WELCOME
Bringing Excitement to the
Classroom:
Understanding What Motivates and
Engages Today’s Students
Brandman University
EDDU 9355
What our students believe, value and
how they behave is mostly a product
of the parenting they receive and the
society in which they grow up in.
There are individuals who go beyond
the parenting they receive and the
messages about themselves that
society sends.
Those individuals will succeed or fail
no matter what we do.
But for the vast majority of children,
those two factors will determine what
they believe, value and how they
behave in life and in your classroom.
We can never blame students as they
didn’t choose their parents or the
messages society was sending them
about their world at the time they
were growing up.
To a large extent, each generation is a
product or victim of those two factors.
Females aren’t getting those messages
today, but each generation does have
messages it sends children about their
world and how they should view it.
It sends all of us messages and it
impacts our behavior.
There is a theory that whatever dance
was popular when you were in high
school, is how you will dance the rest
of your life.
Let’s bring it up to date. 9 dances of the 2000’s
'Bye Bye Bye' Dance by 'N Sync
'Oops! ...I Did It Again' Dance by Britney Spears
'1,2 Step' Dance by Ciara
'Lean Wit It, Rock Wit It' Dance by Dem Franchise
Boyz
'Walk It Out' Dance by UNK
'Crank That (Soulja Boy)' Dance by Soulja Boy
'Single Ladies' Dance by Beyonce
'Bad Romance' Dance by Lady Gaga
The Dougie (From 'Teach Me How to Dougie') by
Cali Swag District
So what dance did you do in high
school?
Is that how you dance today?
Society also tells us…
What we should wear.
This versus
Versus this
Question #1…How many of you
have ever worn a pair of
bellbottoms?
Question #2…How many of you will
admit that you worn a pair of
bellbottoms?
What is
healthy for
us.
Information is always changing.
Eggs…now
Unless you are diabetic, there is no
evidence that dietary cholesterol
results in plaque building up in your
arteries.
Saturated fat/red meat.
In 2014, a study out of Harvard,
comprised of over one million people,
found no link between the
consumption of unprocessed red
meat and either heart disease or
diabetes. Another study in Europe of
over 450,000 individuals came to the
same conclusion.
Coffee…
Coffee enhances brain function (as do
most stimulants), may protect your
brain from degenerative diseases like
Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, and may
ward off Type 2 diabetes and even
liver cancer.
How we
should look.
Skinny….
How we
should look.
Plus size…
What is class is about, is
understanding how those messages
that are impacting our students and
how we can use our understanding of
those messages to that to motivate,
excite and engage them in the
learning process.
Let’s start with a quick historical
perspective.
Historians and social psychologists
believe that there are 6 identifiable
generations since 1900.
We know none of you in here today
are quite that old, but want see if you
can identify your parents, grand
parents and maybe your great grand
parents in the different generations.
GI generation…those born between
1901-1926. “Greatest Generation”
-Lived through WWI, the Depression
and WWII
-Qualities…team players, community
minded, hard workers, loyal,
assertive
-Beliefs…marriage for ever, avoid
debt, fix it or do without, clear right
and wrong, never quit…even if you
hate it.
Mature generation…those born
between 1927-1945
-Lived through WWII, the Depression
and Korean War
-Qualities…loyalty to employer,
knowledge was important, hard
worker
-Beliefs…women stayed at home,
authority was right, everyone had a
role
Baby Boomers…they were born
between 1946-1964.
2 sub-sets of this generation.
1. Save the world group of 60’s-70’s.
2. Party hardy group 70’s-80’s.
Lived through…Viet Nam, civil rights
struggles, riots, rapidly changing
social values.
Qualities…independent, optimistic,
impulsive, question everything
Beliefs…do your own thing, no rules,
all about me, now is what matters
Generation X…those born 1965-1980
-Lived through changes such as both
parents working, distrust of
government, AIDS, institutions which
failed their parents, drugs
-Qualities…very individualistic,
cynical, into labels and brand names
-Beliefs…individual rights most
important, wait to marry, debt okay
Generation Y, Millennials… born
between 1981-2000.
