When Kevin started Motivation Matters, it was with the idea that this blog would be a helpful resource for educators, parents, and community members interested in how to spark the interest of students and improve education—something I hope we’ve been able to accomplish over the past two and a half years. We’ve talked at length here about the importance of creativity and innovation, whether or not incentives lead to higher student motivation, how grades and GPA factor into students’ desire to achieve, and much more. This blog has provided me and Kevin with an outlet to discuss the motivation efforts of schools across the nation as well as some of our own personal motivational struggles. I, for one, will miss Kevin’s takes on the motivation issues he has dealt with regarding his children and the boys he coaches in youth sports.
But it is time to move on and turn coverage of motivation issues over to the growing roster of blogs now featured on edweek.org.
Motivation Matters was the first blog to emerge from the Education Week newsroom and it served as a great jumping off point as we as journalists began diving deeper into the waters of Web 2.0. And although this blog may have run its course, student motivation continues to be a significant piece of all aspects of education, from curriculum to teaching methods to technology, which is why I strongly encourage you to look through the rich variety of blogs that edweek.org now offers to read about the different ways student motivation is affecting education.
As for me, I’ll still be blogging over at Digital Education, which is all about how to use technology to engage a generation of students who are quite literally “plugged in” in a way that no other generation has been before. I hope you’ll continue reading over there, or at one of the many other blogs that edweek.org has to offer.
And before I sign off, I (and Kevin) want to thank all of the devoted Motivation Matters readers who have left insightful comments, sent us thoughtful e-mails, linked to our posts, and essentially made this blog a worthwhile interactive experience. It’s the interactions from readers like you that have made this such an enjoyable and educational experience for the both of us.
Stay motivated!