Lack of student motivation in learning can be a consequence of several factors. Educational leaders ought to discern what makes students demotivated since motivation is essential in learning. When learners are motivated to learn they easily understand concepts and benefit from the educational process. It is the responsibility of the educators and the educational leaders to asses and determine what makes students demotivated since it may be personal factors, teacher-student interaction or the school environment and health problems.
The current educational centers need to have an environment that enhances learning opportunities. The school environment plays a significant role as it can either motivate students or demotivate them. Students are expected to interact with the aspects of the school environment to boost their learning capacity. It is important to consider that strategies set in schools to promote learning opportunities when looking at ways to boost student motivation. On the other hand, the unfriendly environment in schools will demotivate students (Burgess et al., 2018). For example, unfriendly teaching approaches and bullying in schools have been known to reduce learner motivation. Bullying is an inherent factor in the school environment and is also linked to depression which kills learners’ motivation.
Environmental factors in the schools need to be evaluated often through the educational leader’s guidance to ensure they do not demotivate students. Changes in the learning environment also need to be implemented well to ensure that learners easily adapt to them. Changes due to Covid 19 presented a challenge as most people felt detached and the new normal was not easy to adapt to (McCullogh et al., 2022). Challenges to adapting to new technology can also potentially decrease learner motivation. In this case, educational leadership needs to be proficient as it plays a significant role in ensuring successful student outcomes.
Educators play a significant role in ensuring that changes in the learning environment positively impact the learner’s ability to learn. Burgess et al. (2018) suggest that learners are motivated to learn through collaborative and active strategies of team-based learning. The teacher-student interaction also contributes to the psychological well-being of the students which comes into consideration in learner motivation. Data suggests that teacher-student interaction is shaped by the family background which impacts motivation (Liu & Chiang, 2019). School environment factors are interconnected with personal factors which all contribute to the motivation students have towards education.
Personal factors relating to the student are also important considerations when looking at what makes students demotivated. Whatever students are going through in their personal life can contribute to how they view education and the gain they obtain from it afterwards. Students are likely to be exposed to several factors during or after their school time that affects their motivation to learn. Psychological health well-being among students ensures they are in their right state of reasoning when schooling and therefore the vice versa is also true. According to Moir et al. (2018), students in higher learning are likely to face multiple stressors that are inherent in their daily interactions with the school. Family background is a personal factor that can impact motivation.
Studies on educational inequalities also depict that family background can shape students’ perspectives towards education and thereby impact their motivation. Students from families with domestic violence are likely to have psychological complications like depression that reduce their motivation. Students from advantaged families are likely to have a higher motivation to learn having been given a good head start by their parents (Chen et al., 2018). Family background role can also be considered by looking at the education level of the parents. Educated parents are likely to provide a good learning environment to their children which in turn boosts their motivation to learn.
Students suffering from mental or cognitive health issues depict demotivation at high rates. A student who lacks a stable mind are less likely to be engrossed to the studies due to the underlying diseases. For example, a student with schizophrenia will show fidgeting or even digress during important discussions in class (Day et al., 2020). Most of these students lack rarely see the importance of education in their lives since the pathology of the disease colonizes their minds, yielding demotivation.
In conclusion, it is not possible to point fingers and blame students, educators, parents, or education leaders for the lack of learner motivation as a lot of factors come into play during the teaching and learning process. The learner environment, personal factors and teacher-student interaction all play a part in determining learner motivation. However, educational leaders need to be active in discerning the problems in educational institutions that reduce learner motivation and come up with active approaches for intervention. Motivation therefore can be enhanced or decreased depending on the factors that come into play during the teaching and learning process. Motivation is essential in the teaching and learning process as it ensures that educational objectives are achieved. Successful school leadership is linked to better performance in schools which contributes to learner motivation. Educational leaders need to be instrumental in developing the best educational approaches that are sustainable and ensure continuity of the education.
References
Burgess, A., Roberts, C., Ayton, T., & Mellis, C. (2018). Implementation of modified team-based learning within a problem-based learning medical curriculum: a focus group study. BMC Medical Education, 18(1), 87-90. Web.
Chen, Q., Kong, Y., Gao, W., & Mo, L. (2018). Effects of socioeconomic status, parent–child relationship, and learning motivation on reading ability. Frontiers in Psychology, 9(2), 67-80. Web.
Day, C., Sammons, P., & Gorgen, K. (2020). Successful School Leadership. Education Development Trust.
Liu, R., & Chiang, Y.-L. (2019). Who is more motivated to learn? The roles of family background and teacher-student interaction in motivating student learning. The Journal of Chinese Sociology, 6(1), 23-25. Web.
McCullogh, N., Allen, G., Boocock, E., Peart, D. J., & Hayman, R. (2022). Online learning in higher education in the UK: Exploring the experiences of sports students and staff. Journal of Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism Education, 31(9), 100398. Web.
Moir, F., Yielder, J., Sanson, J., & Chen, Y. (2018). Depression in medical students: current insights. Advances in Medical Education and Practice, 9(65), 323–333. Web.