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This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned:
Motivating students is an important aspect in creating a classroom environment that is the most productive for learning. Some key methods to motivating students, of mid to larger sizes, involves the implementation of reward systems, building a personal rapport, and always maintaining a positive and encouraging attitude towards students and their accomplishments.
Implementing a reward system at the beginning of a course is helpful in allowing students to understand there are benefits to participating, good behaviour is encouraged and lack of effort and bad behaviour are discouraged. Some methods of starting a reward system could involve a graph in the class, where stickers or stamps can be added beside students' names, as they progress throughout the semester or course. Or the teacher can keep track of students individually and give students a progress report on a timed basis.
As students progress, they can be given rewards (trinkets, candy, etc. depending on age) for reaching certain points, or the points can be towards their grades or as a participation mark. Another important aspect is that points can also be taken away for negative contributions. Students can also be given the opportunity to earn points in groups, as well as individually, to encourage them to work together. On a larger scale, if the entire class, as a whole, gets a lot of points a reward for everyone can be given. This gives everyone the incentive to work towards a common goal and encourage each other to participate.
Building a personal rapport is also very important in establishing a productive classroom environment. If students feel the teacher doesn't know their name and doesn't even care whether or not they participate in class, they are less likely to be motivated to participate. A good way to combat lack of motivation is to get to know each student and class as best possible. Get them to make name tags, or read the name tags on their uniforms and refer to them by their names in class. Another method is to collect class assignments and write short individual notes for students. Once the teacher knows the students and classes, they can adapt lessons to their interests to motivate and engage them in class even more.
Rapport doesn't just happen in the classroom, it also happens outside of class time. It's important that the teacher maintains a friendly attitude towards students outside of class, saying hello in the halls, or when the teacher runs into them outside of school. If there are school events, it would be beneficial for the teacher to attend and make small talk with students and see what they're up to outside of class.
Finally, in motivating students, teachers also need to be aware of their own attitude. Everyone has bad days, but it's best to keep negativity out of the classroom. Sometimes students may have difficulty in understanding or classroom behaviour may not be the best, but it's vital that teachers maintain composure and don't yell. It's more effective to try to effectively prompt things in the right direction through encouragement and maintaining a positive attitude. If the teacher tries to run a class with negativity, students will follow suite.
In summary, teachers' attitudes, classroom rapports and reward systems are key aspects to motivating students. They are not the only methods, but rather some that, in my experience, have been incredibly useful in promoting student motivation.