-Lived through school safety
problems, 9/11, overbearing parents
-Qualities…work in teams, jobs are
secondary to life, don’t want to be
bored, adventure
-Beliefs…education important, fun,
must be connected, deserve things
Generation Z, Boomlets…born after
2001.
These are the children in your
classrooms today.
This group is broken down into:
-Tweens 8-12 years of age
-Toddler/Elementary 1-7 years of age
They are being raised by Millennials
and are receiving the following
messages from their parents.
1. They are special.
They don’t have to do anything to
make themselves special, they just
are.
A second aspect of feeling special is
that they don’t believe that rules apply
to them, even though they believe in
the rules and think they are a good
thing.
Researchers have called this the “me”
phenomena.
They discovered this when they posed
their questions in different ways.
When asked if it is ever alright for
people to text when driving, the
overwhelming response was 90/10
“NO.”
When asked if you text while driving,
the response was 60/40 saying they
did text.
It is theorized that we justify our
actions and not the actions of others.
This also applies to following rules of
organizations.
50% of Catholics in American believe
abortions should be legal, even
though it goes against the teachings
of the church.
This dynamic is true for almost all of
us.
We believe in the law…unless we think
the law is wrong and we have our own
reasons for not following that law.
In that case, it is alright to break the
law.
2. They are entitled.
Things should be given to them and
the world revolves around them.
Why do they feel this way…because
things have been given to them!
There are basically two types of
families.
Parent centered and child centered.
In parent centered families, decisions
are made based upon the needs of the
parents first. The needs of the
children can be taken into account,
but the final decision is based upon
the what is best for the adults in the
family.
In child centered families, decisions
are based upon the wants and needs
of the children first. Where they want
to go to dinner or vacation, what to
watch on TV or movies to go see, etc.
The children are in charge…a very
difficult role for them to take on.
I’m sure you all have seen the parent
at the grocery store, toy store,
restaurant, etc. bargaining with and
bribing their child to behave.
That is a child centered home.
Think back to your childhood.
On the continuum of Adult Centered
or Child Centered
AC
Which family did you grow up in?
CC
3. They have been sheltered.
Back in the day, men going into
battle.
Today’s child going out to ride
his/her bike.
While it is a positive quality of today’s
parent to want to protect their child,
where is the line between protecting
them and shielding them from the
normal challenges of life.
From the Mayo Clinic
Children growing up in rural areas,
around animals and in larger families
seem to develop asthma less often
than do other children. According to
the hygiene hypothesis, this is due to
increased exposure to particular
viruses, bacteria or parasites.
The hygiene hypothesis proposes that
childhood exposure to germs and
certain infections helps the immune
system develop. This teaches the body
to differentiate harmless substances
from the harmful substances that
trigger asthma. In theory, exposure to
certain germs teaches the immune
system not to overreact.
4. They are exposed to things earlier
than any previous generation.
This is due to the technology that
exists today.
Because of this Generation Z are
leaving toys behind for computers.
In 1990, Mattel, the maker of the
Barbie doll, reported the average child
in their target market was 10 years old.
In 2000 it had dropped to 3 years old.
They even have an acronym for it.
KGOY…kids growing older younger
Not all of that exposure is good.
5. Diversity is the norm for them.
They see it everywhere.
Clothes
Life styles
Family configurations
Think of the TV shows you watched
growing up.
What diversity existed?
6. Not only when you were born
impacts your thinking about the
world, but where you were born as
well.
Think of the different messages
children get in Durango versus
Denver.
Durango versus Pagosa Spring,
Farmington, Aztec, etc.
In Sociology there is a concept called
the “Social Norm Theory.”
It basically states that we tend to go
to the norm of our group in relation
to what we believe, value and how
we behave…whatever that norm is.
ISIS is an example of a negative norm
group.
7. Searching…next adventure, next
experience
Would I be happy if I…
This takes people to new extremes
in trying things.
Interesting studies about spouse
cheating has found that it is not
because they are unhappy with their
spouse.
But there just might be something
more out there and they don’t want to
deny themselves that opportunity.
Disclaimer…
1. We are speaking in general terms.
Not every student thinks and
behaves alike. We are all unique
individuals, but we are not immune
to the pressures and influences of
society.
