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Motivating learners to take charge of their own learning

School reports have not changed much since my own schooling years in the 1960s. They continue to be ‘log positions’ in the race to the top one or the top three. For a few learners, this is quite motivating (or the system would have changed a long time ago). However, there can only be one ‘top one’ and three ‘top threes.’ What about the rest?

Let’s amend that question. What about all the rest?

School reports are not just about marks

Can a school report be modified so that it goes a lot deeper than the finishing post? Can it be tweaked to encourage a learner (every learner) to look inward to strive to be the best they can be? Could self-motivation be a natural spin-off from this? Could all this mean that the learner takes charge of their own learning? I believe that the answers to these questions are all YES!

A new approach to adding goals to term reports

Imagine that a Grade 8 learner (call her Doreen) sees her Term 1 Mathematics score of 28% against a class average of 48%. The class average does no more than tell Doreen how she ‘drags everyone else down’. But, early in Term 2, something new happens.

‘You need to set a goal for your Term 2 score,’ the teacher (we’ll call her Capital T) tells Doreen. ‘And I need to know that goal in good time, so it can be included in your Term 2 report,’ Capital T goes on.

Doreen is silent for a while. A goal in a report? A goal that I (me, Doreen) must come up with? That’s new. ‘Fifty percent?’ she responds tentatively.

‘Would a ten-unit jump from 28 to 38% be a better goal?’ Doreen asks.

‘That goal’s far too high!’ Capital T replies. ‘If it’s that easy, you would have done it back in Grade 4!’ Capital T knows about attainable goals.

Capital T draws her brows together and locks eyes with Doreen. ‘Even that’s too high. Let’s reverse a bit. The first step is to find out the reason for this score,’ Capital T points at the 28% in the report. ‘Find that and work on it during Term 2. Then go for no more than a 5-unit jump. That means…?’ Capital T waits for Doreen.

Doreen gets the message. ‘Oh. My goal for Term 2 should be 28 plus 5 equals 33%. Right?’ She is beginning to see a faint light at the end of a very long tunnel.

‘Spot on!’ Capital T smiles broadly. ‘Once I get their goals from the rest of the class, I’ll make sure they go into the Term 2 reports.’

Some ten weeks later, Doreen is examining her Term 2 report. Her Term 2 score in Mathematics is now 31%. Right next to it, she sees her goal of 33%. Yes, she did not meet her goal, but she missed it by just 2 units! Doreen is not even aware that she’s looking inwards now – she’s looking at her own performance, against her own expectations. She’s engaging in introspection. She’s thinking about herself and she’s questioning herself. Without realising it, she’s made the first step towards taking responsibility for her own learning. She’s comparing herself now to herself in the past. She’s on the journey to becoming the best that she can be.

Foster self-motivation in future generations

Adding goals to reports could be as easy as adjusting the computer program that generates the reports. But the benefit could make a fundamental change to the psychology of every learner.

During the 50 years since my days at school, we’ve had 30–40 learners striving for the one top position. I dare to hope that during the next 50 years, we’ll have 30–40 learners, each striving to be the best they can be. Go out there and become a Capital T teacher!

Take a look at Jay's store on Teacha! Resources to download free reporting templates

About the author:
Jay Pillay is a retired technical teacher. He has a store on Teacha! Resources called This CAPS it all!. His core resources relate to editable learning planners.

Using colour to foster learning

As Joseph Addison said, ‘colour speaks all languages’. I truly believe that colour is a language on its own. Why should learning be dull and boring paragraphs, with lines and lines of sentences? My mission is to speak a colourful language full of pictures that draw children’s attention.

Working in the ECD sector (creche and aftercare for primary school students), I soon discovered that children hate homework, dread exam time, and that absolutely no incentive can make them study. I also realised that there were only a few children who actually knew how to study.

Through trial and error, I started making summaries for my daughter, in colour. I incorporated games and summarised her work in mind maps, bullet points, keywords, and acronyms. From there, she grew a love and understanding of her work.

I started my small business on Facebook and then came across the Teacha! resource marketplace, where I was given the opportunity to open my online store. What did I have to lose? I loaded some of my summaries and worksheets, and never once looked back!

Here are a few key concepts I use when developing my products:

1. Try a combination of colours

Colour certainly plays a key role in creating an environment that fosters learning. I use colour to direct attention to keywords, phrases, and even pictures. Using the correct combination of colours grabs the attention immediately, stimulating the visual senses and helping students remember facts and figures.

Using the Orange River as an example, to summarise and enable children to remember it I would put a picture of a river with an orange slime splash or an orange slice next to it.

2. Include pictures

I’m a very visual person and would prefer a picture over a lot of words to read. To summarise paragraphs, I take out keywords, list them in a graph or mind map, and add a picture describing the sentence or key points to remember.

For example, in Geography you need to know that the earth is round. I would then place a picture of a round ball or maybe a circle next to a picture of the earth. When trying to recall a fact about the earth, children might remember the ball next to the earth globe, which then triggers their memory that the earth is round like a ball.

3. Simplify with mind maps

Studying text-heavy pieces might seem daunting to children but once you break down information into smaller chunks, it becomes more manageable and easier to remember. Mind maps and graphs most definitely help with making complex statements easier to understand.

I would simplify the sentence ‘Nelson Mandela was born on 18 July 1918 in Mvezo and became president in 1994 after being in prison for more than 27 years’ by drawing a spiderweb, as follows:

4. Make learning fun

Who wouldn’t rather play than study? Well, why not play whilst studying – especially in groups. One example of how I incorporate games into studying is by making flashcards of keywords. With only the picture in front, I show it to the children and then award points to the one who can give a description first. Achieving points, knowing your work when recognizing a picture, and a sense of accomplishment encourage self-confidence and inspires them to study.

Instilling a love of learning in children

Here are some tips I use:

Always make sure children have colour pens/pencils and paper! If they have the supplies, let them use them when drawing and creating summaries.
Underline keywords and try to draw a picture to help them to remember. Ask them ‘how will you remember it?’. I use names, dates, and familiar things around us and link them to the work my daughter has to learn to help her remember it a bit better.
Spend some time with them and help with that first mind map, using colour and creating games for them to remember what they need to know.
Help them to create flashcards with something in front that triggers their memory of the concept they need to learn and add the answer at the back.
Distinguish between major and minor details, and delete minor details to make their workload and learning material more manageable.

My Teacha! collection contains English and Afrikaans summaries that I’ve created using these tried and tested tips. I love what I do every day, knowing that somewhere, someone is using my summaries and enjoying studying a little bit more (and giving mom and dad a little bit less grey hair!).

View Anelia's 'My School Stuff' resource collection here

About the author:
After being in the corporate industry for 17 years working in a compliance environment, Anelia Muller took the plunge and joined her family business to spend some more time with her family, husband, and daughter. Working in the ECD sector, she discovered that not many children know how to study. She created summaries for her daughter that included colour, games, and mind maps and started selling them on Facebook and her store on Teacha!.