This document discusses moving away from using extrinsic rewards and punishments with students and instead focusing on creating intrinsic motivation. It summarizes research showing that rewards can undermine intrinsic motivation. The document advocates creating conditions that satisfy students' needs for autonomy, mastery, and purpose. These conditions include building relationships, a growth mindset, student voice and choice, clear expectations and feedback. It suggests moving away from punishment toward teaching and addressing students' unmet needs through logical consequences and restitution. The overall message is that educators should focus on supporting students' internal motivation rather than controlling their behavior.
Motivation From Within - Moving Away From Points, Prizes, and Pizza Parties
1. Motivation
from Within
Moving Away From
Points, Prizes, and
Pizza Parties
Chris Wejr
www.chriswejr.com
@chriswejr
Fort Nelson School District
February Conference
February 27, 2015
CC image from opensource.com https://flic.kr/p/7S4TxZ
2. 1. I can describe the long term concerns that can
result from incentives for learning.
2. I can describe ways to create the conditions for
more intrinsic, long term motivation in students.
3. I can describe the long term concerns with short
term punishments to students.
4. I can start to analyze behaviour to determine the
unmet need and/or lagging skills.
Learning Intentions
3. Are we speaking the same language
when we say “rewards”?
http://youtu.be/Ml3cKrUU0ME
9. Be HARD on content…
SOFT on people
CC Image from Marin https://flic.kr/p/4MamdG
10. Edward Deci and Richard Ryan
Using rewards to motivate children may indeed control their
behavior in some immediate sense, but they are likely to have
negative consequences in terms of the children’s subsequent
interest, persistence, and preferences for challenge. (Deci
and Ryan)
Controlling people’s behavior with reward contingencies
undermines their intrinsic motivation…(Deci and Ryan)
Children who were rewarded for doing discrimination-
learning tasks learned less well and made more errors than
did children who were not rewarded (Spence & Dunton)
…extrinsic incentives can, by undermining self-perceived
altruism, decrease intrinsic motivation to help others.
(Batson)
Research From Sansome et al http://amzn.to/1LGbNIH
Image http://bit.ly/1LGc8v7
14. You caught me being good.
Can I get my prize now?
Image: http://flic.kr/p/bCtpS
Kids get good at
getting caught…
being good.
15. “People use rewards expecting to gain the
benefit of increasing another person’s
motivation and behaviour, but in so doing,
they often incur the unintentional and
hidden cost of undermining that person’s
intrinsic motivation toward the activity”
-- Jonmarshall Reeve
19. "Extrinsic rewards have a
negative impact
[on learning] because they
undermine people’s taking
responsibility for
motivating and regulating
themselves"
Edward Deci
CC Image from Sarah Sosiak
20. So what?
Why is this research important?
Now what?
What do we DO now?
Discuss in your groups. Share.
24. “We must guide our children toward
recognition and understanding of
their strengths.”
-- Jenifer Fox
-- Jenifer Fox
CC Image: http://flic.kr/p/bhvabR
27. Students do not want learning
made easy, they want it to
mean something.
They want to feel something,
to be moved by what they
learn.
They want to connect deeply
with things that matter and
they want the chance to
make a difference.
State of FLOW.
Canadian Education Association
36. How can we create opportunities for
students to lead?
37. REFLECT:
What are 2-3 things
YOU can DO to help
create the conditions
for students to
motivate themselves?
Relationships
Growth
Mindset
Leadership
Criteria &
Feedback
Strengths &
Interests
Voice &
Choice
Deci and Ryan, Daniel Pink, Sir Ken Robinson, Alfie Kohn, Dr. Ross Greene
We are helping to raise kids – this takes years. no simple quick fix solution focus long term This is not about a standardized “program” to use but more some questions and ideas to get people to reflect on how we attempt to motivate kids in school.
I will share thoughts, ideas and stories that have helped change the culture of our school… and not cost anything more than TIME.
I hope in the next 1.5 hrs, I can share some stories and we can have some reflective dialogue – in the end we can find 2-3 things we can take back to our schools for Monday.
Researchers at the Uni of Rochester.
This is the statement that drives the majority of the decisions at our school.
My district provides me with the autonomy to take risks and fuel my passions.
Leadership, reading, learning… how do we create the conditions for kids to want to learn and grow?
I don’t like to polarize the 2… think of it more as a CONTINUUM of motivation in people.
Praise, feedback, etc – all external depends on the purpose and how it is used and perceived by the student
In a group of 2-3, come up with a list of pros and cons for the use of incentives
Reward systems work – short term – they get people to do things they would normally not want to do
When we use rewards – the focus shifts from the process to the reward (Deci and Ryan)
REWARDS DO NOT TEACH – Giving rewards is easy
I tried the rewards thing. The only type of extrinsic reward that I encourage is meaningful praise (descriptive feedback) based on effort that is not used as a reward
– forming relationships and providing feedback is much more difficult.