2. Some of you are already using many
of the strategies we will go over in the
class.
That’s okay.
You may be doing them consciously
or by trial and error found out that
they work.
We will be putting names on those
strategies.
3. No strategy or technique works
every time and with every student.
There are many factors and
dynamics working in the classroom,
a good motivational strategy is only
one of them.
But there are patterns and the more
we understand those patterns, the
better able we will be to understand
what our students believe, value and
how they behave.
In this class we will have you look at
your students to identify any patterns.
They are definitely different than any
previous generation and can be quite
challenging.
We don’t want you to be the teacher
saying, “I have no idea how the kids
today could think that way about life.”
Remember…you don’t have to agreed
with how they think, but you do need
to understand it.
Business recognizes this and is
constantly adjusting to meeting ever
changing consumer demands.
A bank that doesn’t have ATM’s or
online banking can’t exist today.
So it only makes sense that we
should be constantly changing to
meet the needs of our ever changing
student population.
If we keep the idea that the students
should adjust to us and not us to
them, we may go the way of
businesses unwilling to change…out
of business.
Information
Brandman registration:
Credit card
Checks are made payable to:
“Brandman University”
You can download all the
Powerpoints used in this class at
Joe’s website:
JoeLoVerde.com
The Portfolio, Practicum and
Workbook are in Microsoft Word
format.
If you have any problems
downloading the pages, contact Joe.
You can turn in your Practicum in
either a hard copy or electronic form.
.
We must require that you turn your
Practicum in on time. We have to
send the grades in together, so if a
Practicum is late, it is holding up the
credit for everyone else in the class.
If you decide that the class is not for
you for whatever reason in the first 3
days of the class, you will get a full
refund.
Goal of the class…
To provide you with ideas and
strategies to motivate, excite and
engage your students to achieve at
their highest level possible.
We will do this by:
1. Providing you with an
understanding of why today’s
student believe, think and act the
way they do
2. Based upon that understanding,
knowing what strategies work
best to excite and engage our
students
3. Be able to analyze your lessons
to
determine if you are using any
of
these strategies.
4. Know how to incorporate these
strategies into your existing
lessons.
Based upon those goals we have
broken the class into 3 parts.
Today we will look at what today’s
students believe and think about the
world and how that impacts their
behavior in your classroom.
Tomorrow we will look at 4 of the
factors which create excitement and
engagement in the class.
We will analyze one of your lessons
in relationship to those factors and
give you strategies for incorporating
those factors into future lessons.
On Friday we will look at remaining 4
factors.
Turn to page #2 in your Workbooks.
We have provided you this page to
take notes.
We have identified 8 of these
dynamics that impact your students
engagement and motivation in your
classroom.
These 8 are related to our student’s
belief about the world they live in.
They are…
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
View of authority
Beliefs about work
Persistence
Importance of storing information
Immediate feedback/gratification
Recognition
Responsibility
Choices
1. View of authority
Today’s children are being raised by
Millennials and Millennials have a
very negative view of authority.
And that view is being passed down
to their children.
They have been lied to by both
political parties.
Weapons of mass destruction that
never existed.
They also see headlines almost
every day that make them distrust
some the basic institutions in the
society….
Clergy sex abuse settlements
top $2.5 billion nationwide
Cathy Lynn Grossman,
USA TODAY 12:01 p.m. EDT
March 13, 2013
“Disgraced evangelical pastor Ted
Haggard admits second relationship
with man”
CNN News
The Big List: Female Teachers with
Students
provides a detailed listing of 268
female sexual predator teachers,
complete with photos of the sex
offenders and accounts of their
alleged or proven sexual offenses with
minor students. World Net News
“6 Baltimore Police Officers Charged
in Freddie Gray Death”
New York Times…
We told the Millennials two things
that didn’t pan out too well.
1. Save money and invest that money.
Dow Jones:
Jan. 3, 2007
March 9, 2009
12,474
6,507
2. Buy a home, it is a great
investment.
1.2 million lost their homes in the
2008-2009 crash.
