Teaching Service Learning in the Geosciences

Virtual Workshop

From the Thursday afternoon discussion:
How does one motivate students in service learning projects?

When my GPA as a math major was dropping, my daddy (an engineering professor) told me to "Get Interested!". So - I switched my major. "Get Motivated!" won't work. Myers-Briggs personality typology would suggest that the majority of people are "extroverted feelers" - they would respond well to a group activity with an immediate, visible payoff. But there are others who would rather work alone and figure out how the world works. Thus no single solution exists. I consider that the optimum project will have a mix of opportunities that allow different styles to succeed. Thus different team goals and methods of achieving those goals - all aimed towards a common desired outcome - with voluntary choice of option, have the best chance of succeeding.

Bill is quite right that there is no single solution for motivating students. Service learning projects contain several features that generally elevate student motivation:

-SL is cooperative rather than competitive
-students are active stakeholders
-students can see real-world, tangible outcomes
-it is clear how student contributions connect to a larger picture
-students have a chance to interact with potential role models with the community partners
-different types of students can play different roles, so as Bill pointed out, it's more likely they can find their motivational sweet spot.

We have a page on student motivation that has several strategies and references: http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/affective/motivation.html