| Getting students
excited about an exercise or activity plays a key role in an enjoyable
experience. It will also provide a momentum of motivation to increase
participation in more physical activities. While reading several
articles I found that there were many aspects that contribute to
motivation, and the following is what I found.
In a study done by Prusak, Treasure, Darst and Pangrazi (as cited
in Ishee, 2005), it was found that student preferences increases
motivation in activities. They surveyed 1,110 girls in single-sex
classes focusing on the walking unit. Students were given information
on the benefits of walking and then split into two groups. One group
made decisions on how to best implement activities, while the other
group did not have a choice whether to participate or not.
The results revealed that those "in the choice group reported
more intrinsic motivation, experienced less external control, and
felt less amotivated in the physical setting." These results
support the view that when students feel a sense of autonomy their
motivation increases. The author encourages teachers to consider
autonomy when making decisions about the curriculum.
Another factor that may attribute to a student's motivation is
situational interest. Situational interest is in reference to motivation
that is released by content, rather than personal preferences (Chen,
Martin and Sun, 2005). In a study on situational interest 6,700
third, fourth, and fifth graders were surveyed to find the predictability
of situational interest in class as well as in learning achievement.
The results were that when the content is of interest to students
it promotes motivation and attention. A suggestion is that situational
interest should also be considered when developing a curriculum.
Sometimes it is not just the curriculum that affects the participation
of a student. During adolescence other factors become more pressing
upon self-esteem and self-concept. A statement by Cothran, Kulima,
and Garn (2005) is that a student's perception of "being cool,"
and their gender, had an affect on their participation in physical
activities. However for ethnic minorities these factors were not
as relevant in their choice to participate as socioeconomic factors.
The authors indicate that these results should be considered important,
because factors such as the ones above precede behavior and reactions
to it. These kinds of studies help to create an awareness of external
factors that affect the behaviors of everyone. With this awareness
teachers can become more vigilant in noticing the reactions of students,
as well as achieving a broader understanding of their students.
Lastly, in a study that looked at the experiences of ninth graders
in physical education as a requirement, the study found that a student's
perceived skill has an affect on future participation in physical
activities. The results indicate that students with lower skill
ability attributed success to external factors such as luck, or
to the competence of their peers, while taking the blame for their
own failures. The low skilled ninth graders indicated that, in the
future, it was unlikely that they would participate in physical
activities.
Suggestions made by students included separating the class by skill
level, and for low skilled girls they preferred gender separation.
The study indicates that their opinions of likes and dislikes had
been formed in early childhood, and that high skilled students liked
to be challenged, whereas low skilled students were in favor of
non-competitive sports. The opinions of the high skilled students
reflected their decision to continue to be physically active in
the future, even after high school.
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