Motivating Students

One of the most difficult aspects of becoming a teacher is learning how to motivate our students but it is also one of the most important. Students who are not motivated will not learn effectively. While motivating students can be difficult, the rewards worth it. Motivated students are more excited to learn and participate. Teaching in a class full of motivated students is something super enjoyable for teacher and the student too.

If there is one thing we know about our students, it’s that they have short attention spans and prefer now to later. This is especially true at the beginning of the year. We, teachers, have the most power to know how to motivate our students (we need to know them well). We cannot expect the student to be motivated if we are not motivated ourselves. If we want to stay in front of a motivated class we have to be motivated on our own.

Teachers must be creative and be able to make connections between the topic and the student's real lives. If the student doesn't believe that what they’re learning is important, they won’t want to learn, so it’s important to demonstrate how the topic is of importance. Show them and demonstrate how they may use it in their future careers or in their real lives today. Showing them that something is used everyday by people gives it a new importance.