Motivating Students: Key Role of Teachers & Parents - Essay Sample

Introduction

Student motivation is a very vital component of teaching and learning as a process. It is both useful in the overall educational set up and physical education. Teachers of physical education are confronted continuously by trying to offer enjoyable and motivating experiences during their physical education classes. Adults will more likely exhibit those habits they did acquire when they were children or at their teenage stages. It is for this reason, therefore, that both parents and teachers are obliged to help the children gain a healthy and active lifestyle (Gao et al., 2011).

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Even though each school should promote healthy living, Physical Education (PE) comes out as a significant study in entrenching habits that can ensure the well-being linked to healthy life during the sessions of sports practices and other forms of activities. Kalajas-Tilga et al. (2019), concurred that there exists a myriad of factors that learners and educators should consider in a both extracurricular and educational context that dictates on how the learners acquire healthy habits. The most important ones are the social and psychological factors, which can see an individual achieve the most experience out of a healthy and active lifestyle (Gao et al., 2011). This paper is going to study the impact that physical education (PE) has on the motivation of students.

Physical Activity Among Adolescents

According to the WHO report of 2018, over 78% of young adults, also referred to as adolescents, do not adequately engage in forms of physical activity. There is, therefore, a need for physical activity classes to help address this issue (Trigueros et al., 2019). Physical activity and fitness are necessary for the short and long-term wellness of any person, especially the adolescents who sill have many years ahead of them. Such fit status also includes mental and physical health and may better the cognitive and academic results too. Physical fitness even increases self-esteem, and reduces the likelihood of depression, issues that most adolescents are grappling with (Patton et al., 2019). There are also benefits to the society as they lead to enhanced social connections and engagement in community activities.

It is empirical evidence shows that physical activity tendencies one acquires in adolescence or childhood will most likely show up in adult life. According to Trigueros et al. (2019), a sedentary way of life depicts reduced levels of physical activity. Such culture has led to life complications such as obesity and chronic complications like cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, various strains of cancer, and hypertension. Low activity levels have been seen to affect focus and result at school, leading to a situation of removal and eventual loneliness by those affected, especially adolescents (Patton et al., 2019. Such cases even affect their relationships with their peers. WHO has, for example, stipulated that learners need to engage in at least one hour of light to vigorous physical fitness exercises daily, to boost their health and physical fitness (Watson et al., 2019).

The recommendation by the WHO is however contradicted by the fact that more than a third (75%) of the adolescent population in most countries that are members of the global organization, especially the European nations and the United United States, do not meet this bare minimum criterion (Watson et al., 2019). Physical activity of any kind, however short the period of engagement may be, is better than a total lack of the same. According to Kalajas-Tilga et al., 2019), studies have shown that adolescents should reduce the amount of time they spend on sedentary activities, like sitting in class, on video games, or watching television. These activities have contributed to illness, other levels of activity notwithstanding. It is, therefore, imperative that adolescents seek to engage in active and healthy lifestyles while they still can before they establish long-term behavior tendencies (Trigueros et al. (2019).

Increasing Pleasure to Physical Activities

Physical educators have to strive to provide enjoyable and motivating activities that translate into experiences during physical education sessions. Sport education, for example, offers relevant physical skills through simulation of the events in the real sport. Most research has shown that learners who realize high levels of competence, autonomy, and relatedness will show higher levels of a self-determined type of internal motivation and ways of the regulation (Franco &Coteron, 2017). In connection with this, therefore, a learner who does a lot of physical exercises will exhibit more levels of fun and self-confidence, hence expose an urge to continue with sports during private free time.

The theory of intrinsic motivation has been broadly considered within PE circles and among scholars in this discipline, and in various athletes' fora. Therefore, intrinsic motivation can be easily encouraged among the learners by creating climates that can boost Basic Psychological Needs (BPNs) during physical education sessions and in latter environments. With such measures put in place, the adherence to practice lifestyle activities and other games will be significantly boosted (Franco &Coteron, 2017).

Motivational and Physical Activities

A learning activity refers to the information that is passed on to a learner during physical education classes. It may range from activities related to sports, like soccer or American football, to track activities ((Watson et al., 2019). The kind of activities they engage in during learning can sway a learner's motivational beliefs in physical education. (Gao et al., 2011) noted that learners acquire motivational theories that are focused on specific scholarly contexts and activities. Motivational beliefs tend to be nurtured by personal commitments and the prevailing circumstances.

