Apr
Work in progress…
I first came across Daniel Pink in his TED Talk speaking about motivation whilst thinking about systems of rewards in education, his Google Talk focuses on the same area. His focus is business, but much of his thinking rings true for education.
Some points to consider, with some educational thoughts-
We do things for our own sake because they are interesting- intrinsic motivation.
40 years of research in behavioural science shows that carrot and sticks work, but in narrow bands- in other situations they do harm.
Incentives work for tasks requiring mechanical skill. When rudimentary cognitive skill is needed, incentives decrease performance.
Practitioner offering rewards for the best piece of work/completion of work on time- you lose nothing if the work is not your best or not completed on time.
Punishment may encourage poor behaviour. Punishment becomes the ‘payment‘- this is worth paying to break the social convention of the community.
Lateness- late detention signals that the convention is not met by all, payment for breaking the convention outweighs the ‘risk’.
For work that is simple carrot and stick motivation techniques work.
Money is a motivator, but people have to be paid enough- when people are paid enough they concentrate on their work.
What motivates people?
Autonomy – freedom to be active and engaged, without carrot and sticks. i.e. 20% time at Google.
We have an urge for self-direction and autonomy.
Allow students to choose their own focus and topics- showing back their results.
Staff CPD inset?
Mastery – our desire to get better at something. The biggest motivator for an individual is making progress.
Purpose- we want to be part of a purpose that is larger than ourselves.
