Module 5

          Chapter 12 defines motivation which arouses, directs and maintains behavior. In this chapter, we learn about the two different types of motivation and how they influence behavior. Intrinsic motivation is simply motivation to perform a task or to do something when we don't have to. Extrinsic motivation, on the other hand, is where we are not necessarily interested in the activity for its own sake, but rather what doing that activity might gain us. Both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation can be used at the same time in a given situation, and they both define a person's reason for acting. This is an interesting concept to think about and how different situations might be influenced by one motivation versus the other. An example of intrinsic motivation might be helping the lady across the street rake her lawn just because you want to help, not because you have to. An extrinsic motivation might be the lady asked you to rake her lawn for $20 in return for doing so this would be an extrinsic motivator.

          In Chapter 14, I learned a lot about how planning for the year before it starts is very important. It is important to think about how much time will be allocated for specific subjects. Another important aspect is not the knowledge a teacher possesses but how they explain and present the material that truly matters and leads to effective instruction. Now, of course, proper teaching certification and training are important but students learn by doing and so do teachers. They learn what works and what doesn't and what will be best for their students to succeed. Also, students want to know that their teacher is approachable and be provided with a warm and friendly environment. The climate of the classroom makes a big difference in how the class will respond. The teacher needs to show the students that he/she cares about them and not just about their grades. It is important for teachers to remember to be understanding because they will have a variety of students who from one day to the next can have hardship and they need to be understanding of anything at home that may be going on that is affecting their schoolwork and provide help or support when needed.

           Chapter 15 focuses on testing and grading. The two types of traditional tests are discussed which include objective tests which use multiple choice, true/false, fill in the blank and matching. Then you have writing tests which use essay questions which require careful planning and should discourage a scoring bias. This week we had to construct a test of our own using both multiple choice questions and essay questions. Being that I have never written a test before I found it particularly challenging. However, when it came to grading obviously the multiple choice questions were much easier to grade because it was cut and dry either the test taker chose the one correct answer or they didn't. Where with the essay questions I had to give no credit, partial credit and full credit so it made it more difficult to grade. I found it interesting for the essay questions how some test takers interpreted the questions but even if they provided the answer partially correct they still provided a reason for why they felt that and connected it to the question.