It is no wonder that Millennials and
their children have no faith in what
people in authority tell them.
So when, as educators, we tell our
students or their parents something,
we have to understand that they may
not believe everything we say.
As educators we are not alone in this
view of authority.
“Why” is their #1 question.
That comes from a position of
mistrust, not trust.
We have all become a bit more cynical
in our society and I don’t believe that
is a good thing.
2. View of work
Work unfortunately for many of our
students is viewed as a negative.
Work is not fun and fun is what it is
all about for this generation.
We constantly see ads that tell us
how easy and fun it can be to lose
weight and and gain muscle.
As you look at ads from now on, look
for the following words…
-Fun
-Easy
-Fast…immediate gratification
Also, their sense of “entitlement” that
impacts their view of work.
That they don’t feel they have to work
for things, but those things should
come easy or just be given to them.
So why are we surprised that our
students are not excited about the
idea of working?
Learning…isn’t there an app for
that?
3. Persistence
Studies have shown that American
students are some of the less
persistent of students in the world.
Given a task that was not solvable,
our students gave up sooner than
most other students.
Most persistent…
South Korean
China
Japan
The next slide shows the current
leading money winners on the Ladies
Professional Golf Tour
RANK
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
PLAYER
Lydia Ko
Inbee Park
Sei Young Kim
Stacy Lewis
Amy Yang
Brittany Lincicome
Hyo Joo Kim
Cristie Kerr
Morgan Pressel
Mirim Lee
Na Yeon Choi
Ha Na Jang
Shanshan Feng
Anna Nordqvist
Ilhee Lee
EARNINGS
$915,051
$810,261
$747,252
$739,970
$545,196
$531,488
$477,561
$473,772
$436,562
$405,043
$373,251
$312,826
$305,294
$278,355
$276,536
Interesting that the top three money
winners were all born in Seoul,
South Korea. The 5th leading money
winner was also born in South
Korea.
In fairness, Lydia Ko now lives in
New Zealand and considers that her
home country after moving there
when she was seven years old.
Are Asian females better athletes or
is there something in their culture
(the messages they receive from
their parents and their society) that
makes them willing to work harder
and be persistent in a game that
requires both attributes.
“It’s not that I’m so smart; it’s just that
I stay with problems longer.”
-Albert Einstein
4. Importance of storing information
Stored knowledge is now being
looked upon as a negative.
Part of that dates back to when we
had students memorize fairly
useless information.
Knowing all the state capitals…North
Dakota? Mississippi? New York?
Historical facts…who invented the
cotton gin?
First man to step on the moon?
Should all students when Colorado
became a state?
Why?
The concept of knowledge for
knowledge sake is an old concept.
Today’s students have spell and
grammar check.
They need good reasons for learning
algebra.
The second reason for not storing
information in our heads, is that it’s
at our fingertips in our smartphones,
tablets and laptops.
I can ask Siri and she can get me
that information or Google it.
What will be the high temperature in
San Francisco tomorrow?
Before smartphones (2006), you
could have gone home and looked it
up on your computer.
Prior to that, you could have gotten
that information from a newspaper.
Today’s children have no concept of
waiting to get your film developed.
Everything is instant for them.
Learning unfortunately can be a slow
process.
6. Recognition
Today’s students have been
conditioned to be recognized and
rewarded for almost everything they
do.
This device is a “potty trainer.”
Below is the promotion materials that
go along with the device.
Potty Praise: Kids will love the cute
frog design and the included book and
interactive panel that reads a story
and encourages their efforts.
They expect praise and recognition
for their efforts, not just their
accomplishments.
Everyone gets a trophy or medal.
7. Responsibility
This concept takes two forms…
1. It’s not my fault!
“I grew up poor.”
“My mother didn’t breast feed me
long enough.”
“What can you expect, I’m a pisces.”
“I was the youngest in the family.”
“ I grew up rich.”
We’re sure you all saw the story
from 2013…
Texas teen's fatal DWI defense:
'Affluenza’
USA Today headline.
This 16 year old killed 4 people while
driving drunk.
His defense was “Affluenza.” That he
was rich and had never had to
experience the consequences of his
actions and therefore shouldn’t be
held accountable for the deaths.
