Chapter 10 Response to: Motivation and Self-Worth

by April

I agree with you that students need a supportive, encouraging teacher for growth. Along with that, they need a teacher who really believes in their ability to learn and achieve success. I think teachers will be most successful in helping students develop self-worth if they help them set and reach challenging goals. We have to be careful, I think, not to get into the realm of coddling our students in order to build their self-esteem. I think it was in this chapter that talked about how students get an impression about whether or not their teacher thinks they are capable. For example, offering help too quickly can lead students to believe that the teacher doesn't think they can do it on their own. I know we've talked about this before, but it's good for students to struggle because most things in life don't come easily and they should be prepared to stick it out and work hard to achieve their goals.

I have a similar feeling about wanting to have clear guidelines in regards to instruction and assignments. I think this is because I didn't have teachers who provided a safe place to take risks. It seems easier to achieve success when you are told exactly what to do rather than being required to really think through tasks and take risks. As a teacher, I hope to help parents and students see value in risk taking and creative thinking because those skills are very beneficial in the world after school and in school.

I think our text throughout has provided a variety of ways to help students at least start relationships with other students. Of course this isn't something we can control or force but we can at least provide opportunities and support. Some students need direct instruction regarding how to enter a conversation with peers or how to join play that is already taking place. I don't know that it's really appropriate at the elementary level, maybe it is, but in the preschool I would usually choose one of our friendly, slightly outgoing students and ask them to make an effort to befriend a child who is struggling in this area. This was usually a very successful technique.