will come back to
student. Each person is then held accountable and should be prepared to answer.
 Strategy #4: “Stretch It”

 “Stretch It” is an effective strategy for teachers to extend students’ thinking and
informally assess what they know.
 Understand how students make relevant connections and challenge ‘under-the
surface’ thinking and skills.
 Examples of questions or ideas that pose inquiry and deeper-level thinking:
- How/why questions
- Open-ended questions
- Asking for a different way to answer; knowing there are different ways to get to
an answer
- Applying a learned skill or specific vocabulary term/phrase into response
- Using specific evidence and details to support reasoning and understanding
 Strategy #5: “The J-Factor”
 Lemov states in the “Teach Like a Champion article, ”Including joy in the work of
learning is part of a high-achieving classroom” (Lemov, 2010, p. 8).
 Especially when working with younger students, it is vital that educators use humor
and joy make the learning fun and more engaging.
 Teachers can incorporate ”The J-Factor” by:
- Implementing games (instruction, assignments, discussions, etc.)
- Building anticipation through suspense and surprise
- Phrasing language a certain way
- Offering choice
- Allowing some projects and assignments to be created by the students within
particular boundaries
- Creating welcoming and appealing spaces within the environment
- Being present in the moment, having fun, and laughing together!
 Strategy #6: “Precise Praise”

 Young children feed off of praise and it helps to build confidence and
motivation.
 Teachers often use it as positive reinforcement.
 When giving praise to students, it should be specific to the task and/or
the child.
 Praise effort, not ability!
 Do not praise students for the little things or for something that you
expect them to do. Over-praise has no effect on students and becomes
undervalued.
 Make sure that your comment is relevant and meaningful in that
moment, so that the student can appreciate it more.
 Strategy #7: Collaboration
 Collaboration throughout the day is a key factor for keeping students engaged and
participating.
 When students work together, they are able to:
- Gain insight into new perspectives
- Develop interpersonal skills
- Reason
- Encourage a sense of combined responsibility
- Empower self and develop resiliency
 There are multiple ways to incorporate collaborative experiences. The teacher must
evaluate the situation, purpose, and goals to determine which one to use.
 One effective collaboration strategy that I implement is the jigsaw method.
Student Engagement Strategies Statement
In my future classroom, it is essential that I create and encourage an
environment that promotes active participation and engaged learners. In doing so,
my goal is for students to develop a strong sense of self, take ownership of their
educational experiences, while focusing on academic content and fostering skills to
enhance social/emotional well-being and overall development.
The seven strategies and techniques that I will implement into the classroom to
increase student engagement include: building mutual sense of respect and trust,
reflecting on self-efficacy, setting high expectations for students, “stretch it”, “the j-
factor”, “precise praise”, and collaboration. The first two (building respect and trust
and setting high expectations) solidifies the foundation and tone for the year. Once
these are clearly established, students should feel safe to take risks and make
mistakes. Creating this type of atmosphere allows all students to be expressive and
enthusiastic, and celebrate the learning that is taking place, while having fun. Also, I
believe that collaboration is another key factor in progressing towards consistency in
student engagement. When students have the opportunity to work together, they
are able to comprehend peers’ perspectives, strengthen interpersonal skills, relate to
one another and build a sense of belonging in the community, and share the sense
of responsibility to reinforce accountability. Student engagement is significant
because it allows for deeper-level learning and thinking to occur, which directly
affects academic achievement, personal development, and nurtures life-long
learners.
 References
 Amador, J. and Mederer, H. (March 2013). Migrating successful student
engagement strategies online: opportunities and challenges using jigsaw
groups and problem-based learning. MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and
Teaching. Volume 9 (Issue 1). p. 89-105. Retrieved from
http://content.ebscohost.com/ContentServer.asp?T=P&P=AN&K=90223496&S=R
&D=ehh&EbscoContent=dGJyMNHX8kSeqLQ4v%2BvlOLCmr0%2BeqLBSsKi4Ta%2
BWxWXS&ContentCustomer=dGJyMPGusUuxp7dOuePfgeyx43zxpwAA

 Lemov, D. (2010). Teach like a champion: 49 techniques that put students on

the path to college. The Main Idea. p. 1-11. Retrieved from
http://www.boyd.k12.ky.us/userfiles/496/Classes/27400/Teach%20Like%20A%20
Champion%20-%20The%20Main%20Idea.pdf
 References
 Ormrod, J.E. (2014). Motivation and affect. In Educational psychology:
developing learners. Available from https://viewer.gcu.edu/PNZ3EF

 Rubie-Davies, C. M., Flint, A., and McDonald, L. G. (2012). Teacher beliefs,

teacher characteristics, and school contextual factors: what are the
relationships? British Journal of Educational Psychology. Volume 82(Issue 2). p.
270-288.

 Shoulders, T. and Krei, M. (Fall 2016). Rural high school teachers’ self-efficacy in
student engagement, instructional strategies, and classroom management.
American Secondary Education. Volume 44 (Issue 1). p. 50-61. Retrieved from
http://content.ebscohost.com/ContentServer.asp?T=P&P=AN&K=111417014&S=
R&D=a9h&EbscoContent=dGJyMNHX8kSeqLQ4v%2BvlOLCmr0%2BeqLBSsKe4TLS
WxWXS&ContentCustomer=dGJyMPGusUuxp7dOuePfgeyx43zxpwAA