He was sentenced to 10 years of
probation. No jail time.
Or this view of child abuse.
The other part of responsibility is the
concept…
“It’s not my job!”
I’ve had many conversations with
parents when I was working at the
elementary level about reading to
their child to help them catch up with
the other students.
I was so frustrated when parents
would tell me that teaching their
children to read wasn’t their
responsibility, “Isn’t that what I’m
paying taxes for.”
A convenient out for people today is
the concept of “computer error.”
It is easy to blame this inanimate
object that can’t talk back.
I’m always amazed when people will
spend more time explaining why it
wasn’t their fault than in solving my
problem.
8. Choices…
They want choices…because they
have access to choices and have
been given choices.
Most parenting theories today
encourage you to give your child
choices.
“Would you like to brush your teeth
first or put on PJs?”
“Do you want to put that phone back
in your pocket or do you want to give
it to me?”
In our personal lives we want
choices.
We record TV shows and movies to
watch them when we want to, not
just the times they are broadcast.
Netflix releases the entire season
(13 episodes) of their show, House
of Cards, all at one time.
In their statement, they said that they
wanted to give the viewer the option
of how they wanted to view the
series.
One show per week, one per day or
maybe you are a “binge” watcher.
Think of all the choices you have
in…
-Buying a car
-Cereals
-Clothing
-How you shop…store, online
-Airlines you fly
The airlines have actually been very
clever in using our desire for choice
as a money making tool.
Under the premise that, “We only will
charge you for the services you
want.”
How much did the airline industry
earn from charging for check bags
last year?
According to data released this year
by the Bureau of Transportation
Statistics, domestic airlines raked in
$3.35 billion in baggage fees in 2013.
Frontier airlines has taken it a step
further.
They charge you for…
-Selecting a seat
-Checked bags
-Carry on luggage
-All drinks except for water
-Internet
-Video
Turn to page #2 in your Portfolios.
ASSESSMENT #1
A. Identification and explanation of the dynamic:
_____________________________________________________ _____________________________
______________________________________________________ ____________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________ ___________________________
B. Evaluation of how that dynamic is impacting student behavior and learning:
__________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________ ______________________
__________________________________________________________ ________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________ __________________________
_____________________________________________________________ _____________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________ ________________________
C. Specific examples to support your evaluation:
________________________________________________________ __________________________
_____________________________________________________________ _____________________
___________________________________________________________ _______________________
______________________________________________________________ ____________________
________________________________________________________________ __________________
_______________________________________________________________ ___________________
_______________________________________________________________ ___________________
__________________________________________________________ ________________________
EXCITEMENT TO THE CLASSROOM
PORTFOLIO Page 2
We are asking you to assess the
impact that 4 of the 8 dynamics had
on your student’s performance last
year.
Understand, each group of students
is unique and not every dynamic
may apply to your students.
Pick the 4 that you believe had the
most impactful and those are the
ones we want you to assess.
A. Identify the dynamic and provide
a quick explanation.
You might pick the dynamic of
“Taking responsibility” for example.
You will simply write about the
dynamic in relationship to what we
have just talked about in the class.
You might write…
Today’s students struggle with the
concept of taking responsibility for
their actions. They have a tendency
to blame others and explain their
behavior by saying it was beyond
their control. Or, that things aren’t
their responsibility.
B. How is it impacting student
behavior and learning?
It makes it quite challenging to teach
students who spend more time
coming up with excuses for why they
couldn’t do their work, study, etc.
than to have just done what was
required of them.
Also, students who blame fellow
classmates when group projects
aren’t completed on time or are of
poor quality.
C. Specific examples…
This is anecdotal evidence. Not hard
evidence, but observations and
things you heard your students say
or do.
So you will write down things
students told you…
“My friend made me late for class
because they needed to talk.”
“I can’t work in class because it is
too hot, cold, loud, quiet, etc.”
“I didn’t want to take the other
student’s things, but the other
student made me.”
Again, not hard evidence but things
you have heard and observed in
your students related to this
dynamic.
You will do the same for 3 other
dynamics.