Motivation

Why are you here (in the teacher education program, in this class, at UVU)?:
I chose to come to UVU because it was close to my home and had affordable tuition and accepted students that didn't have the best of grades in High School. I've wanted to be an Elementary Teacher since I was young. I've always enjoyed working with children and helping them learn and succeed.

What motivates you?:
I have both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations for passing this class and staying in the Elementary Education program. I need to pass this class in order to continue in the program and to graduate and become a teacher but I also want to learn all that I can from this class that will help me to better understand and teach my students. I want to do well so I can obtain the knowledge I need to be a successful teacher and make a difference.

Why do you succeed? Why do you fail? (Use terminology from attribution theory):
Times when I've failed at things could probably have to do with Learned Helplessness, when I felt like no matter what I did, I was still going to fail. This is when I would give up and not put anymore effort into what I was doing because I was so certain that I would fail because it was too difficult. Times when I have succeeded have had to do with when I didn't give up and was determined to do my very best whether I failed or not or when I felt like I had the ability to accomplish that and felt like I had some kind of control over the outcome.

Do the goals in your course contract reflect mastery goals or performance goals? What does this say about you?:
My goals are a combination of both mastery and performance goals. Some of my goals have to do with just finishing the work on time and getting a good grade but some of them have to do with improving my understanding of the subject and learning it thoroughly as well.

How do you need to change your motivations and mindset for this class in order to become a great teacher?:
I need to focus more on learning and retaining what I learn and not just simply learning what the teacher wants me to learn in order to pass and get a good grade in the class. I need to find something in each class that personally interests me (dispositional interest) so that I can stay motivated even learning environment isn't motivational.