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Motivation plays a fundamental role in learning. Without motivation students can hardly reach their maximum learning potential. Many factors can lead to low motivation levels, such as class anxiety, a broken home, and failure to see a purpose for learning. What follows is a description of an ESL (English as a Second Language) classroom and the different strategies the teacher uses to increase students’ motivation. The class is made up of twenty-four students, fourteen males and 10 females, ranging in ages from 14 to sixteen years of age. Seventy-five percent of them are new arrivals and the remaining 25% have been in the United States for more than two years. Twelve students come from Latin American countries such as Honduras, El Salvador, Mexico and Nicaragua; four come from China, four from Vietnam, three from Korea, and one from India. One of the girls from Mexico has a visual disability, and while she is not totally blind, she is unable to read the blackboard or power point presentations. Most of these students are economically disadvantaged. This group is enrolled in a reading and writing course, but their level of English proficiency varies. One reason for this is that many of them do not speak English at home. Next year these students will be integrated into regular classes where they will be expected to perform at the same level of proficiency as regular students. While some of the students may be able to integrate and even earn acceptable grades, some will find the experience too challenging and may lose the motivation to learn English. It is therefore vital to find as many ways as possible to motivate the students so they can learn as much English as possible. Below is a description of how the teacher is trying to keep the students motivated and interested in improving their English.
One of the most important ways the teacher keeps students motivated is to let them know they are expected to participate in class to the best of their abilities. It is easy for teachers to move the class at the pace of the most extroverted students who can come up quickly with the correct response. In this teacher’s experience students from nonwestern cultures tend to think carefully before responding to questions. It is therefore easy to believe that they do not know the answer to a given question and move on to the next student. For this reason she persists in eliciting answers from the students and to exercise caution and patience in order to bring forth the best in each of them. Every attempt is made to call on students at random; they should never figure out when it is their turn to be called upon to participate. Sometimes the teacher allows the student who was last called upon to select the next student to participate. This adds a bit of suspense to the activity. Students are often divided in small groups to explain concepts that some students have difficulty understanding. The important point is that students are aware that they are not forgotten, that they are not being left behind and that they are expected to participate in class.
The use of appropriate learning materials and prompt feedback on students’ work to ensure high success rates in the classroom. The teacher has noted that the more motivated the students are, the more they benefit from prompt feedback because they get a sense of achievement. Even when students are not as highly motivated, prompt feedback makes them aware that they have to put more effort in their work. This is especially true if parents are involved in their children’s learning. This teacher has found that parents’ involvement is crucial in keeping students motivated. Parents do not need to be fluent English speakers to show interest in their children’s learning. The mother of one of the Chinese students who is highly motivated to learn English, makes every effort to make sure her son attends the available tutoring lessons after school and asks for additional readings to be suggested for her son to practice reading after school. This teacher maintains a careful balance between using grades as a motivating factor and overemphasizing their importance. The teacher often tries to give words of encouragement to all students. She gives encouragement and praise for partially correct answers because she knows that in many cases the teacher can lead the students to the correct answer, often with the help of other students.
One way the teacher maintains high success rates is by selecting reading and writing tasks that are only slightly above the students’ current level of proficiency. This can be challenging in a multi-level class and she often finds it necessary to divide the class into small groups of similar proficiency to avoid frustrating the less proficient students with materials beyond their comprehension. Finding appropriate materials ensures student learning and minimizes disciplinary problems because students are less prone to become bored and engage in disruptive behaviors.
Rewards for student achievement plays a central role in keeping students motivated. A few students are so motivated that they complete their homework, whether assignments are graded or not. However, the vast majority of students do work better when they know assignments are going to be collected and graded. For this reason prompt feedback is an important priority for the teacher. She has found that many students are motivated to complete extra credit assignments, especially when they want to raise their grades. But grades is not the only reward appealing to students. This teacher has discovered that giving students additional responsibilities such as helping her set up activities or draw on the board has worked well as a motivating technique. Another incentive that has shown positive results is awarding the whole class the last few minutes of the class to work on any activity they want; this keeps them focused on their work to enjoy the extra time. Every class is different, but the important point is finding rewards that are meaningful for the students.
