Motivation 5 part_framework

Response to Intervention

Motivation in the Classroom:
A Five-Part Framework
Jim Wright
www.interventioncentral.org

www.interventioncentral.org


Motivating Environments: The Role of the Teacher

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Five ‘Levers of Influence’ to Promote Student Motivation
1. School & Classroom Environment

2. Social Interactions

3. Instructional Activities

4. Individual Learning Challenges

5. Pay-Offs for Learning



The setting in which we work can encourage us
to give our best effort or discourage us from
even trying to perform.



“We shape our buildings and
afterwards our buildings shape us.”
--Winston Churchill



The Virtual School ‘Walkthrough’



School Tour: Hallways



School Tour: Cafeteria



School & Classroom Environment: Selected Ideas…
Employ Proximity Control (Ford, Olmi, Edwards, & Tingstrom,
2001; Gettinger & Seibert, 2002; U.S. Department of Education,
2004). Students typically increase their attention to task and show
improved compliance when the teacher is in close physical
proximity. During whole-group activities, circulate around the
room to keep students focused. To hold an individual student's
attention, stand or sit near the student before giving directions or
engaging in discussion.



Give Clear Directions (Gettinger & Seibert, 2002; Gettinger,
1988). Students will better understand directions when those
directions are delivered in a clear manner, expressed in language
the student understands, given at a pace that does not
overwhelm the student, and posted for later review. When giving
multi-step directions orally, write those directions on the board or
give to students as a handout to consult as needed. State multi-
step directions one direction at a time and confirm that the
student is able to comply with each step before giving the next
direction.



Give Opportunities for Choice (Martens & Kelly, 1993; Powell &
Nelson, 1997). Allowing students to exercise some degree of
choice in their instructional activities can boost attention span and
increase academic engagement. Make a list of 'choice' options
that you are comfortable offering students during typical learning
activities. During independent seatwork, for example, you might
routinely let students choose where they sit, allow them to work
alone or in small groups, or give them 2 or 3 different choices of
assignment selected to be roughly equivalent in difficulty and
learning objectives.



Use Preferential Seating (U.S. Department of Education, 2004).
Preferential seating simply means that you seat the student in a
location where he or she is most likely to stay focused on what
you are teaching. Remember that all teachers have an 'action
zone', a part of the room where they tend to focus most of their
instruction; seat the student somewhere within that zone. The
ideal seating location for any particular student will vary,
depending on the unique qualities of the target student and of
your classroom. Consider whether the student might be self-
conscious about sitting right next to the teacher. Select a seat
location that avoids other distractions—e.g., avoid seating the
student by a window or next to a talkative classmate.



We define ourselves in relation to others by our
social relationships. These connections are a
central motivator for most people.


Social Interactions: Selected Ideas…
Improving Relationships With Students: The Two-
By-Ten Intervention (Mendler, 2000)
•  Make a commitment to spend 2 minutes per day
for 10 consecutive days in building a relationship
with the student…by talking about topics of
interest to the student.

Avoid discussing problems with the student’s
behaviors or schoolwork during these times.
Source: Mendler, A. N. (2000). Motivating students who don’t care. Bloomington, IN: National Educational Service.


Improving Relationships With Students: The Three-to-
One Intervention
(Sprick, Borgmeier, & Nolet, 2002)
•  Give positive attention or praise to problem
students at least three times more frequently
than you reprimand them.
Give the student the attention or praise during
moments when that student is acting
appropriately. Keep track of how frequently you
give positive attention and reprimands to the
student.
Source: Sprick, R. S., Borgmeier, C., & Nolet, V. (2002). Prevention and management of behavior problems in secondary
schools. In M. A. Shinn, H. M. Walker & G. Stoner (Eds.), Interventions for academic and behavior problems II: Preventive and
remedial approaches (pp.373-401). Bethesda, MD: National Association of School Psychologists.


