Motivation or Skill Deficit

 Students who are not participating in class could be doing so for two reasons; lack of motivation or lack of skill. In other words, they either don't want to do the task or can't do the task. There is an assessment, the can't do/won't do assessment, to determine whether your students actually don't understand something or are simply unmotivated to do it. You first select a task that the student performed lower on than expected. Next, identify what motivates the student, whatever you pick needs to be a highly desired reward for this specific person. The student then will complete the initial task once again, this time knowing there is a reward at the end. Finally, you need to analyze the data. If the student improved by 15% or more, motivation was the issue, if they did not improve by 15% or more, it was a skill deficit. If the student improved but still does not have a passing grade, it may be a combination of the two. 

To support a student that has a genuine skill deficit, meaning they do not understand the work, you need to further assess them to see what the issue is. Reach out to the student and have a talk about what exactly they might be struggling with, and ask what you can do to help them further understand. Often times the student just needs more time to process information or maybe needs more visuals in order for them to fully grasp the concept. 

To support a student that has a lack of motivation, meaning they can do the work but don't want to, a rewards system may need to be set in place. As mentioned earlier, students typically respond well to getting a reward after completing a task. These rewards can be anything from snacks, extra computer time, small prizes, and anything of the sort. The key is to lessen the rewards over time since you'll likely have to start with larger rewards, the goal is to not have to give any rewards eventually.