Motivation and its Importance to Teaching and Learning

Authors: TIANSHAN, YIQINGLIANG, KALE, CTANT59, BEIBEI

Overview of Motivations and its Importance to Teaching and Learning

A concise description of your topic with 3 citations

Motivation is what propels students to be actively involved, putting in effort that significantly impacts their learning, involvement, determination, and overall achievement in academics. “Motivation can also be seen as a process of instigating and sustaining goal-directed behavior” (Schunk, Meece. & Pintrich, 2014), because it starts, leads, and maintains actions aimed at achieving goals. “Motivation is not observed directly but, rather, inferred from behavioral indexes such as task choices, effort, persistence, task difficulty and goal-directed activities” (Graham & Weiner, 2012). By observing actions like task selection and determination, we can understand how to apply motivational influences to students’ involvement in valuable learning tasks. “Students are motivated to learn, attend to instruction and engage in such activities like rehearsing information, relating it to previously acquired knowledge, and asking questions” (Schunk & Zimmerman, 2008).

Two misconceptions about this topic

Some people are of the view that extremely brilliant students and teachers do not need to be motivated but rather motivation is for the average students or slow-learners only when it comes to teaching and learning.

There is also this misconception that motivation arrives as a result of an individual passively engaging with motivational video or reading an inspirational book. The question about this misconception will be “What then initiated the person’s desire to either watch the video or read the book?”

What is it about this topic in particular that is of interest to us

Our interest in motivation stems from its profound impact on student success and personal experiences that highlight its transformative power in learning. Understanding and fostering motivation can address diverse student needs, improve engagement and performance, and help educators create supportive and effective learning environments. Amid challenges like remote learning, motivation remains crucial for re-engaging students. Additionally, motivated learners develop lifelong skills, contributing to continuous personal and professional growth. By exploring motivational strategies, we aim to empower educators and students alike, fostering a dynamic and inclusive educational landscape.

Learning Design Plan

Two Big Ideas

Types of Motivation: Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic

Extrinsic Motivation is often made of external, tangible and intangible rewards such as money, trophies, grades, praise from family friends, or social recognition (fame). Extrinsic motivation arises from the outside of the individual. Such external factors compel an individual to engage in a task even though the person does not have the enthusiasm from within to engage in the activity, but just because of the prize at stake or the reward he or she may get, or to avoid being punished for not doing it. For example, Mr. Rice, studying and reading a course material because he wants to get a good grade (grade A). The good grade becomes the driving force behind his reason for studying and reading the course material, otherwise he would not do it.
Intrinsic Motivation can be described as the driving force from within a person. With this type of motivation, an individual engages in an activity or a task purposely for the fun, enjoyment or satisfaction it brings to the person, not the motive of getting any external reward. For example, Mrs. Rice, reading and studying a course material because she finds it fascinating and the utility value she derives from it. She engages with the material not for grades or for praise from anyone.

The Impact of Motivation on Learning Outcomes

Motivation boosts students’ engagement, helps them conquer difficulties, and cultivates persistence and resolve throughout their academic journey.
Motivation drives students to give their best, utilizing successful and productive learning methods that enable them to achieve desired outcomes.
Motivation encourages students to actively engage in class and approach tasks with seriousness and diligence, ultimately reducing mistakes.
Motivation is crucial for building students’ efficiency and effectiveness while enabling independent learning.

Essential Questions and Learning Outcomes

Types of Motivation: Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic

How do extrinsic and intrinsic motivation differ in their impact on learning?
Can extrinsic motivation be transformed into intrinsic motivation? If so, how?
In what situations might one type of motivation be more effective than the other?

The Impact of Motivation on Learning Outcomes

How does motivation influence perseverance in learning?
What is the relationship between motivation and academic performance?
How can educators foster motivation to improve learning outcomes?

By the end of this lesson, the student will/should be able to:

define the concept, “motivation” and state how important it is in teaching and learning.
state the major types of motivation and distinguish between them and give at least 2 examples of each type.
reflective on their own experiences with motivation in learning and how it impacted their performance academically.
evaluate the impact of motivation on peer learning through group discussions and collaborative assignments/projects.
determine the most effective and efficient type of motivation and give reason(s).

Learning Activities

Create a comparison chart: Students list examples of extrinsic and intrinsic motivators in their own learning experiences.
Role-playing scenarios: Students act out situations demonstrating different types of motivation.
Case study analysis: Examine real-world educational scenarios and identify the types of motivation at play.
Group discussion: Share experiences of how motivation (or lack thereof) affected learning outcomes.
Data analysis: Examine research studies showing correlations between motivation and academic achievement.
Design challenge: Create a motivation strategy for a hypothetical struggling student.

Evidence of Learning and Assessments

Achievements

Students submit project reports and commemorative journals demonstrating their interest and involvement.
Students’ project achievements and award records.
Students’ assignments and exam results demonstrating their understanding and achievement of learning objectives.
Students’ tutoring records and group discussion summaries showing their learning strategies and progress.

Assignments

Quiz on identifying types of motivation in given scenarios.
Reflective essay on personal experiences with extrinsic and intrinsic motivation in learning.
Group project: Develop a presentation on strategies to enhance motivation in a specific learning context.
Individual report: Analyze the impact of motivation on personal academic performance over time.