Even though certain beliefs may possess strong inclinations towards personal efforts, behaviors, and ideas, others may be brought about by the relationship that exists between the person/student and the experiences or the prevailing conditions he is going through at any given time (Kalajas-Tilga et al. (2019). Some literature about physical activities has shown that the activities learners engage in do influence their motivational beliefs and attitudes (Kretschmann, 2014). For instance, if a learner possesses positive motivational theories, it will be evidence that the learning activities are both useful and enjoyable to the learner. With most research on learners' motivational beliefs in physical education biased towards an individual learner's psychological needs and not on the content of the learner interactions, the likely results on motivational theories due to learning exercises have not received the attention it deserves (Gao et al., 2011).

The implication, therefore, is that scientific research about the effects of learning activities on a learner's motivational beliefs concerning physical education is not satisfactory. According to Kalajas-Tilga et al. (2019), a person's motivational beliefs influences directly those decisions a person makes concerning engagement in a task. Williams and Rhodes (2016) noted that the self-efficacy theory advanced that a person's achievement characters can be illustrated by those motivational beliefs, which includes the expected results and the individual's self-efficacy. The argument is lending credence to the studying of the motivational ideas among learners in a middle school physical education class, for example.

Some researchers have lately used the self-efficacy theory in physical exercise to try and explain learners' behaviors and related cognitions linked to achievements (Williams and Rhodes, 2016). A task-specific ability belief, also called self-efficacy, refers to a person's confidence in his ability for task completion. Those people who view themselves as productive are prone to do well, are adventurous, and tend to strive to set and to achieve quite challenging goals. With a high-efficacy level, it is possible to attain a more significant degree of motivational beliefs, persistence and enhanced physical adherence during such physical exercise sessions (Kretschmann et al., 2014)

Gao et al. (20111) confirmed this by stating that the self-efficacy quality can manipulate achievement behaviors, provided there is to be a specific outcome. Instead of assuming that incentives do exist, researchers need to consider the result expected, coupled with the individual's ability to complete a task. Such a method will help in the understanding of the achievement behaviors.

Outcome Expectancy

Recently, psychologists have conceptualized outcome expectancy to depict the increment in a combination of the likely outcome and the value of the issue itself (Trigueros et al., 2019). Outcome likelihood is a reference made to the expected result, be it good or bad. In contrast, the outcome value shows the expected value that can be assigned to that behavioral outcome (Franco &Coteron, 2017). This method of conceptualization relates to the theoretical basis, which depicts the vital task played by incentives upon achievement behaviors. The concept of outcome expectancy positively predicts intents and activities in physical education and in-class physical activities (Watson et al., 2019).

Just like a myriad of other motivational beliefs, outcome expectancy and self-efficacy are both task-specific. However, the field of physical exercise has not thoroughly looked into how they may be varying across various learning activities. A comprehensive study in this field might give educators and curriculum developers the knowledge on how self-efficacy of learners and the outcome expectancy evolve with specific learning exercises (Kalajas-Tilga, 2019). Such learning exercises may, too, influence learners' physical activity levels during the physical education classes. The idea that team-based sports do promote a much higher in-class physical activity levels notwithstanding, recent studies have resulted in various findings, with researchers employing a variety of instruments and several learning exercises.

Patton et al. (2019) averred that with the multiple physical education activities conducted in the US frequently, learners have become more aware of the usefulness of living healthy lives. They have, therefore, become more motivated and interested in activities that stress healthy eating and fitness activities that boost health. Also, a call has been made by bodies like the WHO to see a shift of the physical exercise programs from sport skills events to the promotion of fitness related to health (Watson et al., 2019). Educators and curriculum planners must, therefore, put into consideration the physical and psychological effects that various learning activities can have on the learners.

Such consideration will be necessary even as they design or implement the physical education programs that help develop learners' motivational beliefs concerning physical exercises and shows advanced physical activity levels during such programs. Franco and Coteron (2017) added that given that learners' motivational beliefs depend on learning activity, learners will always show various attention to the motivational theories concerning those learning experiences during physical exercise lessons.

The motivational beliefs of a learner may be affected by factors such as the environment, social norms, the kind of learning activities on offer, and the behaviors and attitudes of the trainer (Kretschmann, 2014). All these must, therefore, be looked into by those concerned whenever they are motivating learners to engage in physical exercise sessions. Students are most likel...