Motivation: how to
How to choose your motivation strategies
When it comes to motivation, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Different groups of students, different subjects, different classroom settings, and different individual teachers all play a role in choosing the right strategy. Before browsing specific good practices on the Good Practices page, it may be helpful, therefore, to consider the more generic guidelines below. You can apply these to your own case-specific professional experiences and insights to give you a starting point. Note that there is some overlap between the categories.
When to use |
Drawbacks |
Examples |
|
Extrinsic motivation |
Rote tasks, anything that emphasises repetition and practice rather than understanding
|
Focus not on content; not memorised long-term; some forms perceived as childish
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Rewards; punishments; gamification
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Intrinsic Motivation |
Higher-level thinking skills; promoting autonomy and responsibility; long-term growth
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Difficult reaching students in larger groups; individual student differences; can be (much) more work for teachers
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Offering choices; voluntary assignments/activities; relating subjects to students’ own life
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Internalised Motivation |
Changing students’ perspective on topics and tasks; “teaching” enthusiasm; promoting autonomy
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Individual student differences; can be difficult in larger groups; rivalling internalisation from other sources (friends, culture, family, media)
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Relating subjects to students’ own life; use of cliff-hangers; use of humour
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Autonomy Support& Relatedness |
Promoting autonomy and responsibility; supporting need for relatedness; learning to connect course to own life; (helpful) student perspectives in course evaluations
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Not suitable for all students; often not suitable for fitst-year students; may lead to time-consuming discussions about course structure; depends on subject (methods courses less suitable)
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Peer-feedback on assignments (See Teacher story by Toni Pape); providing reasons for assignments and course components; putting students in charge of processes (emphasis on end result)
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Autonomy Support & Competence |
Promoting autonomy and responsibility; supporting need for competence
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Not suitable for all students; often not suitable for first-year students; can mean more work for the teacher if things go wring; only suitable for stand-alone assignments
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Offering choices; voluntary assignments/activities; putting students in charge of processes (emphasis on end result)
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