Encouraging Self Motivation in Students
Last updated by: Helen Dobson on 31 October 2008 - 2:05pm
A Teaching Story from Julia Bruce, Hairdressing Tutor, Centre for Hairdressing and Beauty Therapy, Waikato Institute of Technology. Julia is a 2008 Tertiary Teaching Excellence Award winner.
Throughout my career a reoccurring theme of my teaching evaluations has been that of classroom control. Students’ have even requested that I ‘be meaner’ in order to motivate and control the class. This is a reflection of the general student groups that pass through our programmes. They are mostly new school leavers who often struggle to adjust to the adult learning environment. When teaching practical skills on a hairdressing course where students are required to be self-directed, this presents quite a challenge.
Over the years I have tried many various strategies to motivate students and encourage them to be self disciplined as opposed to seeking external discipline. The Salon Group Project has been the most successful to date. Students are broken into groups (salons). Throughout the year they will work in these ‘salons’ during practical sessions. The students are encouraged to name their salons and develop their own policies and procedures. Regular meetings are held to review policy and performance. This gives students an insight into industry management and brings to light some of the decisions a management team may face.
The teams compete regularly for ‘salon of the month’. The competition is based on:
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Client comments – these are collected in individual salon feedback boxes
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Successful operating polices and procedures
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Amount of services performed during the month
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Retail sales
This criteria strongly reflects industry values and helps students build the core generic competencies required for employment.
The process assists in developing a classroom environment that is more conducive to learning because of to two key factors:
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Receiving feedback directly from clients inspires students to provide the best possible service. They take ownership of the quality and output of their work. Students are often given a renewed sense of purpose when they realise just how great they can make people feel when they are using their new skills.
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The power of peer pressure is channelled to create a professional class culture. Students can be fired from their salons. After receiving three warnings from their peers for being late, non-attendance or any form of professional misconduct they are instantly dismissed. They can apply to other salons in the class for employment, but just like in local industry, everyone knows why they were fired and job seeking is difficult.
This system creates a fun, competitive environment. Students have commented that they are more motivated to succeed and that they have become more professionally self-aware. I have found this project not only a support for students taking that important step towards becoming adult learners, but it also creates a link between a simulated training situation and industry. Most importantly this strategy builds a truly authentic learning experience for students.
