Teaching With the Brain in Mind

1
7 Motivation
62
and
Rewards
Nearly all educators deal with the issue of
motivation. In fact, in the first few weeks
of school, teachers often mentally group
students into the categories of “motivated” and
“unmotivated.” The rest of the school year usually
plays out these early perceptions of who is “ready
to learn” and who isn’t. A slew of tools, strategies,
and techniques are marketed to a hungry audience
of frustrated educators who work with “hard to
reach” or perpetually “unmotivated” students.
Does our new understanding of the brain tell
us anything about learner motivation? Is there
really such a thing as an unmotivated learner? Why
are some learners intrinsically motivated? And
what does brain research tell us about using
rewards? While the previous chapter focused on
the role of stress and threat, it also highlighted
chronic demotivation: the condition called learned
helplessness. This chapter focuses on temporary
motivation difficulties, the role of rewards, and
developing intrinsic motivation.
Students and Motivation
The popularity of behaviorism in the 1950s and
1960s inspired a generation of educators to
KEY CONCEPTS
◗ What’s the new research on
motivation?
◗ What causes temporary
demotivation?
◗ What does brain research
tell us about rewards?
◗ How can we boost intrinsic
motivation?