On Motivation and the Flow

Describe the circumstances behind learning situations wherein you were (a) highly motivated to pursue your goal and (b) strongly unmotivated to achieve at all. Use motivation theories to help you understand or explain why your motivations differ in each of the circumstances.
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My Highly Motivating Experience :

When I was in grade school, I was highly motivated to learn in my English subject. The extrinsic motivations I had were to get high grades and to please my parents. I know that the performance goals that I wanted to get is a big part of my learning. However, I knew that I also want to master the subject because I really liked reading pocket books and novels in grade school, particularly the mystery books. 

I borrowed books in our library every week so  I could read the Nancy Drew series, Hardy Boys, and especially books with nice pictures. I was a visual learner. I also loved the smell of books, now I know that I might have been a little bit of an olfactory learner (I never thought of this before, until now, how one can be an olfactory learner). 
My intrinsic motivation may have been because I like reading novels. It takes me to a different place and I could get lost in my imagination. 

My Highly Unmotivating Experience:

When I was in my first year high school, I didn't like the Earth Science subject. Looking back, I see that there were several reasons why it wasn't my favorite subject. 

1. First, the subject was once a week, three hours on a Saturday morning. 
2. Second, the teacher was really old and talks very slow. 
3. Third, the classroom was inside our dormitory (since our classrooms were being renovated that time). 

I love learning about science, however, the environment and situation was not really conducive for learning. External factors in motivation play a really big part in my learning. 
I guess the carrot and stick is something that it easily seen and can easily influence behavior. 

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Reflect on your own experiences of flow. What were important features of the task that facilitated the experience? What was it like for you to experience flow?
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My FLOW Experience:

   As I've mentioned before in my previous post, I'm more of a creative person. I don't have the best drawing skills, although I really enjoy painting and drawing.(Arousal moment) When I was in college, my course was far from the arts. I was enrolled in BS Management of Applied Chemistry program (and every time I mention my course, people's faces go blank). 
    However, in my elective subject, I took up "Introduction to Painting". I really enjoyed the activities given by my teacher. He would ask us to draw still life, do collage and even do a painting. I could spend days and sleepless nights just trying to create the perfect work of art. (Flow moment)  And every time I get an "A" on my work, I would be floating in air! 
    Since I didn't have the best drawing skills at the start, I was still motivated to do well. So, I listened the teacher's techniques on how to improve more. We also studied the works of the famous artists and painters. I also did research on my own and I was interested mostly with abstract and modern artists. 
   By increasing my knowledge and skills, I was able as well to do the more difficult activities that were taught to us. We had to do watercolor painting, and I wasn't good with that medium. (Anxiety moment) I really wanted to get "A" as my final mark, because it will reaffirm my feeling that I'm a creative person.

The Flow moment for me was when I lose track of time while doing a portrait, a painting or a collage. I was so engrossed in what I was doing and I enjoy doing it that if given a chance it was what I would have wanted to do all my life. 

References:

Juanchon, Malou, Module 3 Handout, Motivation.

Intelligence

My strategy in learning has always been that I take my time to understand the topics. If I'm not able to understand one topic, then I have difficulty going to the next one. When I was in grade school, I know that I've learned because I was able to get a high score in the exam. Sometimes, there were times when I get a high score or even just pass an exam without much effort. When I was in grade 6, we were asked to get an IQ test, and I always get higher than the classmates I had. There where other classmates I had who scored well in General History or Math, but I got higher in IQ tests than them.

This may mean the IQ tests may not really measure the ability of a person to memorize dates and names of people or logical-mathematical intelligence of a person.

I didn't come from a family with high IQs (as far as I know). However, I would think that intelligence is 80% nurture. My mom played a big part in my learning. In our house, she would put up handmade posters of the alphabet and the multiplication table so we can memorize them. I grew up watching Sesame Street and Batibot. Those TV shows contributed a lot to my knowledge of the English and Filipino language.

We lived in my aunt's house during my formative years. In their house, there were a lot of magazines and newspapers, and I got interested in reading them, even just looking at the pictures. Looking back now, I see that there were a lot of available resources in our house that contributed to my learning.

However, I noticed that some of my classmates were really good in playing the piano or in singing. Even though I tried learning to play piano and even singing in the choir, there are really people who are naturally musically inclined. I guess looking at Gardner's Multiple Intelligence theory, these are people who developed their musical intelligence.

In this course, I would be tapping in to my linguistic intelligence, since this PTC course is more on writing and discourse. Also, in writing these journals, David Perkin's theory on experiential and reflective intelligence also would be put to good use. I reflect a lot about my personal experiences this also helps facilitate my learning.

Evidence and Bias

Force, M. (2011). Learning Styles Research – The Difference between Evidence and Bias http://cps.regis.edu/blog/learning-styles-research-%E2%80%93-the-difference-between-evidence-and-bias/ What is essentially Force’s argument? What position would you prefer to take, and on what justification(s)?
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Just to briefly summarize, Force's article was meant to criticize the article of Neighmond who said that  according to Doug Rohrer, a psychologist at the University of South Florida, after reviewing studies of learning styles (specifically on visual and auditory), found no scientific evidence backing up the idea.

I think Force was harsh to say that Neighmond was biased when all she did was just summarize another article of a study made by researchers. I understand that Force was trying to say that we cannot discredit that there are visual and auditory learners because at one end of the spectrum, there are extreme cases and people with real difficulties coping with the normal learning. 

Force cited examples of people in military with PTSD and those with mental disabilities (like autism) learn differently and they should not be excluded. 

I believe that if Force is referring to extreme cases, of course, they have to be given special attention and special education. Of course, people with extreme psychological cases should be treated under a special guidance. 

I also know that learning styles are helpful for teachers to simplify their teaching styles with a large number of students. In a classroom, there maybe some extreme students, and they have to be given more time to learn and  teachers can do special classes for them so they can catch up, once the teacher identifies them.

Now, I believe that identifying and profiling what type of learner a student is will be time-consuming for a teacher. I believe as well that as per Neighmond's article that variety in your teaching will keep the students interested. 

When I was studying, I know I was interested in reading a book that has a lot of nice pictures in it. However, the teachers I had did not always have visual presentations. I still try to learn to listen and focus and imagine what the teacher was saying. I may fall asleep or get bored sometimes in really long lecture. But the teacher, didn't stop and say she has to stop the lecture because of this. 

I believe we can develop our other senses in order to learn. I still believe that learning in all aspects (whether visual or auditory) should be developed, it's not because it's a must, it's because we can. 



References:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2011/08/29/139973743/think-youre-an-auditory-or-visual-learner-scientists-say-its-unlikely

http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/news/releases/learning-styles-debunked-there-is-no-evidence-supporting-auditory-and-visual-learning-psychologists-say.html