Recently, I was able to read the poems that my English 9th-grade students had written on racism. Many of the lines were beautiful and poignant. But I also knew that they were reading for a grade.
I am concerned that, along with the comments I made to acknowledge their hard work and insights, the grade is the one that sends the strongest message about our exchange. Even though it was only a homework assignment, the fact that it was graded meant that there was more at stake than just the quality of the student’s words. I told each student, on some level, that they were writing the poem to get a grade.
The majority of educators are in agreement that grades do not represent the ultimate goal of learning. For various reasons, parents and teachers, in particular adolescents, tend to rely on grades for almost everything they do in school. We fail to understand this message when we look at it from the perspective of students: the constant pressure to finish assignments and learn new things only to forget them later. The obsessive concern about letter grades and what could send them spiralling down.
It’s not surprising that, in this environment and with other factors that affect their well-being as well, many teenagers feel anxious, depressed or frustrated at school. It’s worthwhile asking what would change if we adopted a new approach to education, one that empowers students to develop their interests and values.
The Problem with Focusing on Grades
From sixth grade, the pressure to perform well and get good grades is ingrained in me and other educators. Since grades and competition are an integral part of the education of most students, they are inclined to think in terms that are “extrinsic”. As they get older, many young people find it harder to distinguish between a task’s utility and its reward or punishment. This limits their ability to grow and learn.
In fact, an abundance of research suggests that what psychologists refer to as external regulatory pressure —feeling pressure from someone outside of oneself, usually from a real or abstract authority figure, to act to avoid punishment or get a reward—can reduce our performance quality, limit our awareness, and lower our well-being. Research from decades ago also suggests that tying tasks to rewards, such as grades, undermines the quality of engagement in school.
The Self-determination Theory (SDT) has evolved from the four decades of research by psychologists Ed Deci and Richard Ryan. It is based on evidence from a wide range of cultures and contexts. It posits that three basic human requirements are present: autonomy, competence, and relatedness. According to this view, students at school need space to feel independent, capable of completing tasks, and emotionally connected with teachers and peers. Once these needs are met, it is easier for students to find intrinsic motivation or achieve extrinsic goals.
What would it feel and look like if more teenagers valued what they were asked to do at school rather than being pressured to finish tasks for abstract, external reasons that are often distant? One thing they could do is feel more connected with their authentic interests, curiosity and values. This will make the learning more memorable. This is also more likely for young people to find out what they are passionate about, personally, academically and ethically. If we want to encourage their character development, then we should also nurture their need for autonomy, competence and relatedness.
How can we increase students’ intrinsic motivation
In Supporting Student’s Motivation: Strategies for Success, SDT psychologist Johnmarshall Reeve and his co-authors provide the following guidelines to nurture students’ basic needs in school.
- Consider your students’ perspectives: Take time to express that you value and understand their concerns. This is especially important when they seem to be complaining.
- Encourage students to pursue personal interests. Create projects and tasks that allow them to explore their natural curiosity and interest.
- Present learning activities that are relevant to students’ needs: Include group work, pair sharing, and other ways of relating with classmates. Please encourage students to feel competent by giving them positive feedback during the formative stages of their projects and assignments.
- Explain your reasoning to the students. We build our credibility by being able to explain our expectations and reasoning to them logically.
- Accept and acknowledge negative feelings. It is OK for students to be upset, overwhelmed, and frustrated at times. By responding with compassion when they feel negative, we can create a safe space for them to express their emotions and encourage their resilience.
- Use invitational language as often as you can. Ask students to engage in activities and participate without coercion. Allow them to experience volition and choice and then act on that motivation.
- Show patience: This is the hardest part. We need to show students how we can persevere in difficult situations and feel challenged. Our inner work of cultivating patience and self-compassion supports all that we do as educators.
In order to achieve this, I have been trying out new methods of motivating students in my class. It can be done very easily. After opening the class with journaling by individuals, I invite my ninth-graders to share their thoughts. Every day, different students raise their hands to share their reflections with the group. Even though many of the same students are focused on grades in other situations, they understand that participation is not rewarded. They seem to be motivated by an internal source, and this may also encourage other students to share.
This way, we create a culture of mutual trust and support, where the stakes are that you will be heard and well-received by your teacher and peers. In this context, we nurture our autonomy, competence and relatedness needs, mine and theirs. This seems to be the basis for what follows.
Some of my colleagues are asking, “What about the more difficult tasks that we ask our students to complete?” What can we do to motivate students to work harder?
It is important that students feel autonomous while engaging in an activity. If something is fun and interesting on its own (like writing, drawing or dancing), then not much more is required. The desire to master and become competent fuels the willingness to accept challenges. The more we let students direct their learning, in this state, we call it intrinsic motivation.
Courage in Education
A new course designed for educators will teach you how to foster and feel more courage.
This could be students who self-organize an activity or way of completing a task that serves as an example for others. When we give students leadership roles, they can learn how to run important classroom areas. This empowers them to be accountable and take on responsibility.
What about students who don’t feel motivated to do the tasks we ask them to do?
By following the above guidelines and avoiding coercive practices and language, we can still meet students where they are. Instead of focusing on grades and punishment, we could try to offer positive feedback, encouragement, self-evaluation, and other forms of nonpunitive accountability. This would support the student’s basic needs and provide clear guidance.
The person who seems unmotivated or resistant may be on the verge of making a discovery that will change their life. We build trust when we view students as capable, competent and worthy. This helps them to develop confidence in themselves. Both types of trust promote healthy self-confidence that is rooted in emotional security, which fuels the ability to grow and take risks in the future.
Project-based Learning: The Power of It
It’s not easy. Project-based learning is a helpful tool to help students make this shift. PBL asks them to solve real-world issues and make their own creative decisions. Students can also learn to communicate effectively and offer constructive criticism by working together on a final project. This shifts power away from adults and their control. The opportunity to present your work to experts in the area can add an extra social incentive that could lead to the discovery of new values and interests.
One of the first examples I saw was a series of presentations on the question, “Are we the only ones in the universe?” Students presented their research and opinions to a professor and engineering group, who responded with their own encouraging and sometimes edifying answers. I was able to observe a high level of engagement, and many students were eager to continue learning and debating after the project was completed.
Teachers use PBL as a way to create competitions that motivate students to produce their best work. The prospect of winning is a surefire way to attract adolescents. This strategy can reinforce the students’ dependence on rewards by making them believe that winning a reward is their only goal. Over the years, I have talked to many students who believe that adults only work to earn a paycheck. Those of us lucky enough to be personally invested in our work seem motivated by something more.
When we see rewards as a way to reward ourselves for the hard work we do, we can be very happy. We don’t model this enough for young people. We need to show them that we are connected to our values, interests, and sources of deep care. They also need to hear about us, ask what they value, and give us space for them to explore it. We can inspire our students to strive for more than just A’s by showing them that we care about their interests, values and deep sources of care.
