There’s nothing more motivating than a motivated teacher. Use these 7 tips to become one – and grow your learners
Great teachers are a lot like personal trainers: they know exactly how to motivate those in their care. Observing an engaged class can make the art of motivation appear complex and mysterious. This is mostly because building motivation is a long-term project, ultimately amplified by building strong relationships with students. Here I share seven concrete strategies you can use to build motivation.
1. Narrate joy
When I’m about to teach a new topic, I like to start with a story that builds excitement. ‘My water bottle can keep my water hot for five hours. How on earth can a bottle like this keep my water hot for so long? Isn’t it incredible that we’re going to learn all about that in our next six lessons?’ The more enthusiastic we are about the science we’re teaching, the more excited the students feel about learning. Always find a way to narrate how much you love a topic, even if it’s one you find boring. Enthusiasm is infectious and motivating.
1. Communicate enthusiasm
When I’m about to teach a new topic, I like to start with a story that builds excitement. ‘My water bottle can keep my water hot for five hours. How does it keep my water hot for so long? Isn’t it incredible that we’re going to learn all about that in science?’ The more enthusiastic we are about the science we’re teaching, the more excited students feel about learning. Always narrate how much you love a topic, even if you find it boring. Enthusiasm is infectious and motivating.
2. Ask easy questions while explaining
2. Ask questions
I am a big advocate of using questions I call checks for listening. They’re easy for students to answer because they do what they say on the tin. ‘The three states of matter are solids, liquids and gases. What are the three states of matter?’ Once correctly answered, flip the question: ‘Solids, liquids and gases are called the three … what?’ The more opportunities you give your students to answer such questions, the more opportunities you create for them to feel successful. Success breeds motivation.
3. Give lots of praise
Reward the behaviours you want to see more of. Answered a check for listening question correctly? ‘That’s a merit for you.’ Asked a fascinating question? ‘Sir, if positive charges repel each other, then how do the protons remain in the nucleus together?’ ‘What a brilliant question! You are thinking like a scientist – a merit for you!’ Make sure your praise is really warm: if your face lights up, you give a thumbs up and you’re genuinely proud of your student, then they will feel the authenticity.
3. Give praise
Reward behaviours you want to see more of. Answered a check for listening question correctly? ‘That’s a merit for you.’ Asked a fascinating question? ’Thinking like a scientist – a merit for you.’ Make sure your praise is really warm; your students will feel the authenticity.
4. Don’t play guess what’s in my head
If a question requires knowledge students haven’t acquired in class, you’re only motivating students who acquired that knowledge elsewhere (home, usually). Some parents take their children to museums every summer, fill their homes with books and watch David Attenborough together. Other families might not. It’s easy to guess which student is likely to be rewarded for answering the question: ‘Does anyone know what the biggest animal migration event in the world is?’ Who will feel motivated by it? More importantly, who might feel demotivated?
4. Don’t play guessing games
If a question requires knowledge students haven’t acquired in class, you’re only motivating students who acquired that knowledge elsewhere (home, usually). Some families go to museums and watch David Attenborough together. Other families might not. It’s easy to guess which student is likely to be rewarded for answering the question: ‘Does anyone know what the biggest animal migration event in the world is?’ Who will feel motivated by it? More importantly, who might feel demotivated?
5. Culture curiosity
The more you know about a topic, the more curious you become. So, explicitly teach lots of knowledge, rehearse it, and you’ll see curious questions shoot up. Teachers often use student questions as a gauge of curiosity before explicit teaching. However, this is simply repeating the mistakes in point 4. Students need knowledge before they can be curious.
6. Show students the link between hard work and knowing lots
Test students frequently so they can see their hard work translate into success. After all, seeing is believing. For example, teach acids and bases, rehearse the knowledge lots in class and set homework that requires embedding knowledge of acids and bases. Then, test on acids and bases. When students succeed, praise what they remember. This powerful cycle shows students that becoming smarter is both possible and desirable, and shatters demotivating illusions about innate intelligence.
6. Let hard work do the work
Test students frequently so they can see their hard work translate into success. After all, seeing is believing. For example, teach acids and bases, rehearse the knowledge lots in class and set homework that requires embedding the knowledge. Then, test on the topic. When students succeed, praise them. This powerful cycle shows students that becoming smarter is possible, shattering demotivating illusions about innate intelligence.
7. Praise errors
In Teach like a champion, the author writes about how the best teachers create a culture of error in their classrooms. ‘Thank you for sharing that mistake! It’s one I see in my classroom all the time’ or ‘That’s not correct - but I’m so glad you made that mistake. We can all learn from this’ is common parlance in the most motivating classrooms. Keep these phrases up your sleeve and whip them out the next time a student says, ‘Particles in a solid have no motion’.
I hope the concrete nature of these strategies has motivated you try them out with your next class. After all, there’s nothing more motivating than having a motivated teacher.
Great teachers create a culture of error in their classrooms. ‘Thank you for sharing that mistake! I see it all the time’ or ‘That’s not correct - but I’m glad you made that mistake. We can all learn from this’ is common parlance in the most motivating classrooms. Keep these phrases up your sleeve and whip them out the next time a student says, ‘Particles in a solid have no motion’.
I hope the concrete nature of these strategies has motivated you try them out with your next class. After all, there’s nothing more motivating than having a motivated teacher.
Pritesh Raichura
Pritesh Raichura is head of science at Ark Soane Academy in London and blogs about education in his spare time
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