In my work with children over the years it's always a joy to see the fruit of your labor. As a teacher, one never tires of experiencing an "A-HA, now I get it!" learning moment with a child. There's a great sense of satisfaction and joy that comes when you know that your student has grasped a concept and is now at the place where they can build upon that concept.
The challenge comes when the teachable moment never seems to arrive. You work and work and try and try, yet nothing you do seems to sink in. You are frustrated and so is the child or student. The question then boils down to, "What do I do, and what does little Timmy or Tammy do, to keep on keeping on?" Both of you feel exhausted, discouraged, and unmotivated. So, what are some simple steps to keep yourself and your student motivated?
For me, I like to keep concepts simple, workable and useful, you know, the KISS method, Keep It Simple Stupid! Many of you have already mentioned some great ideas in your posting, so I will try to add a couple that may or may not be repetitious.
First, as some of you have pointed out, is to keep yourself motivated. A teacher, who is unmotivated, uncaring and uninterested, will never be able to motivate his or her students to achieve to do better. As Christian's we believe in the power of prayer and reliance upon the power of the Holy Spirit. We not only should pray for ourselves and do spiritual inventory to make sure our hearts and minds are right before Christ. We also need to pray for our children and realize that God has through His providential wisdom and knowledge placed them in our classrooms for a purpose. Loving the Lord and loving our students will not only keep us and our children motivated, it will also lay the seeds in the lives of our children for bountiful harvest of good.
As well, we need to keep on keeping on. As Paul tells the Galatians in chapter 6:9, "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." It's easy to quit and give up when things get challenging, but in order to reap the potential harvest that can come in education, we need to keep motivating ourselves and students. I think Jeffrey's poignant example in his posting is a good example of this. It would have been easy to become weary working with a child who really never wanted to be in school in the first place. But through patience, persistence and prodding, Jeffrey and the young man reaped that harvest of goodness.
Along with this, we need to be consistent in our persistence. Nothing seems more confusing to a child, than a teacher who never is consistent in their approach with that child. In the book of James, the apostle, writes of the double-minded man, who is unstable in all his ways (James 1:7). Confused children are often the crop of confused parents and teachers. Remaining consistent in our dealings with children cuts down on confusion and allows the stable and nurturing environment children need to grow and bloom. In one of my sixth grade classes one year, I had a very troubled child, who was always confused on how to behave or respond, because of her parent's lack of consistency and commitment to the child and to each other. Theirs was a two headed approach to child rearing. Both parents had a completely foreign value system to each other, and one would advise the young girl one way and the other would advise her in an almost diametrically opposite manner. Talk about a sad state of affairs! In our small Christian school, we all knew that it was up to the teachers and staff to be a place of consistency and stability for this child and her brother. The clash came when our biblical worldview and values, came in conflict with the mother's very secular and humanistic value system. Dad was supportive of training and teaching from a biblical viewpoint, whereas mom was almost always opposed to coming from that framework. To keep the child motivated and moving towards the right, we needed to be continually consistent in our teaching and the display of our Christian values.
We also need to realize that nothing motivates a child better than a "kiss on the cheek or a kick in the pants"! In motivation there is a thin line between being too soft in our motivation techniques or being too aggressive in it. But, both forms are acceptable and both forms are necessary. Kiss and Kick, is a simple alliteration that helps me to remember to use both forms of motivation.
Giving praise, showing warmth and kindness, being extra thoughtful and tender to a child, rewarding and honoring a child are all Kiss techniques. Romans 2:4, teaches us clearly that it is God's kindness that leads us or motivates us towards repentance. So too is it with children. Through acts of kindness, gentleness and goodness towards a child a teacher can often melt the hardest of hearts and motivate that child to the right. When this kindness is shown, the child feels a sense of self esteem and warmth that they may not get at home. They experience the inner joy of knowing that when they do well, that they are able to find success and earn reward.
But along with the Kiss, occasionally it's necessary to give the Kick. Proverbs 3: 11 and 12, clearly teach us the Kick is also a vital form of motivation, when it states, "My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father] the son he delights in." Nowhere does the Bible teach an extreme form of "Kicking" or discipline, in fact the Scripture warns against it. Paul says "Fathers, do not exasperate (annoy, infuriate, drive around the bend, frustrate, madden) your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord." Ephesians 6:4. When we do need to use punishers, we need to do so with care, wisdom and discernment. Punishers should never be used light fully or carelessly and definitely never out of anger, frustration or bitterness.
While I know that corporal punishment is unlawful and unacceptable in the public school, it is still necessary for the public school teacher to use appropriate "kicks" to motivate. Such kicks can be time out, withdrawal of privilege, removal of a reward or any number of acceptable disciplines. There is a balance that must occur. But with the proper balance, "Kissing or Kicking" can often work well as a motivation tool or technique.
Through the use of proper motivation tools and techniques the classroom can be a comforting, stable and nurturing learning environment. A classroom that appears to be out of control or in chaos is often a classroom that is out of balance. For whatever reason, the teacher has not learned to use effective motivating techniques. Instead of being confident and comfortable in his or her own motivation skills, the teacher second guesses or even ignores proven techniques. Once a teacher learns a balanced approach towards motivation, his or her students will benefit immensely and grow and learn by leaps and bounds. It is my belief that this is the type of classroom we should all aspire to.
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