Emphasize the Positive in Teacher Requests (Braithwaite,
2001). When an instructor's request has a positive 'spin', that
teacher is less likely to trigger a power struggle and more likely to
gain student compliance. Whenever possible, avoid using
negative phrasing (e.g., "If you don't return to your seat, I can’t
help you with your assignment"). Instead, restate requests in
positive terms (e.g., "I will be over to help you on the assignment
just as soon as you return to your seat").



Seat the Student Next to Distraction-Resistant or Supportive
Peers (DuPaul & Stoner, 2002; Kerr & Nelson, 1998). One useful
strategy for managing low-level motor behaviors is to seat the
student next to peers who can generally ignore those behaviors.

Or handpick a classmate who has a good relationship with the
student but is not easily drawn off-task and appoint that student
as a 'helper peer'. Tell the peer that whenever he or she notices
that the student's verbal or motor behavior has risen to the level
of distracting others, the peer should give the student a brief,
quiet, non-judgmental signal (e.g., a light tap on the shoulder) to
control the behavior.


Motivated students are engaged in interesting
activities that guarantee a high success rate and
relate to real-world issues.


Instructional Activities: Selected Ideas…
Make the Activity Stimulating (U.S. Department of Education,
2004). Students require less conscious effort to remain on-task
when they are engaged in high-interest activities. Make
instruction more interesting by choosing a specific lesson topic
that you know will appeal to students (e.g., sports, fashion). Or
help students to see a valuable 'real-word' pay-off for learning the
material being taught. Another tactic is to make your method of
instruction more stimulating. Students who don't learn well in
traditional lecture format may show higher rates of engagement
when interacting with peers (cooperative learning) or when
allowed the autonomy and self-pacing of computer-delivered
instruction.



Stimulate Writing Interest With an Autobiography Assignment (Bos &
Vaughn, 2002)

Assigning the class to write their own autobiographies can
motivate hard-to-reach students who seem uninterested in
most writing assignments. Have students read a series of
autobiographies of people who interest them. Discuss these
biographies with the class. Then assign students to write their
own autobiographies. (With the class, create a short
questionnaire that students can use to interview their parents
and other family members to collect information about their
past.) Allow students to read their autobiographies for the
class.


Instruct at a Brisk Pace (Carnine, 1976; Gettinger & Seibert,
2002). When students are appropriately matched to instruction,
they are likely to show improved on-task behavior when they are
taught at a brisk pace rather than a slow one. To achieve a brisk
pace of instruction, make sure that you are fully prepared prior to
the lesson and that you minimize the time spent on housekeeping
items such as collecting homework or on transitions from one
learning activity to another.



Structure Instructional Activities to Allow Interaction and
Movement (DuPaul & Stoner, 2002; Sprick, Borgmeier & Nolet,
2002; U.S. Department of Education, 2004). Students with high
energy levels may be more likely to engage in distracting
behavior when they are forced to sit through long periods of
lecture or independent seatwork. Instead, offer students frequent
opportunities for more movement by designing instruction to
actively engage them as learners (e.g., cooperative learning). An
additional advantage of less formal, more spontaneous learning
activities is that when the overactive child does happen to display
motor behaviors in this relaxed setting, those behaviors are less
likely to distract peers.



Math Computation: Problem Interspersal Technique
•  The teacher first identifies the range of ‘challenging’ problem-types
(number problems appropriately matched to the student’s current
instructional level) that are to appear on the worksheet.
•  Then the teacher creates a series of ‘easy’ problems that the students
can complete very quickly (e.g., adding or subtracting two 1-digit
numbers). The teacher next prepares a series of student math
computation worksheets with ‘easy’ computation problems
interspersed at a fixed rate among the ‘challenging’ problems.
•  If the student is expected to complete the worksheet independently,
‘challenging’ and ‘easy’ problems should be interspersed at a 1:1 ratio
(that is, every ‘challenging’ problem in the worksheet is preceded and/
or followed by an ‘easy’ problem).
Source: Hawkins, J., Skinner, C. H., & Oliver, R. (2005). The effects of task demands and additive interspersal ratios on fifth-
grade students’ mathematics accuracy. School Psychology Review, 34, 543-555..

