Motivation

Welcome back!

What would you think is the hardest part about teaching a class full of seniors? If you answered senioritis, you are correct!! According to Mr. M., a lack of motivation, especially this time of year, is the hardest part about teaching his Anatomy & Physiology class. 

The first problem that comes about is the students actually showing up to class. On the days I observed, it was typical to have about 4-5 students absent. Mr. M. can only do so much when it comes to making the students come to class other than marking them absent and having administration deal with it. He tries his best to motivate students to come to class by giving away easy points every class for simple participation activities. Mr. M. told me that as long as the students come to class, they're almost guaranteed a good grade. I think this is a good practice because it gives the students some flexibility and is a win-win for both teacher and student. 

When the students perform well in class, Mr. M. is top notch at giving praise. I have observed Mr. M. giving his freshman Biology students high-fives and telling them good job when they answer a tough question. Why this might not seem like a lot, the students really seem to feed off Mr. M.'s positive energy and feel good about themselves. 

In his senior Anatomy & Physiology class Mr. M. gives praise in the form of verbally calling out the student in front of the class and telling them good job as well. His praise for his senior and freshman class is very similar and both sets of students seem to react very well. His seniors also get praise in the form of privileges in the classroom. An example of this is getting to hold one of the bearded dragons or feeding one of the bearded dragons.

I think Mr. M.'s form of praise works well for him because of how positive his energy is when giving praise. If Mr. M. acts like a student answering a question is the best thing in the world, they are going to feel like it is the best thing in the world as well. Feeling like they did a good job in turn motivates students to answer more questions and try harder in my opinion. When I have my own classroom, I feel like it is very important for me to try and remember to always have positive energy that the students can feel. 

How do you praise your students when they do a good job?

Danielle