As I’ve written about previously, I don’t think dogmatism of any stripe really works in the classroom.

Match Your Motivational Tactic to the Situation is a good new (and short) article at the Harvard Business Review that discusses the importance of context in any situation, and is easily applicable to the classroom.

Here’s an excerpt:

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The authors do a good job discussing feedback, goal-setting and motivation, and the different strategies that each can be applied depending upon the context of the situation.

As I read it, the old adage, “If your only tool is a hammer, then everything looks like a nail,” came to mind.

We’ve got to have lots of tools in our backpocket….

I’m adding this post to The Best Posts & Articles On “Motivating” Students.