MOTIVATING YOUR STUDENTS

Every educator can use pointers when it comes to inspiring students. Here are some ideas on what you can do to encourage your students and keep them motivated to learn.

It’s very important to help your college-bound students:

• Recognize the importance of earning good grades.
• Encourage them to put special effort into math, language, science and technology classes.

Other things you can do include the following:

• Administer and interpret a short interest inventory of your students.
• Provide leadership training to all your students.
• Consider conducting a ropes course with the students.
• Tour local businesses, colleges, and cultural events with students.
• Hold a college and career fair.
• Provide tutoring opportunities.
• Encourage participation in a mentoring program.
• Organize a volunteer project with your students.
• Provide general information about college on a regular basis.
• Conduct informative parent workshops to share vital academic information.
• Provide parent and student financial aid counseling.
• Provide curriculum seminars to educate your students’ parents about classes.
• Monitor grades, class schedules, and attendance records.
• Talk with students about what they read.
• Encourage students to reach for their dreams.

To further help you help them, we’ve also found that students do best when:

• They have a choice of topics, projects, or papers to write within the boundaries of the class.
• They go on stage with their work, explain it and have other students, teachers, and adults see it.
• They have to evaluate each other's work and redo their own work until it meets standards.
• They research a topic of their choice, review several sources, organize the information, write and present a final product that is evaluated against a clear set of standards that were given to them before they began the project.
• They participate in planning their studies.
• They observe academic concepts and ideas being used in the real world through job shadowing, field studies, and internships, etc.
• They produce portfolios of their best work.
• They apply academic concepts to address real-world problems, topics, or issues.
• They have options about the ways they can demonstrate their understanding of academic and technical concepts.
• They complete challenging assignments that have value to them.
• They are enrolled in classes they believe are challenging.
• They know that teachers will not allow them to get by without doing the work.
• Teachers are well prepared and do not rely upon textbooks.
• Teachers do the unexpected.
• Teachers get involved and take a special interest in them.