What do you do with a student that you see is strugling,but put up a wall and wont let you in to help

Great information. Overuse of extrinsic was something I had not given alot of consideration. Still trying to reach students whose motivation is not clear and who seem to not want to be there.

How do we get students to re-energizer or refocus when they have passed the half way point, and are in the middle of the half way point and the end? It seems like they can no longer see or want the end result.

I've found that good motivation can also come from outside sources, such as guest speakers. Finding guest speakers in the occupations that the students want to be a part of in the future provides them with renewed perspective and excitement for the field.

One of my career development classes requires the students to write two journals per week, to which I respond. I have found that although they always complain when they are told about the assignment at the beginning of class, they generally are excited to see my responses to them after I pass the journals back. I really think this is a great method to connect with each student, and to reinforce their feelings. Some students keep their journals about school, others delve into personal issues they they need to get off their chest. I'd encourage other instructors to consider this method - I've had great success with it!

I occasionally feel frustration due to the fact that I work full time, and instruct part time. Many of my students have needs, and I sometimes feel that I don't have the time in the day to attend to each student. I'm very fortunate that my school encourages the participation of program directors when students have major issues, but there are times when students just need to talk about smaller issues in their lives. I'm interested to hear any suggestions from others who have similar frustrations.

I work in an envornment with a lot of physical activity. I try to recognize peoples stamina limitations as well. Sometimes other students complain they are not "pulling their weight" What can I do to lessen that stress as well?

Yes, checking students mid progress is really helpful. This way students are reminded about their make up work or projects and what else they can add to bring their grades up.

Students acquire shot-term and long-term memory knowledge use it for testing. I really can not wait to apply this, because I realize exams I make half of the class feels comfortable and rest looks little confuse. So I believe I can bring Ah HA moments in my class rooms and motivate my students. Thanks a lot for this million dollar info.

Yes I am absolutely agreeing with you, but not all the students.Yes adult learners they have their mission, they understand whey are are the in school. They are serious and motivated to upgrade their life style.

I like the the idea of reinforcing students,but I feel it is still going to cause problem in the class. Because different kind of students comes to school.I understand human likes to be reinforce. please need your help.

These kind of students are just out to look for problem, basically they are not motivated and comes to school under the pressure of authorities. No matter what you do they continue this kind of behavior and will try to engage couple of more and make classroom fun house. If you report them they make it more harder. Please help me out.

In my experience, a good refocusing technique is finding a balance between left and right brain activities. Especially in an arts program where skills are both technical and creative, a good refocusing technique is to simply stop talking and starting doing more. It's amazing how doing motivates more talking later on, and recharges batteries very quickly. Your thoughts?

I often find it that motivation starts from connecting your experience with the desire of the student. Finding why he or she came for in the first place and connecting the material through those reasons is really a straight connection between the student, the subject matter and the instructor. What are your thoughts?

Within the module the idea that student learners are primarily autonomous was brought up. I don't know if I completely agree with that, considering that previous modules have identified how easily our students can leave. I do agree they are somewhat idependent in nature; however, where is the disconnect and what can we do with the needy students?

I have been in the teaching field for 3 years, and I feel that I have yet to have to recharge my battery; however I think it's due to the everchanging material I use in the classroom. Teaching English, I have the opportunity to bring in new material to get the points across. What other methods do you find helpful?

It seems that one part overlooked and/or given little attendance is the idea of ethical behavior and retention. When do we cross an ethical boundary when keeping students in the program or school?

I understand the basic needs of our students especially those of an older age and those with disabilities; however, my questions stems from those students who really don't have a motivation to learn. I have had instances in which I feel my level of accommodation is above and beyond what is necessary, especially for those students who may get what they want from the school and leave 3/4 of the way through the term. So where is the line? Do I as an isntructor try to accommodate all needs, or when I feel my moral obligation has run dry, should I quit?

I couldn't agree more about the nature of a successful classroom setting. I always try to reinvent myself and not follow old patterns. A classroom is never a one-size-fits-all. However, there are times when being nice and creative is not enough. Especially if there are (and there are) students that for some reasons learned that in order to succeed, all they have to do is please their teachers. At some point the instructor must reflect not only a flexible and knowledgeable academic authority but also a metaphor for the industry. Students in a trade school setting must understand that the industry will not wait for them, so along with being respectful, cheering, and attentive, an instructor must be able to demonstrate a reflection of the real world to the students. Especially the ones that are still not ready to face the real world. In my experience I found that I sometimes needed to "get down to business" and give a, perhaps cold, reality slap.. What do you people think?

In a creative/technical program of study, such as an art form coupled with industry relevance (i.e. music and sound relating to technology) there are other possible frustrations and challenges relating to student motivation and retention. One of the most obvious one is the general notion that one can simply 'miss the train' if you don't start young. I may relate to an age difference issue in the classroom but it is not limited to that since it can certainly happen in a classroom of students of a similar age group. What I have found as a good approach is to give the class a reality check and overlay it with the class objectives to put things into perspective. The most important aspect for the student to recognize is that, yes, in order to be a professional violin player one needs to practice a lot and probably from a young age, but that is not the scope of this artistic endeavor. A lot of students fear that anything in the arts involve perfection from a young age and it is simply untrue. In a creative program such as music technology, for instance, it is important to clarify that the skill set taught isn't primarily age sensitive.