Teach English in Fenglei Zhen - Weinan Shi

Although, this essay is about motivating students, it is necessary to establish the fact that the teacher must be motivated to teach the language and that enthusiasm will be passed on to the students. A motivated teacher is very important in a classroom as motivation helps to energies direct and sustain a positive and successful classroom. Since learning a foreign language is a very challenging venture, it is important to motivate students to ensure that they take an interest in learning the language. Enjoyment is one of the most significant motivators and making classes enjoyable is crucial to the learning process. It is important to start by finding out the students’ interests and then plan the classes around the students’ interests. For example, if the students are interested in nature, then lessons can be planned using nature as the theme. If the students are interested in what is being taught, then it would be easier to get them to participate in the lessons and there would be fewer distractions. In addition, it is important to make students aware of the relevance of learning a foreign language. They would be motivated to learn if they realise that learning a foreign language can enhance their lives. As part of the learning process, they should be informed about the many careers and travel opportunities that would be open to them when they become competent speakers of a foreign language. Students would be motivated to learn the language if they know that competence in the language would increase the job opportunities that are available to them both locally and internationally. It is also of major importance to get students to understand how learning a language can positively impact their social life. Social media is an important aspect of life today. Social media can be used as a motivator for learning a language. Students can be given opportunities to communicate with students from overseas; they can engage in cultural exchanges and they create lifelong friendships. In a similar vein, it is vital to incorporate technology into the language classroom. That would give the students the opportunity to be engaged in interactive learning which is in itself is a great motivator. Students would look forward to their language lessons if the classes are interactive. They would see language as a dynamic force. When a class is motivated there will be great benefits, one of the most obvious is a successful lessons one in which students are willing to learn and participate in all aspect of the lesson and therefore there is less distraction and disturbance which will help a teacher in getting more work done with great enthusiasm from the students. It help build good rapport between teacher and students, causing students to be more open with there teacher, which in turn will help the teacher gain a greater understanding of the strength and weakness of there each student and therefore help him/her to be able to plan the lessons more effectively to meet the needs of the students. It show the student that the teacher actually care about there learning and that their not just there because it his / her job. Motivating students is also beneficial to the teacher as it will leave a good report about you, base on the fact that it tells that you are a good teacher one who cares and is more concern about the learning of your student, it will also give you as teacher encouragement and joy in your career see you effectiveness in what you do. Students who are not motivated usually learns nothing that is being thought and therefore can have negative impact in the classroom, they can cause distraction to those who are willing to learn which can change the dynamics of the classroom, teachers will find it hard to get there lesson across effectively, it may lead to bad rapport between teacher and student, it can cause discouragement to other student who are interested in learning, it can tell the student that the teacher is not really concern with there learning and therefore can cause students to lose respect for the teacher, it also can give the teacher a bad name. There are many reason why students may not be motivated, some of these reason may not be because of student and others may be, but whatever reason it may be, it very essential that the teacher find out those reason, try his/her best to deal with those obstacles and motivate the students to learn. Some of the reason why student are not motivated are: -lack of interest: some of the time it is not of the students own free will but that of his/her parents and therefore students have not interest in what is being thought.  -low self-esteem: sometime students are afraid of being criticize and therefore are reluctant to participate in class activities. -Peer pressure -Uninteresting lesson: the lesson may be boring to some students, with will cause them to loss interest. -Unable to learning: some students may be unable to understand what is being thought, which will also cause a lack of interest -Mental issues. In conclusion motivating student is very important as it will not only tell what kind of teacher you are but will also cause great impact in the life of the students that you come across in your career. It may also change the way a student see learning.