Motivation Readings

I didn't find Clark and Estes particularly revelatory. Much of it boils down more or less to common sense. One thing that they seem to come back to a few times is the idea that perception is reality when it comes to motivation. Though this is a bit of common sense, too, I think it's something that can often be overlooked.

This comes into play when trying to figure out how to offer accurate assessment without giving the kind of negative feedback that can depress motivation. How do you discuss a student's poor performance without upsetting a student's "basic need for competence?" I suppose you have to somehow maintatin their perception of their abilities while helping them understand what they're doing wrong. This seems like very thin ice on which to tread, especially while simultaneously taking into account the myriad personal and cultural factors that affect motivation.

This is an area where I think technology can help a lot. The secret of video games, going all the way back to pinball, is that they are designed to keep the player on the very edge of his or her competency, which is a concept that is discussed in these readings. Today's video games are masterfully designed to allow each individual player to stay in a situation where they feel challenged, but not in over their head. I generally think that we should decrease the amount of time our kids spend staring at a screen, but computer programs are uniquely suited to taylor an educational experience in such a way as to motivate students by constantly challenging them.