How to… Create an Interspersal-Problems Worksheet


Math Computation: Motivate With ‘Errorless
Learning’ Worksheets
In this version of an ‘errorless learning’ approach, the
student is directed to complete math facts as quickly as
possible. If the student comes to a number problem that
he or she cannot solve, the student is encouraged to locate
the problem and its correct answer in the key at the top of the page and
write it in.
Such speed drills build computational fluency while promoting students’
ability to visualize and to use a mental number line.

TIP: Consider turning this activity into a ‘speed drill’. The student is given
a kitchen timer and instructed to set the timer for a predetermined span of
time (e.g., 2 minutes) for each drill. The student completes as many
problems as possible before the timer rings. The student then graphs the
number of problems correctly computed each day on a time-series graph,
attempting to better his or her previous score.
Source: Caron, T. A. (2007). Learning multiplication the easy way. The Clearing House, 80, 278-282

‘Errorless
Learning’ Worksheet Sample

Source: Caron, T. A. (2007). Learning multiplication the easy way. The Clearing House, 80, 278-282

Math Peer Guided Pause
•  Students are trained to work in pairs. At one or more appropriate review
points in a math lecture, the instructor directs students to pair up to work
together for 4 minutes.
•  During each Peer Guided Pause, students are given a worksheet that
contains one or more correctly completed word or number problems
illustrating the math concept(s) covered in the lecture. The sheet also
contains several additional, similar problems that pairs of students work
cooperatively to complete, along with an answer key.
•  Student pairs are reminded to (a) monitor their understanding of the lesson
concepts; (b) review the correctly math model problem; (c) work
cooperatively on the additional problems, and (d) check their answers. The
teacher can direct student pairs to write their names on the practice sheets
and collect them to monitor student understanding.
Source: Hawkins, J., & Brady, M. P. (1994). The effects of independent and peer guided practice during instructional pauses on
the academic performance of students with mild handicaps. Education & Treatment of Children, 17 (1), 1-28.



Motivated students are engaged in interesting
activities that guarantee a high success rate and
relate to real-world issues.



Individual Learning Challenges: Selected Ideas…
Have the Student Monitor Motor Behaviors and Call-Outs
(DuPaul & Stoner, 2002). Have the student monitor his or her
motor behaviors or call-outs. First, choose a class period or part
of the day when you want the student to monitor distracting
behaviors. Next, meet privately with the student to discuss which
of that student's behaviors are distracting. Then, together with the
student, design a simple distractible behavior-rating form with no
more than 3 items (For a student who calls out frequently, for
example, a useful rating item might be "How well did I observe
the rule today of raising my hand and being called on before
giving an answer? Poor – Fair – Good".) Have the student rate
his or her behaviors at the end of each class period.


Allow Discretionary Motor Breaks (U.S. Department of
Education, 2004). When given brief 'movement' breaks, highly
active students often show improvements in their behaviors.
Permit the student to leave his or her seat and quietly walk
around the classroom whenever the student feels particularly
fidgety. Or, if you judge that motor breaks within the classroom
would be too distracting, consider giving the student a
discretionary pass that allows him or her to leave the classroom
briefly to get a drink of water or walk up and down the hall.



Adopt a 'Silent Signal' (U.S. Department of Education, 2004).
You can redirect overactive students in a low-key manner by
using a silent signal. Meet privately with the student and identify
for the student those motor or verbal behaviors that appear to be
most distracting. With the student's help, select a silent signal that
you can use to alert the student that his or her behavior has
crossed the threshold and now is distracting others. Role-play
several scenarios with the student in which you use the silent
signal and the student then controls the problem behavior.



Provide a Quiet Work Area (U.S. Department of Education,
2004). Distractible students benefit from a quiet place in the
classroom where they can go when they have more difficult
assignments to complete. A desk or study carrel in the corner of
the room can serve as an appropriate workspace. When
introducing these workspaces to students, stress that the quiet
locations are intended to help students to concentrate. Never use
areas designated for quiet work as punitive 'time-out' spaces, as
students will then tend to avoid them.



