Today we explore different learning environments and dive deeper into different motivational factors and student motivation. In addition to this, brainstorming and mind map techniques are practiced.
In general, admission to school is like winning the lottery for many. A large part of the students are still school dropouts, so dealing with motivational factors is necessary. Students who are more motivated to learn persist longer, produce higher quality effort, learn more deeply and perform better in classes and on standardized tests.
In Finland, students who drop out of school often have for example mental health reasons. In The Gambia, the focus seems to be more on financial or physical constraints. Even if the education itself would be free, it can cause for example travel expenses. This can reduce the motivation of a poor family to support a young person's schooling.
A surprising number of young people have e.g. bad sight. Families can't afford an optician and glasses. Teachers have to take this into account in teaching. Basic skills can also be weak. The official language of The Gambia and the language of education is English. However, English is a foreign language for most children, so understanding the teaching is difficult.
But at least one problem is common in both Finland and The Gambia: students play at night and then keep napping during the school day.
As important as good motivation is to students, it is to teachers. One aim in teacher training is to empower Gambian teachers. Especially in VET (vocational education and training) there is no training of trainers at all. Below a teacher student writes in his learning journal things that keep him going as a teacher:
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