Designing Web-Based Training: How to Teach Anyone Anything Anywhere Anytime

10.10. INTERVENE WITH UNMOTIVATED LEARNERS

You designed your course to keep learners motivated, and most are doing just fine. But a few are not. Should you take special steps to help them? What can you do?

10.10.1. Identify unmotivated learners early

How can you identify unmotivated learners in time to help them? The instructor must continually be on the lookout for symptoms of failing motivation, such as these:

• Lateness in submitting assignments.

• Unanswered messages.

• Terse, sarcastic, or flippant responses.

• Negative comments about the course, instructor, or other learners.

• Negative comments by other learners.

• Sudden reduction in test scores.

• Failure to submit any optional assignments.

In a course without an instructor, a sophisticated computer-managed instruction system can still recognize some of these symptoms, but the system is limited in what it can do to correct the problem. An instructor can do much to remotivate unmotivated learners.

10.10.2. Contact unmotivated learners immediately

Do not wait too long to contact unmotivated learners. An early expression of concern will be more welcome than a later critical inquiry. The longer you wait, the further behind unmotivated learners fall and the more incentive they have to quit the course. If they are far behind, they will be more embarrassed by their failure to keep up.

10.10.3. Remotivate unmotivated learners

Each learner is unique. To remotivate a learner, you must understand why they are not motivated and then work with them ...