Educators often struggle with student engagement and motivation because they have a tendency to equate motivation with compliance, said Paul MacLeod, a certified trainer of Edward deBono’s Lateral Thinking and an Appreciative Inquiry facilitator during a talk held recently.
He was speaking during a workshop titled: “Student engagement: how can we motivate students to achieve their potential,” organised by Qatar Tesol in collaboration with the College of the North Atlantic-Qatar (CNAQ).
“We view students as motivated if they do what we want, when we tell them to do it,” he said while explaining that by truly engaging with students, by asking meaningful questions, seeking their inputs and opinions and taking them seriously, educators can build a relationship with students which will boost motivation and help them reach their potential.
MacLeod, a Canadian educator with many years of international teaching experience, is a lecturer in the Language Studies and Academics Department at the CNAQ.
He has delivered presentations and workshops at a variety of local and international conferences including Qatar Tesol, Tesol Arabia, Tesol International, the World Appreciative Inquiry Conference and the World University
Forum.
He is currently completing his doctorate in educational leadership and his research interests include Appreciative Inquiry, creativity, student engagement and academic integrity.
Qatar Tesol is a voluntary organisation and the official local affiliate of the International Tesol Organisation.
The organisation is run by volunteers who devote their time and energy to the continued improvement of education in the region.
Qatar Tesol prides itself on being able to offer professional development events and low conference fees so that all teachers may attend without inflicting financial strain.
The reason Qatar Tesol is able to do this is because, throughout the years, it has had outstanding financial support from businesses and organisations such as CNAQ, the Academic Bridge Programme of Qatar Foundation, Qatar University and the US Department of State’s Regional Language Office.
Qatar Tesol serves English language teachers of all levels as well as those teaching other subjects through English such as mathematics, science and computer skills.
In February 2014, Qatar Tesol will celebrate its 10th anniversary conference.
