EduCon 2025Who gives a crap? Fostering academic motivation in tweens and teens
To really learn, students need to feel motivated by more than just panic about the next test or project, or anxiety about high academic performance. But what does it actually look like to cultivate the kind of environment that sustains motivation in the school building?
In this workshop, educator, author and researcher Rebecca Block, PhD, will lay out the basics of the ABCDs of sustainable motivation, with examples from student interviewees across the country. Participants will then have the chance to pick a theme that they're most interested in and collaborate with other educators who are also invested in that theme to brainstorm ideas, ask questions, get feedback, and emerge with something to try in your own classroom context.
Conversational Practice
Once everyone's settled, I'll spend ly 10 minutes laying out the high level framework of the ABCDs of motivation, with classroom examples. Then I'll invite participants to pick one theme of interest and sit at tables (or in breakout rooms, if the request is to hold it as a virtual or hybrid session) with 2-3 other educators interested in the same theme. They'll have specific questions to prompt them to pick one area of their classroom/school life they want to focus on boosting this motivation supporter and brainstorm ideas, brainstorm ideas, and get quick additive (not critical) feedback from others at the table. I'll circulate the room, answering questions as they arise (if a hybrid option is desirable, I have a colleague Ian ask to join to do the same in virtual breakout rooms). If there's time, groups can opt to share ideas back out to the full room at the end of the session.
No comments have been posted yet.
Log in to post a comment.