Phys. Ed.

Motivation

Physical Education Motivation

Motivation:
Intrinsic motivation can increase participation and effort in a PE class
but it also helps create a desire to compete, play, and practice in and
outside of the PE class. This motivation helps push students towards
the section D portion of the curriculum, Do it Daily for Life. Building
intrinsic motivation may require extrinsic factors at the start, when
students may not be self-motivated. Some students may be inherently
self-motivated, for those who are not it is important to build a
classroom that is conducive to building intrinsic motivation. There is a
lot of work that goes in to creating an intrinsically motivated class.
Starting from day one there needs to be a goal in mind, a set of rules,
and guidelines that will develop a students motivation. The following
master list of the methods is what I used to create an intrinsically
motivated classroom.
The Motivation Master List:
1. Good Classroom Management
Starting from day one it is important to have good
classroom management; from there you can build some
rapport, relationships, and a positive atmosphere in class.
My goal when managing a class is to create routines, set
clear expectations, and keep students informed on what
each day has in store. When students start following
routines and understand expectations the class will begin

Phys. Ed. Motivation

to develop accountability to be in class and participate.

Once students start buying in to this method it can begin
to motivate the entire class.
See. Appendix A for more comprehensive list of steps for
classroom management.
2. Creating Positive Relationships with Students
If students see the teacher as someone who cares and is
willing to put in the time for them, they will be more willing
to reciprocate the effort in class.
It is important to make a point every day to talk to the
students about their life outside of school and get to
actually know the student. This will help to start developing
rapport with students. Be sure to stop in the hallway to
talk, always try to keep a positive attitude, and be
available any time to talk to students.
When teachers have a connection with students they will
be excited for class, more likely to enjoy themselves, and
more motivated to participate.
3. Create a Safe and Comfortable Environment
If students feel as though the gym is a safe place both
physically and mentally they will be more motivated to try
their best.
To have students feel safe physically it is important to
have a good warm-up each class, be open to questions
about activities, and share all relevant safety information.
For students to feel safe mentally it is important to create
an atmosphere where students are free to participate

Phys. Ed. Motivation

without judgment from other students. It needs to be clear

that negative attitude, actions and comments are not
welcome in PE. Everyone needs to have an equal
opportunity to develop and try new skills. There will be
consequences for those who cannot show respect to the
fellow classmates.
If students feel safe they will be much more motivated to
try new skills. They will have less fear of failing and will
have a better chance to enhance their skills from there.
4. Positive Perceived Physical Competency
If students feel as though they are competent or are
becoming competent at a skill they will be more likely to
continue working on the skill.
To help students develop a positive perceived physical
competency, it is important to constantly be giving
feedback. A good mixture of criticism and positive
comments will enforce the idea that they are improving.
Proper criticism is important; it informs students what they
can improve on but does so without putting them down or
enforcing negative correlations to the skill. Once the
student has started to make improvement, commend them
on their efforts and reinforce how much they have
improved over the given period of time.
If all the comments are positive students will see through
it. So it is important to include well constructed criticism.
Students will understand that you are there to help them

Phys. Ed. Motivation

improve not to tell them how great they are at everything.

5. Using Student Centered Activities
Students need an opportunity to explore their movements
and develop their own style. Not every person can use the
same technique for every movement. If students have the
chance to feel it out and make changes that suit their body
more appropriately they will be more likely to attempt and
enhance that skill.
You may have to start with teacher-centered activities so
the students develop the base technique behind a skill. But
once they have the foundation to build upon, let the
student figure some things out on their own.
6. Using the Mastery-Oriented Environment
Once students have been built up to this point they can
focus on developing the skill further in to a mastery
setting. This means that they are competent at the skill but
are trying developing to be more effective.
This is a step that not all students may get to, but having
this as a goal in mind can help set the stage for any
student to put in the work. By this point they should be
self-motivated and willing to put in the effort.

Once you have developed the classroom to an intrinsically motivated

mastery-oriented classroom, there is very little classroom management
that will need to be done. The goal is that the class will run itself, they

Phys. Ed. Motivation

will understand rules and routines, and have the desire to participate in
any activity you ask them to attempt.