INTERVENTION NEWSLETTER: JANUARY 2016

LAZY OR LEARNED
HELPLESS BEHAVIORS?

Brain based learning theorist Eric Jensen described common

learned helpless behaviors and provided ideas for replacing
them with learned helpful behaviors.
Learned helpless behaviors:
Apathy, sabotage positive outcomes, give up before they have
started, refuse to follow directions, engage in passivity rather
than activity, adhere to limits that they have set upon
themselves, believe that things will happen regardless of their
input, enjoy humor that is hostile, argumentative, avoid learning
activities, feign illness, engage in class clown type behaviors,
express a why try mentality.

8 HUMAN MOTIVATORS:

Aggression-the need to assert

Recognition-the need to be acknowledged

Status-The need to be important

Inquisitiveness-the need to know

Power the power for control

Affiliation-the need to belong to a

group

Autonomy-the need for independence

Gregariousness-the need to socialize

and work with others
WHAT MOTIVATES EACH OF YOUR
STUDENTS?

Educators can try:

Engaging students in community service, giving students activist
roles, encouraging active hobbies, implementing movement and
physical activity, practicing personal skills, encouraging students
to make helpful contributions to the classroom, redirecting
negative choices, enhancing positive choices, giving students the
power of choice, thanking students for something they have
done, provide students a sense of inclusion and ownership, giving
specific praise and encouragement.

Teachers must adopt the mind-set

that theres no such thing as
laziness. If a student appears lazy,
there is something else going on
that we cant see.

The Paradoxical Commandments

by Dr. Kent M. Keith
People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.

Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.

Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.

Cool
TED
Talk!

https://www.ted.com/talks/tyler_dewitt_
hey_science_teachers_make_it_fun

Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down
by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.

Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.

Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.

How to help a failing student:

Get the parents involved early

Intentionally help the student whenever possible
Encourage them
Provide opportunity for self-reflection
Ask how you can help
Look for underlying problems
Require them to complete class work!
Go physically out into the halls and bring them into
office hours.
Dont allow them to say I have nothing to work on
and do nothing. Find something/anything that the
student can work on to bring up their grade.

Dont give up on them

Document all of your efforts!

What are students biggest motivation killers?

Students answered:
1) Bombing a test.
2) No opportunities to revise
3) Too much lecturing, need more hands on
activities
4) Poor understanding
5) Boring content. They need relevance!
6) Lack of respect for kids