How Do You Weave Motivational Strategies Into Your Instructional Design?

Over the past two weeks, I have been focusing on the Motivational Framework for Culturally Responsive Teaching developed by Wlodkowski and Ginsberg. Wlodkowski presents this framework in its entirety in his book Enhancing Adult Motivation to Learn: A Comprehensive Guide for Teaching All Adults*. I have found this book to be inspirational. It provides 60 motivational strategies for helping adult learners get the most from a lesson.

Wlodkowski and Ginsberg incorporate four essential elements to building motivation to learn. In previous posts, I have focused on each of these elements:

• Establishing inclusion
• Developing attitude
• Enhancing meaning
• Engendering competence

Build Motivation Into Your Lesson Design

With these four elements in mind, you can begin weaving motivational strategies into your instruction. Wlodkowski highlights that you need to incorporate motivation deliberately into your lesson. These strategies complement one another. Combining them thoughtfully can strengthen your lesson. You can use these strategies when designing a new lesson plan or enhancing an existing one.

Sequence Strategies Throughout the Lesson

Wlodkowski encourages selecting activities based on motivational strategies. You can use the strategies linearly; for example, including strategies from establishing inclusion and developing attitude at the beginning of the lesson, enhancing meaning during the body of the lesson, and engendering competence towards the end of the lesson. However, you can use any strategy where appropriate. Depending on the length of your curriculum, you might have to use inclusion strategies at multiple points. You might have to use assessment strategies to close different sessions throughout a workshop.

Plan Time for Motivational Activities

Just to provide a frame of reference, Wlodkowski spends about 20% of instruction time on inclusion strategies. In his book, he provides five examples of lessons enhanced with the motivational framework. The lessons range from 3-hour sessions to a two-day, six-hour per day workshop. In the examples, Wlodkowski weaves in 10-18 strategies per day, or roughly 3.3 strategies per hour. The key is to become familiar with the strategies, understand the objectives of your lesson, and be able to assess the time for activities. It is then a matter of selecting the right activity with the proper motivational strategy to plug into the lesson.

Thanks for following along as I take a hard look at this influential book. Once again, it is a book that should be on every adult educator’s desk.

For more information on Raymond Wlodkowski and the motivational framework.

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