Monday, November 29, 2010
Getting Students Motivated
I feel that one of the greatest challenges of being a PE teacher will be motivating the students to participate. Especially those in junior high. Although this will not be a problem for many of the students, it will be quite a challenge for others. Some students could care less about physical activitiy and the health benefits that result. So how can we as teachers motivate them to care even a little bit? I know firsthand how hard this is as I conduct all of the games for my church's youth group, teen retreats, and summer camps. There is always those handful of students who never want to do anything. They don't want to change clothes, sweat, or move and it can be really frustrating, especially when you see how much potential they have. I guess the best thing is to be patient with them and give them tasks that are challenging to them but not too hard, and will cause them to feel pressured or embarrassed. This will be an issue that PE teachers will always face and have to deal with.
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I think this is an excellent point that you bring up and it applies to all people at some point. I consider myself to be an active individual and there's still some days when i don't really feel like going out and playing games or getting sweaty, especially not for gym class. I think you're right though, it take patience and tasks that the students are challenged by without making them uncomfortable and hopefully they will come around.
ReplyDeleteMotivating students to do something they don't want to do is definitely a challenge for any teacher. As P.E. teachers we need to take it upon ourselves to find out what activities the students like. By giving them a choice of what they'd like to learn may increase participation. Staying away from team oriented sports and focusing more on individual training and progress may help as well. Although, however hard we may try, we'll never please every student.
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