TEFL Kirwin Kansas

As teachers, we understand that it is nearly impossible to teach students who are not motivated to learn. The question is how to motivate students to the point that they can learn effectively. There is a natural power relationship between the teacher and the student. The teacher can demonstrate their power via punishment, reward, or motivation. Motivation “is considered to be the most effective and proactive, so to speak, power relationship.” (Thanasoulas) Generating student motivation is one of the most important jobs of the teacher. Students can be motivated both intrinsically and extrinsically. Students who are primarily motivated intrinsically are in the classroom because they truly want to study and learn (Lile). This is what we might call self-motivated. There is not much the teacher needs to do to help a highly intrinsically motivated student stay motivated; although, any student can lose motivation over time without some reward (Lile). Extrinsic motivation could be in the form of a goal such as studying abroad, a new job, or a promotion. An extrinsically motivated student may be motivated by the reward which may be in the form of a grade or a monetary or gift reward. An extrinsically motivated student may also be motivated by attempting to avoid punishment (Lile). An effective teacher is able to use the above extrinsic motivation as well as extrinsic motivation related to the classroom environment to increase a student's intrinsic motivation. Motivation starts with the atmosphere that the teacher creates in the classroom. First of all, the teacher needs establish good rapport with the students (Thanasoulas). The teacher can establish rapport by being friendly, smiling, and encouraging her students. The teacher can also establish rapport by being patient, kind and showing a genuine interest in the students and their learning. The second necessary part of the groundwork for motivation is a pleasant and supportive classroom (Thanasoulas). A pleasant classroom atmosphere starts with the teacher being well prepared and organized. If a teacher comes to class and is motivated to teach, that motivation will likely be contagious to the students. Likewise, a teacher should be energetic in the classroom and be positive and confident. All of the above traits, when demonstrated by the teacher, could lead to increased motivation in the students (Lile). If the students are anxious about becoming involved in classroom activities, they are much less likely to be motivated to participate (Lile). It is the teacher's job to create a safe environment in which a student can confidently practice their new language. The teacher also needs to foster good rapport between the students or help to create positive group cohesiveness (Thanasoulas). This can be done by using activities in the classroom which help the students get to know each other. It is also important to pay attention to group dynamics when pairing or grouping students for activities. The teacher should notice who works well together. It may be helpful to pair quicker students with slower students or to avoid pairing two students who generally lack motivation. A teacher can generate motivation by listening to the goals of the students (Thanasoulas). If the students are learning what they feel they really need to learn, they will be much more motivated to work at learning in order to retain the information. The teacher should make it a priority to use material that will be relevant to the students, especially if they are adult students (Yoeman). Of course, if the students find the material irrelevant or uninteresting, they will not be motivated to learn. Lessons that involve a variety of activities that capitalize on the students' interests will help to motivate students to participate. Students come to the classroom with varying levels of intrinsic motivation. The teacher cannot do much about the starting level of student motivation. As you can see, however, the teacher has many opportunities to use the classroom environment to set the stage for increasing each student's level of motivation to learn. Bibliography: 1. Thanasoulas, Dimitrios. “Motivating and Motivation in efl.” (accessed 2 May, 2011). 2. Lile, William T. “Motivation in the esl Classroom.” (accessed 2 May, 2011) 3. Yoeman, Dane. “tefl Motivating Students.”< http://www.teflcorp.com/articles/96-tefl-motivating students/285-motivating students.htm> (accessed 3 May 2011)