3 Simple Ways to Boost Student Motivation

Each student’s journey through the school year is not without its hurdles and setbacks. So it’s important that students be regularly reminded of their successes, no matter how minor. Recognition and goal-setting are at the heart of several simple practices that teachers can use to boost student motivation—and keep their classes engaged and inspired from the first day of school until the first day of summer break. 

Cathleen Beachboard, an English language arts teacher in Virginia, starts a “Caught You Being Awesome” board at the beginning of each school year. Whenever a student displays an act of “awesomeness,” whether that’s a high score on an assignment or something as minor as sharing their snack with a classmate, she snaps a Polaroid photo of them in their moment of glory and pins it to the board.

Laura Driscoll, a curriculum developer from New York, suggests celebrating small wins with paper success chains. She asks students to write a short description of their win on a strip of paper that they then tape into a loop, which serves as the first link of their chain. As the wins accumulate, the chain grows new links. By the end of the year, students are able to see how long their chain of successes has grown.

In South Texas, music teacher Mirelle Castañeda asks each student to create a two-sided goal card on the first day of class. On one side, she asks them to write a goal for the group, which will be displayed on the class bulletin board for all to see. On the reverse side of the index card, each student then writes an individual goal that they’ll work on in private throughout the year. The combined goals encourage the class to focus on individual progress—while also keeping in mind the advancement of their entire group.

For more strategies to help boost student motivation, check out Paige Tutt’s article “13 Ways to Celebrate Students’ Small Wins and Build Motivation.”