Student Engagement And Motivation For A Diverse Group Of Learners

Heather Ruha grew up in a “pretty rough” suburb on Chicago’s west border; this background has allowed her to connect with the hardships that her urban students face. Her interest in education was sparked by an incredibly influential teacher’s assistant in one of her classrooms, who Heather described as “giving” but always pushed her to do her best and challenge herself. She graduated from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago with a major in Elementary Education and a minor in Psychology. Ms. Ruha has been working in the Kenosha Unified school district since 2006, originally as a teacher in elementary classrooms, until she discovered a true passion for working with middle school students.

The writer is Chris Davis and he has an expertise as a movie critic. The purpose of the writer's piece, from his perspective, is to influence readers not only to see the movie I’ve Gotta Be Me, but to see it at the Morris and Mollye Fogelman International Jewish Film Festival. The writer also wants the reader to go with the mindset that it will be a positive experience. Davis the author, is writing this because as a movie critic. He believes that the movie is more than worth seeing, is a supporter of star Sammy Davis Jr., and the Festival. The writer adds a lot of information about Sammy Davis Jr. who is the star of this biographical movie. He lists a number of his accomplishments and personal facts which are seemingly interesting used to pull the reader in.

In the 1950’s Arthur Miller wrote a play, The Crucible, and set it in Salem during early colonization. In The Crucible, John Proctor has an affair with a young woman named Abigail Williams. However, John decides it is time to end things with Abigail, because of this she seeks revenge and spirals the town into madness in search of a “witch”. In Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter , minister, Arthur Dimmesdale, and Hester Prynne a young widow have a love affair and Hester becomes pregnant. Hester is forced to wear a red “A” on the front of her dress. Hester’s “dead” husband reappears and is set on finding out who Pearl’s father is. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter share similar themes about internal conflict.

Another way to build student motivation and engagement is to give them real world problems to solve. By doing this, natural conflict arises, and students have to work together in order to resolve the conflict and continue developing a solution to the problem. When this happens, students learn so much about the problem they are trying to solve, but they also learn skills that will help them become successful in life.

Childhood and adolescence are times of crucial growth in developing their sense of self and learning about the world. If the average American teenager spends about 7 hours in a classroom environment per day, then teachers are in a prime position to impact their students. As a teacher, I can ensure that my students receive the encouragement, compassion, and respect that is so important in becoming an able and confident member of society. Not every student receives academic support at home. Therefore, my classroom should also offer resources, classroom assistance, and a positive learning environment. I should invest time and effort into my students. I can help them realize their own potential and

"To create student engagement, the teacher must succeed in managing both discipline and instruction. If kids are goofing off, you won't get much engagement."

Student engagement is one of the most important things in school. Student engagement is an example. The students would have more time to do homework and get it done instead of not turning it in. Kids would also be more involved in class and in activities going on throughout the school. It is a big factoring debate on (Global Post) and talks about the more in student engagement. This shows what can be done to fix the problem

I am a Registered nurse with an extensive background in a variety of clinical settings. I draw from these experiences a wealth of knowledge which I can readily disseminate in written form. I have a passion for writing and a solid command of the English language. I pay particular attention to grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors. I believe in a positive, engaging learner experience. Engagement optimizes a student's success and

“A middle school is a school organization containing grades six to eight that, first provides developmentally appropriate and responsive curricular, instructional, organizational, guidance, and overall educational experiences; and second, places major emphasis on 10-15 year olds’ developmental and instructional needs” (Teaching in the Middle School, 6). The researcher has a great point for the fact that a middle school should be focus on the needs of diverse young adolescents. All young adolescents are in a special time in their lives that require extra guidance during this crazy change. Middle school students test out the boundaries and want to learn about new activities and interests during this stage. It takes a special person who wants to teach these diverse students who need the extra support from their teachers to show them what’s out there for them and to introduce them to new things.

One of the most important things that we need to remember as middle level teachers, is that every young adolescent is different, and because of those differences, we need to make sure that our lessons and activities reflect this aspect of young adolescents. The middle school age student is extremely complex. On one hand, they don’t fit into the elementary age of little kids, yet aren’t quite as mature as high school aged students. At this age, it is imperative to create lessons that are unique and captivating. Often the biggest problem about teaching middle school aged children is that they need motivation to do their work. In high school, students are worried about not doing well enough to get into college, while in elementary school their

Current research on young adolescent student motivation shows that the teacher must; make the lesson connect to the outside world as much as possible, let the students decide where they sit or what project to work on, guide the student rather than tell them the way, and be someone the student can trust and depend on. Teachers must motivate their students to become better and more engaged within the classroom by using techniques that allow the student to develop their own sense of motivation.

As the readings so often portrayed, the transition into middle schooling can be quite the rough event for students. Despite this, I was quite surprised to find that in a study conducted by Waxman and Huang (1998) of the three education groups—elementary, middle and high school—middle schoolers were actually identified as harbouring the most negative classroom perception. This semester’s Education readings have repeatedly shown that the more independent structure of middle schooling can overwhelm students who are transitioning from their tight-knit elementary classes. Compound these school structure changes with the onset of puberty and it quickly becomes clear that there are challenges to be had in educating the middle school student. (Tilleczek, 2010 p. 5) After participating in this semester’s Education topic, however, I have to come to the conclusion that an effective educator can thoroughly minimise the risks associated with middle school students through the development of holistic teacher—student relationships.

Engaging students in the classroom can be a difficult task. Understanding the process of how students learn can help a teacher adapt the lesson to meet the needs of all students. I will encounter students that are not intrinsically motivated so I will need to find different ways to motivate each and every student. Understanding how my students learn can provide me with insights as to how to help each student learn which will minimize classroom management problems.

According to the Association of Middle Level Educators (2010), the middle school years are the most important years of a child’s life. During this time, many aspects of a child changes. Their body is changing in ways they might not understand for many years to come. They are also changing emotionally. The changes that occur affect the teachers that are charged with teaching these young students. A teacher must understand how the students are changing and the best practices for effectively teaching them. For students at this age, it is arguably more important to shape them mentally and socially rather than only intellectually. The key is to incorporate all aspects of development into a student’s education. In today’s changing society, it is arguably, more important than ever to provide students with an education that meets their needs (This We Believe: Keys to educating young adolescents,

My observations has taught me the importance of engaging students. I am now able to recognize when a student is not engaged. They seem distracted and are not paying attention to what the teacher is saying. Whereas an engaged student is alert, discussing the material, and asking questions