“There are a variety of ways that teachers and administrators can communicate with their class, staff, and parents. Effective communication is vital to a schools success. Not just the typical teacher to parents way, but also from the campus to the families. Good communication can prevent misperceptions and mismatched expectations, encourage parent involvement and foster a team approach to caring for your students. Families should feel welcomed, informed and as involved as possible.” Free and easy ways to connect with your staff & parents! | Connected Principals.
“Psychology research shows that rewards only yield “temporary compliance”: your behavior might change for a period, but it’ll slide back like so many failed diets. As social scientist Alfie Kohn has observed at the Harvard Business Review, rewards like money, vacations, banquets, and plaques do little in the way of changing people’s attitudes. It’s the same reason why offering incentives to quit smoking, lose weight, or use a seatbelt are terrible strategies for making long-term behavior change. “Incentives … do not alter the attitudes that underlie our behaviors,” Kohn says. “They do not create an enduring commitment to any value… Read more Why Incentives Don’t Actually Motivate People to Do Better Work →
The power of engagement is huge. Another reason to allow students to choose more contexts for learning. “[Scientists] are finding that interest can help us think more clearly, understand more deeply, and remember more accurately. Interest has the power to transform struggling performers, and to lift high achievers to a new plane.” via How the Power of Interest Drives Learning | MindShift.
“1. Fine-tune the challenge. 2. Start with the question, not the answer. 3. Encourage students to beat their personal best. 4. Connect abstract learning to concrete situations 5. Make it social. 6. Go deep.” via Six Ways To Motivate Students To Learn | MindShift.
“Kids AREN’T motivated by technology. Instead, they’re motivated by opportunities to make a difference in the world; they are motivated by opportunities to ask and answer their own questions; and they are motivated by opportunities to learn together with like-minded peers” http://feedly.com/k/11KGrzK
Leading Learning 