What motivates students?

And furthermore, what motivates them to engage in school to master the goal you have chosen for them?

Responses vary drastically and can have a major impact on each student.

Let’s start with the obvious answers. “Everyone goes to school” or “everyone needs education these days.” While there is some truth in these cliché responses, if one of these “because everyone does it” answers is the best reason a young person can give for attending school, it’s no surprise that those same children won’t engage and will simply go to school because it’s what they’re supposed to do.

Older students often mention the mantra “I need to do well in school to get into college” when asked about their reasons for attending and performing well. This can be a genuine motivational factor, especially in families where academic and professional success is expected. But is this the answer we really want when we ask that question? Performing well just to move on to the next level is fine when playing video games, but it hardly seems inspiring as an educational goal for a high school student.

There are numerous reasons students give for attending school, all of them valid. As with any question about motivation, the answers can be divided into two categories: intrinsic reasons for attending school and extrinsic reasons. Anyone who has read Dan Pink’s book Drive or seen his related TED talk understands that extrinsic and intrinsic motivations are not the same.

The predominant assessment practices are the most obvious example of how we rely too heavily on extrinsic motivators. As long as we continue to assess more often than we provide feedback and issue grades more frequently than meaningful guidance, students“ motivation will be based on obtaining this ”currency“ we call grades. Those who are richer in this currency will have the best opportunities at the end of secondary school, an unfortunate fact. Students we label as ”grade hunters” are simply those who have internalized our message that good grades (i.e., extrinsic rewards), rather than quality learning, are the primary goal of our education systems.

Extrinsic motivators do not succeed in getting students genuinely engaged in their learning; they make school feel like a job, something that must be done. If we want our systems to be as robust as possible, we must explicitly foster intrinsic motivation in each of our students.

Only students who are intrinsically motivated to engage with school will end up challenged, enriched, energized, and ultimately satisfied with their experience. Yes, it is an ideal, but it is worth keeping in mind.