Judy Cameron vs Deci and Ryan
Rewards feel good
There is pleasure in giving and receiving incentives…
Pleasure doesn’t last (like a drug). Joy lasts.
Big Bang Theory, the Office
Catching kids being good – look at me – surveillance – story of “Ashley”
Kids get good at the game… get good at being caught being good.
Rewards and punishment often rob students of responsibility to motivate and regular themselves.
10 mins
Very hard to create the conditions… always think long term. Think purpose. Think teaching.
This is the key question – how do we do this?
Have realized the link through many of the areas of interest for me
We cannot TELL students their strengths, we must provide the conditions for them to discover or use them.
Provide CHOICE and Tap into strengths and interests of teachers and students
Slow down – take the time
Go through each off the ideas
CHOICES - Canoe building, CSI, Glee club, flag football, stop motion video, readers theatre, lego architects, bird watching
A quote from a parent… I know on Wednesdays I don’t have to ask “what did you do in school?... They just tell me”
Passion projects at LSS – Christa Barberis
PBL - answer a question, solve a problem, reflect learning in world outside the classroom.
the work students undertake also needs to be relevant, meaningful and authentic
worthy of their time and attention.
Students don’t always know their needs yet
Balance of needs and wants…
Judy Halbert and Linda Kaser - 3 caring adults
Judy Halbert and Linda Kaser - 3 caring adults
Carol Dweck –
Fixed = cannot change, born athletic/academic/artistic, focused on result – when failure occurs, it is because of ability so often give up
Growth = learners, willing to take risks, when failure occurs – try another route or put in more effort
Praising effort vs ability “You are so smart” = encouraging fixed.
It’s ok, you are not good at math… you have strengths in other areas. Fixed.
Mindset has a huge impact on how we perceive feedback.
Focus on process… feedback that drives learning forward. Power of YET
Feedback has the smallest effect when it is related to praise, rewards, and punishment. – Hattie.
Descriptive feedback – where are they now? Where are they going? How weil they get there?
Back up to where they are and give feedback that creates action… creates success… creates confidence
What is your leadership program?
Autonomy, purpose – a contagious culture
Responisibility, Integrity, teachable moments.
Monitors, buddies, hot lunch helpers, referees, working with struggling students (ex. Trysten)
Often students who struggle flourish when put in a leadership role…
Every child can be a leader.
10 mins
Why move away from rewards?
If so many of our children come to us wanting to help and to do the right thing… maybe we just need to get out of the way?
Kimberly Schonert-Reichl says “it’s good to be good… rewards undermine this”
Do we give rewards too much credit? Story of Brenda
Students of poverty need incentives to get them to read.
Promote a love of books… read anywhere, tap into interests, DEAR, read alouds, teacher-librarian, flexible library schedule, literacy rich environments
Met on a regular basis through last summer and throughout the year.
2 days in lieu
Continue to expand on this for next year
Staff have these outside their doors.
Read alouds
Month of February… but the joy continues
We expect students to do the right thing... Not for any reward but because it is the right thing.
Set the bar with modeling and leadership[.
Does rewarding and punishing teach the skills we are trying to see in our children?
Used to be a rewards/punishment guy – focused on grades, bonus marks, Bobcat Bucks, garbage duty, detentions, bag skates – this is what I knew
I knew it was not working like I planned but I had nothing in my toolbox.
Reward/punishment inflation
The other side of the reward – negative extrinsic motivation – punishment.
Based on control and fear.
When a child struggles in reading, we support; When a child struggles with behaviour, we punish.
By focusing on rewards and punishment, we rob students of developing responsibility.
Parents still fear the principal because of the fear of punishment they had when they were in school.
Previous principal: Restitution, relationships - Effect of different mindset – decrease in incidents, behaviour IEPs,
We last suspended a child almost 3 years ago – major mistake.
Pressure to have something done TO a child. Often involves pain or neglect. Power over.
Kids need teaching… kids need discipline.
We need to hold students accountable, we need ownership and a chance to problem solve.
Coloroso – jellyfish, brick wall, backbone
Don’t we have zero tolerance? We have zero tolerance for certain behaviours but how we deal with these depends on the child.
Very hard to create the conditions… long term. First step is to stop using incentives. It will feel like it is not working… stay the course.
Every child is a good kid. They lack the skills and /or experience to make good choices.
Wraparound, interests, patience, teach, collaborative problem solving
BE Patient – it could take years. Work together. We all need to be on the same page – and that page starts with the child.
Write it down on the sheet…
Notes… thoughts… stop, continue, start