A Reflection on Student Engagement

Though I understood that student engagement remains a requisite component for student learning, this course has taught me more effective ways to achieve student engagement. Banas (n.d.) stated “The solution to engaging students: High levels of confidence and high value for a task leading to engagement” (p. 6 (slide)). This implies that student motivation and student engagement are inextricably connected. When a student deems a high value for a task while feeling confident that achievement is attainable, motivation remains high and engagement is more likely to occur. I also learned that motivation is not a state of mind or an inclination, but rather a state of being that can fluctuate with many variables involved including relevance to the task, interest level and/or whether or not a student’s primary needs are being met. Regardless, it remains a teacher’s responsibility to ensure that motivation is optimized for all students (Keller, n.d.).

I also learned that to achieve student engagement, it helps for teachers to understand theories of motivation, which largely pertain to goal orientation. To have a performance goal orientation by and large means to work for a status of doing well, being the best or at least obtaining recognition or performing a task. Extrinsic rewards tend to follow performance goal orientation. Conversely, mastery goal orientation tends to work toward mastery of a concept or skill without focusing on recognition or reward. The reward for those leaning toward mastery goal orientation is learning itself. This tends to have more synthesis of knowledge leading to more long-term benefits. As a special education teacher who finds herself at a school that leans toward performance goal orientation, evidence being the focus on high-stakes state testing, I can help shape my students’ disposition toward learning by adhering to frameworks such as ARCS and TARGET as well promote mastery goal orientation by demonstrating that learning remains a life-long process for everybody, everywhere.

A strategy that teachers can implement to optimize motivation and engagement for all leaners, and especially disengages learners, can include to a way to measure instruction against a model framework such as TARGET, developed by Joyce Epstein and adapted for classroom use by Carole Ames (Banas, n.d.). TARGET takes components of instruction with each letter in the acronym (task, authority, recognition, group, evaluation ant time) and ensures that these all work together effectively to motivate and engage each learner. Another strategy that employs an acronym includes the ARCS Model of Motivation (Keller, n.d.). This model approaches motivation holistically by emphasizing and orchestrating the components of attention, relevance, confidence and satisfaction. This model offers an instructional model for teachers while at the same time promotes the synthesis of ideas for students.

In conclusion, this course achieved its objectives of linking student motivation to student engagement which subsequently leads to overall student growth and learning. I hold a clearer understanding that teachers hold the responsibility for engaging all students with their instruction, especially disengaged and reluctant learners. Though this task may not seem easy initially, strategies can be used and frameworks can be followed to help teachers assume this responsibility successfully. Every student is capable of learning and achieving and optimizing student engagement will ensure that this occurs over the course of the student’s entire lifetime.

References

Banas, J. (n.d.). Module 1: Enabling academic success. Part 1: Motivation and engagement. Indianapolis, IN: American College of Education.

Banas, J. (n.d.). Module 3: Designs and applications. Part 1: TARGET. Indianapolis, IN: American College of Education.

Keller, J. (n.d.). Module 2: Strategies to engage learners. Part 3: Intrinsic motivation. Indianapolis, IN: American College of Education.

Keller, J. (n.d.). Module 3: Designs and applications. Part 2: ARCS. Indianapolis, IN: American College of Education.