I have been looking into motivation with some of my Year 9 GCSE students. Unlike my other GCSE group this class only contains Year 9 students. This group can be a little up and down. Quite often they can be brilliant but occasionally they seem to lack focus and motivation. I decided to focus on the brilliance and asked four students in the group - "What motivated them in my lessons?" This I hope will then allow me to increase the motivation and engagement of the group. No group can be brilliant all the time but some groups are never brilliant. With that in mind I hoped to develop the engagement in this group but also learn a few lessons that could be applied to my teaching in general.
"Getting actively involved makes it more interesting"
This is something that I have really tried to develop this year. Lydia gives several examples. Firstly, she talks about the video which looked at using boys and girls to demonstrate how FDR tried to 'pack' the Supreme Court.
This group got into this activity and really tried to imagine what it might have been like.
I have tried to develop this approach to teaching and it seems that it has been well received. Getting students up and about and not simply sat at the desks clearly is motivational and it is something I am going to continue to develop. I hope to use co-construction (see other blog post) to develop more of these types of activities.
"New Technology has helped a lot"
Rob explained about the use of new technology. I have my own YouTube channel and we have made Wiki's. As Rob mentions, this has helped with revision as it has given the students access to a variety of learning styles with which to revise from. Added to that when we were outside in 'the trenches' the students used their mobile phones to record their thought and feelings.
Whenever students use their mobile phones they are instantly engaged. We then, using a hashtag and a visible tweets website, collated the students ideas when we returned to the classroom.
"Teachers taking risks"
Sammy explains the impact of teachers taking risks. She says the group is 'intrigued' when the teacher is trying something new. I have always tried to take risks. Writing this blog, using twitter, make class videos for YouTube, going out on a muddy rugby field pretending we are in France etc... These are all examples of me going out of my comfort zone. How can we keep asking students to try new things and ways of working if we do not embody that principle ourselves? We all know that we learn much more when we take risks.
"Student led learning"
Ellen explained the impact of student led learning. She believes that it is better to be taught by her peers than by her teacher. I regularly use YouTube and get groups of the class to produce videos that explain an aspect of a topic. The students then watch each others videos and produce notes or complete worksheets for homework. We have done this for intolerance in the 1920s USA and the New Deal. Here is one about entertainment in the 'Roaring Twenties'.
This is what they said:
"Getting actively involved makes it more interesting"
This is something that I have really tried to develop this year. Lydia gives several examples. Firstly, she talks about the video which looked at using boys and girls to demonstrate how FDR tried to 'pack' the Supreme Court.
Lydia also mentions a depression game which involved creating our own 1920s economy in the classroom to highlight the overproduction problem within the consumer goods industries. Finally, she mentions us acting out a trench attack on the tennis courts. I also stood students on the school field to try to get them to imagine what it would be like to go 'over the top' in the First World War.
This group got into this activity and really tried to imagine what it might have been like.
I have tried to develop this approach to teaching and it seems that it has been well received. Getting students up and about and not simply sat at the desks clearly is motivational and it is something I am going to continue to develop. I hope to use co-construction (see other blog post) to develop more of these types of activities.
"New Technology has helped a lot"
Rob explained about the use of new technology. I have my own YouTube channel and we have made Wiki's. As Rob mentions, this has helped with revision as it has given the students access to a variety of learning styles with which to revise from. Added to that when we were outside in 'the trenches' the students used their mobile phones to record their thought and feelings.
Whenever students use their mobile phones they are instantly engaged. We then, using a hashtag and a visible tweets website, collated the students ideas when we returned to the classroom.
What Rob doesn't mention is that new technologies have really helped with the active learning that Lydia is talking about. The video on FDR and the Supreme court is a clear example. The students were not only motivated by the activity at the time but its impact was increased massively by the fact they could watch that part of the lesson back whilst revising.
Rob also mentions the use of RealSmartCloud (@SmartAssess) which I have chosen not to include because it is not something that can be accessed by everyone. That said I will obviously continue to use this software as Rob has shown that it has a motivational Impact.
I firmly believe that as well as teaching a subject my lessons should be preparing students for the world they are going to live in. New technology needs to be embraced. Not only is it engaging but it is providing essential life skills. Schools where YouTube is filtered and mobile phones are banned are not reflecting the real world.
"Teachers taking risks"
Sammy explains the impact of teachers taking risks. She says the group is 'intrigued' when the teacher is trying something new. I have always tried to take risks. Writing this blog, using twitter, make class videos for YouTube, going out on a muddy rugby field pretending we are in France etc... These are all examples of me going out of my comfort zone. How can we keep asking students to try new things and ways of working if we do not embody that principle ourselves? We all know that we learn much more when we take risks.
"Student led learning"
Ellen explained the impact of student led learning. She believes that it is better to be taught by her peers than by her teacher. I regularly use YouTube and get groups of the class to produce videos that explain an aspect of a topic. The students then watch each others videos and produce notes or complete worksheets for homework. We have done this for intolerance in the 1920s USA and the New Deal. Here is one about entertainment in the 'Roaring Twenties'.
Videos such as this are much more engaging than listening to me. They are also great fun and allow the students creativity to come out. Doing this kind of student led activity is not a new thing, but using YouTube really increases the lasting impact of the activity.
To conclude, I would like to firstly thank the four students involved in the video for giving up their lunchtime to come and discuss this issue. Secondly, I hope that by listening to them I will increase the motivation in my class but also, more importantly, show that I value their opinions and see the importance of their role in the learning process.