College Students Need to Be Pushed and Motivated

Motivation for Students

The duties and responsibilities of today's instructors in college and university environments go beyond simply presenting material to students. Alert, worthy instructors also understand they need to make sure students succeed, and one component of that effort is to motivate students, to build a fire under them that burns brightly during the learning process. Thesis: Many students today care about grades and a degree; they lack enthusiasm for the learning process. Hence responsibility falls on the shoulders of faculty to employ strategies to motivate students and prepare them for a world in which they cannot cruise through.

Your Persona

Deliver presentations to students with energy / enthusiasm

Make good eye contact -- let students know you're aware of them

Do not stand in front of the class constantly -- move around

Show passion for the material you are presenting

Vary your voice so it does not become monotone

Your course

Explain how the course you are teaching relates to society

Students should know why the material is relevant to them

Eschew facts and focus on materials that stimulate thought

When possible, relate to cultural / ethnic aspects (diversity)

Avoid esoteric, confusing concepts; make it plain, digestible

Your Teaching

Show great interest in the students -- learn their birthdays

Allow free expression of opinions -- emphasis on civility

Foster student success -- build that into your agenda

Find methods to overcome students' resistance to material

Offer rewards to reinforce students' sense of self-efficacy

Your Assignments

Do not make any particular assignment count too much for grades

Focus tests not so much on facts but on conceptual understanding

Test early, test often, but drop the worst score on any test or quiz

Integrate course content that is inclusive of both genders

Offer a choice when it comes to assignments (pick one of 3)

Nilson, 2010

Explanations for the choices listed in the chart

The persona of the instructor should create interest for the students, many of whom may be bored by lackluster lectures; I am a spirited, motivated teacher who knows how to keep students from stagnating; I walk around the classroom constantly and use puns where appropriate. Lively, animated presentations keep student attention focused on what is being offered. Students will gain far more from course work when the instructor relates the material to the big picture of today's world. For example, during a high school class on Asian history, I showed video of the Tiananmen Square massacre during student democracy protests. Interest in the class work perked up dramatically. Dry, passion-less instructors' presentations will go in one ear and out the other. However, teaching by competent, engaged instructors includes taking a sincere interest in students -- beyond their names and their input in class discussion. I knew the birthdays of every high school student in all my classes, and on each student's birthday, he or she received fresh baked cookies or cupcakes (from me) to share with the class. Assignments should be designed not just to test facts and knowledge, but also to gauge students' grasp of the concepts and the relevancy of the material. I gave some take-home essay tests that counted as much as an in-class exam.

Why is Motivating Students Vital to the Learning Process?

Because many students in colleges and universities seem satisfied to glide through courses, playing the role of spectators rather than fully-engaged participants in the educational process, the instructor must create motivational strategies (Lantos, 1997). A certain proportion of students skip classes; they hand in hurriedly prepared research papers and even plagiarize -- and some care more about grades and getting a degree (Lantos, 1997). When students glide through college doing just enough, that slipshod approach, in time, negatively impacts America's economy, which needs a constant influx of bright, motivated, innovative and creative employees.