Enhancing students' motivation with autonomy-supportive classrooms

Motivation is one of the most important factors that influences how students will approach learning. This chapter introduces the importance of autonomy-supportive classrooms, and why it is important to promote students' autonomy in learning. First, we describe how students can be motivated to learn from the viewpoint of Self-Determination Theory (SDT) and the factors that may support students' motivation in learning. Second, we present five practical guidelines on how to promote student-centered teaching practices that support student's autonomy: (a) communication of teacher's expectations and acknowledgement of student's feelings; (b) provision of more choices and removal of controlling events for learning; (c) student's active participation; (d) positive and informational feedback, and (e) structured guidance. Finally, the factors negatively contribute to insufficiency of teacher's autonomy are also examined.