Break Larger Assignments into Smaller Chunks (Skinner,
Pappas & Davis, 2005). Students are likely to show higher levels
of motivation and academic engagement when they are given a
series of shorter assignments in place on a single longer
assignment. Keep assignments short and give students frequent
performance feedback to ensure their understanding of the
content.



Class Participation: Keep Students Guessing (Heward, 1994).
Students attend better during large-group presentations if they
cannot predict when they will be required to actively participate.
Randomly call on students, occasionally selecting the same
student twice in a row or within a short time span. Or pose a
question to the class, give students 'wait time' to formulate an
answer, and then randomly call on a student.



Capture Students' Attention Before Giving Directions (Ford,
Olmi, Edwards, & Tingstrom, 2001; Martens & Kelly, 1993). Gain
the student's attention before giving direction. When giving
directions to an individual student, call the student by name and
establish eye contact before providing the directions. When giving
directions to the whole class, use group alerting cues such as
'Eyes and ears on me!' to gain the class's attention. Wait until all
students are looking at you and ready to listen before giving
directions. When you have finished giving directions to the entire
class, privately approach any students who appear to need
assistance. Quietly restate the directions to them and have them
repeat the directions back to you as a check for understanding.


Math Shortcuts: Cognitive Energy- and Time-Savers
“Recently, some researchers…have argued that
children can derive answers quickly and with minimal
cognitive effort by employing calculation principles or
“shortcuts,” such as using a known number combination
toderive an answer (2 + 2 = 4, so 2 + 3 =5), relations
among operations (6 + 4 =10, so 10 −4 = 6) … and so
forth. This approach to instruction is consonant with
recommendations by the National Research Council
(2001). Instruction along these lines may be much more
productive than rote drill without linkage to counting
strategy use.” p. 301

Source: Gersten, R., Jordan, N. C., & Flojo, J. R. (2005). Early identification and interventions for students with mathematics
difficulties. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 38, 293-304.


Math Multiplication Shortcut: ‘The 9 Times Quickie’
•  The student uses fingers as markers to find the product of single-
digit multiplication arithmetic combinations with 9.
•  Fingers to the left of the lowered finger stands for the ’10’s place
value.
•  Fingers to the right stand for the ‘1’s place value.
9 xx10
9 19
8
7
6
5
4
3
2

Source: Russell, D. (n.d.). Math facts to learn the facts. Retrieved November 9, 2007, from http://math.about.com/bltricks.htm


Schedule Challenging Tasks for Peak Attention Times (Brock,
1998). Many students with limited attention can focus better in the
morning, when they are fresh. Schedule those subjects or tasks
that the student finds most difficult early in the day. Save easier
subjects or tasks for later in the day, when the student's attention
may start to wane.




Motivated students are engaged in
interesting activities that guarantee a
high success rate and relate to real-
world issues.


Pay-Offs for Learning: Selected Ideas…
Pay Attention to the On-Task Student (DuPaul & Ervin, 1996;
Martens & Meller, 1990). Teachers who selectively give students
praise and attention only when those students are on-task are
likely to find that these students show improved attention in class
as a result. When you have a student who is often off-task, make
an effort to identify those infrequent times when the student is
appropriately focused on the lesson and immediately give the
student positive attention. Examples of teacher attention that
students will probably find positive include verbal praise and
encouragement, approaching the student to check on how he or
she is doing on the assignment, and friendly eye contact.


