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Create a Good Atmosphere in your Sessions

Students are most likely to do well if they offer encouragement to one another and if they feel that they can make mistakes without being mocked or told off. They are unlikely to take risks unless they are supported in doing so.

Praise those who try and don't tolerate those who discourage others from trying.

Relate Current Outcomes to a Future Exam or Assessment

Telling your class roughly what grade or score they are likely to get by working at their current level is often highly motivating, especially if it is lower than they would wish.

Talking to the class as a whole means that everybody is involved and the motivation of the group is likely to improve as a result.

Explain how they can Improve

This is most effective if you can offer feedback to the students individually.

If students consistently miss out finer detail or answer questions too slowly and don’t reach the last one, make sure that they know this. Finding that they can improve their grades by trying some simple techniques can be a great encouragement for them more generally.

Build Rapport

Students generally want to do better for teachers that they like.

It may be worth asking particular students to stay behind for a brief discussion with you: they may be happy to raise concerns with you individually and in private that they would never raise before others.

Talk to Colleagues

If there is a particular student whose performance worries you, it might be worth finding out if you are the only one with concerns.

If a specific teacher is in charge of their pastoral care, they should know about your worries and might be aware of an explanation for them, such as a family or health issue.

Talk to Parents

If you teach children, you will have some kind of parent-teacher conference during the school year. This can be an ideal time to either ask parents to support you in encouraging a student to work harder, and/ or to gain insight into any situation outside school that may be limiting their performance. Sometimes these can bring up contentious issues.






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