Motivating Students: Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation
Every educator faces the same dilemma when teaching a new group of students: how do I motivate my students to learn? Since students come from diverse backgrounds and have different interests, there is no panacea for motivating them. Teachers have to be able to gauge what motivates each individual student. There are two types of motivation: intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation, as the name implies, comes from within. Intrinsic motivation is more personal and can be the sense of pride a student gets from performing well in his or her favorite subject. For example, if a student aspires to become a mathematician, then he or she will put forth more effort in being successful in geometry. Intrinsic motivation is linked to interests; students who are motivated intrinsically get pleasure from doing certain activities and look forward to learning new concepts (Theodotou 2014).
Extrinsic motivation is the opposite of intrinsic motivation. Whereas intrinsic motivation derives from the pleasure one gets from doing a certain activity, extrinsic motivation stems from the external reward you get for doing said activity (Theodotou). Educators rely heavily on extrinsic motivation to incentivize their …show more content…
Failure can sap a student’s motivation while success often serves as motivation. How students deal with failure is extremely important. If students handle failure constructively it can motivate them to work harder. However, students who are unable to accept failure become apathetic. Success is the best form of motivation. Successful students take ownership of their learning. Since success is so important in building a student’s self-confidence, educators must make sure their pupils experience success (Williams, Williams).
The Role of Goals, Interests, Emotions and Beliefs About the
Every educator faces the same dilemma when teaching a new group of students: how do I motivate my students to learn? Since students come from diverse backgrounds and have different interests, there is no panacea for motivating them. Teachers have to be able to gauge what motivates each individual student. There are two types of motivation: intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation, as the name implies, comes from within. Intrinsic motivation is more personal and can be the sense of pride a student gets from performing well in his or her favorite subject. For example, if a student aspires to become a mathematician, then he or she will put forth more effort in being successful in geometry. Intrinsic motivation is linked to interests; students who are motivated intrinsically get pleasure from doing certain activities and look forward to learning new concepts (Theodotou 2014).
Extrinsic motivation is the opposite of intrinsic motivation. Whereas intrinsic motivation derives from the pleasure one gets from doing a certain activity, extrinsic motivation stems from the external reward you get for doing said activity (Theodotou). Educators rely heavily on extrinsic motivation to incentivize their …show more content…
Failure can sap a student’s motivation while success often serves as motivation. How students deal with failure is extremely important. If students handle failure constructively it can motivate them to work harder. However, students who are unable to accept failure become apathetic. Success is the best form of motivation. Successful students take ownership of their learning. Since success is so important in building a student’s self-confidence, educators must make sure their pupils experience success (Williams, Williams).
The Role of Goals, Interests, Emotions and Beliefs About the