MOTIVATION:
Something that energizes, direct, and sustains behaviors.
INTRINSIC
MOTIVATION:
Internal desires to perform a particular task, people do
Certain activities because it gives them pleasure, develops a particular
skill, or
It’s morally the right thing to do.
EXTRINSIC
MOTIVATION:
Factors external to the individual and unrelated to the
Task they are performing. Examples
include money, good grades, and other
Rewards.
·
Intrinsically
motivated students are bound to do much better in classroom activities, because
they are willing and eager to learn new material. Their learning experience is more meaningful, and they go
deeper into the subject to fully understand it.
On the other hand, extrinsically motivated students may have to be bribed
to perform the same tasks.
·
How can
we motivate students intrinsically?
A
theorists by the name of Abraham Maslow, has concluded that before we can be
intrinsically motivated we must first satisfy some more basic human needs.
According to Maslow there are five basic levels of human needs.
1.
Physiological
needs. We are motivated to satisfy needs that ensure our physical
survival. Needs in this group
include food, water, air, shelter, clothing and sex.
Most people have satisfied their physiological needs allowing them to
concentrate on higher level needs. For
some though, physiological needs are dominant and are the biggest needs in their
lives.
2.
Safety
needs. Once physiological needs are met one can concentrate on
bringing safety and security to our lives.
Safety and security needs include, order, stability, routine,
familiarity, control over one’s life and environment, certainty and health.
3.
Social
needs or
love and belonging needs. These
needs include love, affection, belonging and acceptance.
People look for these needs in relationships with other people and are
motivated for these needs by the love from their families.
4.
Esteem
needs. All people have a need for stable, firmly based, usually high
evaluation of themselves for self-respect or self-esteem and for the esteem of
others. These needs may therefore
be classified into two subsidiary sets. These
are, first, the desire for strength, achievement, adequacy, mastery of
competence, confidence, independence and freedom.
Second, we have what we call the desire for reputation or prestige
(defining it as respect from other people), status, fame, glory, dominance,
importance, recognition, dignity or appreciation.
5.
Need
for self-actualization. This level of hierarchy is concentrated on an individual
being able to reach their full potential a human being. Once someone has satisfied the first four levels of needs
then they have the ability to concentrate on functioning to their highest
potential. But even if all these
needs are satisfied, we may often still expect that a new discontent and
restlessness will soon develop, unless the individual is doing what they are
fitted for. Musicians must play
music, artists must paint if they are to be at peace with themselves.
What humans can be, they must be. They
must be true to their own nature.
·
The first
four needs are what we call deficiency
needs, because they come from things we are lacking. These needs can be met
only by external sources, by the environment, people or things going on around
us.
·Self-actualization
is a growth need. This doesn’t just address what we are lacking in our lives,
but it gives us room to grow and develop as an individual. This need is always
intrinsically motivated, because we do it out of pure enjoyment and desire to
grow.
·
Maslow, does explain that self-actualization is rarely achieved, even as adults.
But we as teachers, must make sure our students have satisfied their
deficiency needs in order to move on to their growth one.
Intrinsic motivation will not occur until they are well fed, safe in
their environment, and can love and respect the teachers and their classmates.
From there on motivation will be a breeze.