Math Intervention: Tier I or II: Elementary & Secondary:
Self-Administered Arithmetic Combination Drills With Performance
Self-Monitoring & Incentives
1.  The student is given a math computation worksheet of a specific problem type, along with
an answer key [Academic Opportunity to Respond].
2.  The student consults his or her performance chart and notes previous performance. The
student is encouraged to try to ‘beat’ his or her most recent score.
3.  The student is given a pre-selected amount of time (e.g., 5 minutes) to complete as many
problems as possible. The student sets a timer and works on the computation sheet until
the timer rings. [Active Student Responding]
4.  The student checks his or her work, giving credit for each correct digit (digit of correct
value appearing in the correct place-position in the answer). [Performance Feedback]
5.  The student records the day’s score of TOTAL number of correct digits on his or her
personal performance chart.
6.  The student receives praise or a reward if he or she exceeds the most recently posted
number of correct digits.
Application of ‘Learn Unit’ framework from : Heward, W.L. (1996). Three low-tech strategies for increasing the frequency of active student
response during group instruction. In R. Gardner, D. M.S ainato, J. O. Cooper, T. E. Heron, W. L. Heward, J. W. Eshleman,& T. A. Grossi
(Eds.), Behavior analysis in education: Focus on measurably superior instruction (pp.283-320). Pacific Grove, CA:Brooks/Cole.


Self-Administered Arithmetic Combination Drills:
Examples of Student Worksheet and Answer Key

Worksheets created using Math Worksheet Generator. Available online at:
http://www.interventioncentral.org/htmdocs/tools/mathprobe/addsing.php

Self-Administered Arithmetic Combination Drills…

Reward Given Reward Given
Reward Given Given
Reward

No Reward
No Reward
No Reward


How to… Use PPT Group Timers in the Classroom



Monitoring to Increase Writing Fluency (Rathvon, 1999)

Students gain motivation to write through daily monitoring
and charting of their own and classwide rates of writing
fluency.
–  Assign timed freewriting several times per week.
–  After each freewriting period, direct each student to count up the number of
words he or she has written in their daily journal entry (whether spelled correctly
or not).
–  Have students to record their personal writing-fluency score in their journal and
also chart the score on their own time-series graph for visual feedback.
–  Collect the day’s writing-fluency scores of all students in the class, sum those
scores, and chart the results on a large time-series graph posted at the front of
the room.
–  Raise the class goal by five percent per week.

Five ‘Levers of Influence’ to Promote Student Motivation





THE SKEPTIC: “Why do I have to know about
quadratic equations or who wrote the U.S. Constitution?
When am I ever going to use any of THAT stuff in my
life?”

Discuss motivating ideas for this student…
• School & Classroom Environment
• Social Interactions
• Instructional Activities
• Individual Learning Challenges
• Pay-offs for Learning


BOREDOM: “Every day, we just do math work sheets at
our desks. The same problems over and over. We don’t
get to talk to anybody. I am SOOO bored in this class!”



ATTITUDE: “My dad said that I don’t have to learn this
stuff and you can’t make me! I can do what ever I want!
And you can’t make me do any work if I don’t want to! ”


How Attributions About Learning Contribute to
Academic Outcomes

People regularly make ‘attributions’ about
events and situations in which they are
involved that ‘explain’ and make sense of
those happenings.



Academic Outcomes
Attribution Theory: Dimensions Affecting Student
Interpretation of Academic Successes & Failures
(Linnenbrink & Pintrich, 2002)

The situation or event is…

• Unstable (changes often) • Stable (can be counted on to
remain relatively unchanged)

• Internal (within the student) • External (occurring in the
surrounding environment)

• Uncontrollable (beyond the • Controllable (within the
ability of the student to student’s ability to influence)
influence)


Academic Outcomes
So can’tlousy any studying done atOK. Next
Thisdid get always springs pop quizzes on us—
Some people are bornThat’s home because my
I I teacher on this one test. writers.
time, picks study harder and my grades should bounce back.
and I will listens to that are impossible time. for!
brother questions the radio all the to study
I was born to watch TV.
The situation or event is…

• Unstable (changes often) • Stable (can be counted on to
remain relatively unchanged)

• Internal (within the student) • External (occurring in the
surrounding environment)

• Uncontrollable (beyond the • Controllable (within the
ability of the student to student’s ability to influence)
influence)

Motivation 5 part_framework

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