Metro Manila College

U-Site, Brgy. Kaligayahan Novaliches, Quezon City

Reporter : HABANA, MA. ROSAVILLA C.

Topic : Motivation
Subject : Educ. 508- Principles of College Teaching
Professor : Dr. Aurora Mapile

What Is Motivation?

Motivation is the process that initiates, guides, and maintains goal-oriented behaviors. It is what
causes you to act, whether it is getting a glass of water to reduce thirst or reading a book to gain
knowledge.

Motivation involves the biological, emotional, social, and cognitive forces that activate behavior.
In everyday usage, the term "motivation" is frequently used to describe why a person does
something. It is the driving force behind human actions.

Motivation does not just refer to the factors that activate behaviors; it also involves the factors
that direct and maintain these goal-directed actions (though such motives are rarely directly
observable). As a result, we often must infer the reasons why people do the things that they do
based on observable behaviors.

What exactly lies behind the motivations for why we act? Psychologists have proposed
different theories of motivation, including drive theory, instinct theory, and humanistic theory
(such as Maslow's hierarchy of needs). The reality is that there are many different forces that
guide and direct our motivations.

Derived from the Latin “movere” meaning “to move”

Motivation is a learned skill. The most intelligent students can be outperformed by less bright
students with higher motivation. If a student is motivated enough, he/she can accomplish any
learning of any scale the goal is for our students to be intrinsically motivated.

Types of Motivation

Different types of motivation are frequently described as being either extrinsic or intrinsic:

 Extrinsic motivations are those that arise from outside of the individual and often involve
rewards such as trophies, money, social recognition, or praise.
 Intrinsic motivations are those that arise from within the individual, such as doing a
complicated crossword puzzle purely for the personal gratification of solving a problem

Different Motivational Theories

1. Psychoanalytical (Freud)
2. Social Development Theory (Vygotsky)
3. Hierarchy of Human Needs (Maslow)
4. Psychosocial Theory of Development (Erikson)
5. Affective Filter (Krashen)
Special Tips for Motivating Students

1. Make your classroom environment as inviting and comfortable as possible for students.
2. Activities should be neither too easy nor too hard. Social Interaction is important!
3. If basic needs are not being met, it is difficult to be motivated to learn.
4. Communicate that you respect and value all cultures and emphasize the contributions that
cultural differences make to learning.
5. Reduce the Anxiety Increase Motivation
6. Provide both oral and written instructions when possible. Provide activities that are
interesting and intriguing. Provide materials that relate to the student’s real lives. Allow
for jokes and relaxed conversation at certain times Refrain from orally correcting
students. Do not expect perfection
7. Teach your classes in a dynamic, enthusiastic, and energetic way. Students can be
engaged simply by the energy and dedication shown by their teachers. Gestures, facial
expressions, emotions, actions Model desired action or have other students model the
action (the dialogues, stories, etc.) Employ Total Physical Response (TPR) techniques.
Use these techniques in a pair work or group work
8. Consider a Project. Allow students to have a ‘voice’ in learning. Allow students to make
real-world connections. Allow students freedom to complete task. Allow students to work
cooperatively In Sum: Projects Increase Intrinsic Motivation

Importance of Motivation
The purpose and importance of motivation to learning should be clearly understood by
the teachers.

The Fundamental aim of motivation is to:

1. Stimulate Learning Activity
2. Facilitate Learning Activity
An understanding of the nature of motivation is important because motivation determines, not
only the intensity of the effort to learn, but also the extent to which this effort is made an activity
of the total personality. Motivation of learning activities help learners concentrate on what he is
doing, and thereby to gain satisfaction. Continuous motivation is needed to help learners
concentrate on the lesson to be learned.

References:

1. Verywellmind.com/what is motivation
2. Slideshare.net