Can Motivation be Innovative?

Motivation is a concept that most individual knows some things about.  However, it is more than just a superficial concept. Motivation is the engine that propel people to action (Keller, 2008), or a lack of motivation immobilize a person. Mowrer (as cited by Schunk, Meece, & Pintrich, 2014) explained motivation in terms of the role of emotions.  He explained that emotions are like bridges that mediate between stimuli (fun activities) and our responses (love for the content).  Nonetheless, motivation is still a difficult concept to account for all variables in order to create a single theory or a framework.  Human beings are different and unique in all aspect, especially the way we use the brain. Therefore, using any model, in this case, the ARCS motivational model would be innovative if it influences teachers and students motivation positively.  In addition, the ARCS model are motivational tactics to target a learner’s motivation to learn a concept or to improve a learner’s confidence or self-perception; it is not to address engagement, as learning style does. Therefore, the question is can motivational model be innovative, specifically ARCS model?

Keller (2010) outlined a systematic framework to design courses with motivational tactics that will assure learners' motivation increase.  Keller described the model using four components: attention, relevance, confidence, and satisfaction.  It is important for course designers or educators to plan tactics that target all four components to maximize learners' engagement.  As of now, I have not found any alternative educators using Keller's (2010) ARCS model to engage students.  More importantly, I have not seen a model of a workshop where the facilitator used Keller's ARCS model to engage alternative educators. I am in the process of exploring options on how to set up a training workshop using the ARCS motivational model. I would like to discover if these tactics were used in a workshop with alternative educators would they use it with their own students.  Once that is teachers applied these motivational tactics, what impact will it have on middle schoolers attending an alternative program?

Majority of the applications for Keller's ARCS model are in online courses’ designs when to increase and engage adult learners. I was excited to see an application of Keller's ARCS model using voicethread to engage online learners. As a novice user of voicethread, I was glad to read this article how the author was applying Keller's ARCS motivation model using Voicethread.  When I was first introduced to voicethread, I questioned if I was ever going to use it again, and now I see it being used as a motivational tool; I cannot wait to use it again in the future. As I continued my search for application of Keller's ARCS model, it was interesting to notice how the author S. Ganapathi used Smith and Ragan's Framework for instructions in conjunction with Keller's ARCS model.  After reading the blog, it increased my curiosity to see what other educational models could be combine with the ARCS model, especially with technology. 

Keller, J. M. (2010). Motivational design for learning and performance: The ARCS model approach. New York, NY: Springer.

Keller, J. (2008) Motivation design. Retrieved Sept. 12, 2012 from: http://www.arcsmodel.com/home.htm 

Schunk, D. H., Meece, J. L.,& Pintrich, P. R. (2014). Motivation in education: Theory, research, and applications (4th ed.). Columbus, OH: Pearson/Merrill Prentice Hall.