Student engagement and motivation
A page within CATL Teaching Improvement Guide
Motivation is the process by which goal-directed activity is instigated and sustained (Pintrich & Schunk, 2002). Educators often struggle with student motivation problems that range from disinterest and apathy to overanxious students driven to get good grades. This section of the guide focuses on strategies to support students’ motivation—their effort and persistence in learning. At any one time a student can be motivated by a number of factors. These include students’ achievement goals, the type of value they place on learning, their expectancy for success or failure, how they interpret their successes and failures, the degree of choice they have over their own learning, and more.