Motivation Matters
Motivation Matters covered what works, and what doesn’t work, to motivate students to do better in school. This blog is no longer being updated, but you can continue to explore these issues on edweek.org by visiting our related topic pages: student motivation & engagement.
Science
Alvin Toffler on Student Motivation
"Why is everything massified in the [education] system, rather than individualized in the system? New technologies make possible customization in a way that the old system--everybody reading the same textbook at the same time--did not offer."
Student Achievement
A Promise Fulfilled
In a Nov. 10 post about a review of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol S. Dweck, I promised that I would read this book. The review was very positive, but I wanted to pass my own judgment.
Student Achievement
"I Don't Care!"
The challenges rookie teachers face are well documented. They have to design lesson plans, master new curricula, and learn to navigate the oftentimes tricky politics of school life.
Education
Customized Learning Plans for ALL?
Students in special education programs benefit from having individualized education plans, or IEPs, which are customized to meet their learning needs.
Recruitment & Retention
Motivated by Money
"Show me the money!"
That's the motivational slogan teacher Geralyn Raach uses with her 3rd graders at Central Elementary School in Coshocton, Ohio, to entice the youngsters to work harder, according to a recent story in Education Week that details an unusual research experiment in that Ohio district to pay students modest cash awards for passing or doing well on state exams.
That's the motivational slogan teacher Geralyn Raach uses with her 3rd graders at Central Elementary School in Coshocton, Ohio, to entice the youngsters to work harder, according to a recent story in Education Week that details an unusual research experiment in that Ohio district to pay students modest cash awards for passing or doing well on state exams.
Student Achievement
Respect the Gift
The tale of the hard working immigrant teenager who balances the demands of school with the responsibilities of home has been told so many times that it has become a predictable narrative that many readers look at and say: "I've seen that story before."
Student Well-Being & Movement
Football, Coaching, and Student Motivation
As the loyal readers of this blog are well aware, one of my areas of interest is the motivational philosophies and tactics sports coaches use to build strong teams that might also be utilized in the classroom to raise student achievement.
College & Workforce Readiness
The Education Payback
A story published the day after Christmas in the Chicago Tribune titled "Schoolwork Beats the Working World" recently caught my eye.
Education
Learning That Flows
If you haven't read about the concept of "flow" in learning, you should take a look at a recent commentary in Education Week titled "Schools That 'Flow'."
Recruitment & Retention
A Study of Hope
If you believe that intrinsic motivation is a prerequisite for success in school, then you should check out a research effort spearheaded by Mark Van Ryzin, a teaching assistant at the University of Minnesota's College of Education and Human Development.
Education
Competitive Lessons
To appreciate how passionate some kids are about student academic competitions, you need only watch the National Spelling Bee on ESPN. Those boys and girls in that competition are engaged 100 percent in what they are doing. Other academic events, such as the Siemens-sponsored science competition,, showcase some of the most motivated students in the nation.
Science
Grooming Future Einsteins
In my post from Nov. 27, Sad About Science, I wrote about the struggles of getting students motivated to study science.
Education
Motivated by Choice?
As a reporter and editor, I have always experienced school choice in a rather abstract way, writing about it as an outsider with no stake in the outcome. To be sure, that helped me maintain my objectivity about a topic that can be very divisive and controversial.
School & District Management
Sad About Science
"My general impression is one of extreme disappointment," Gerald Wheeler of the National Science Teachers Association told Education Week after the release this month of a federal study showing that students in urban schools struggled with relatively basic tasks in a test of their science skills. "I can't imagine these kids surviving in a scientifically literate society."