Kentucky Academy of Technology Education

Motivating Students to Achieve at High Levels

Instructional Illuminations

Student Motivation

Can students really be motivated to achieve at high levels?  Of course they can.  All across Kentucky students are excelling on the Commonwealth Accountability Testing System (CATS) tests.  Ideally students would be intrinsically motivated to do well in school.  The reality is that some students will be naturally motivated to learn about the people in history and others will want to understand how a house is built.  According to research performed by the EDU 631-Application of Learning and Motivation Principles in the Classroom graduate class at Murray State University, students can in fact be motivated by their teachers.  Motivating students to learn at high levels is a task that all teachers are given when they earn their teaching certificate and accept a position in the public school system.  If you ask teachers they will say that it seems that students today are not as motivated to perform well in school as generations before them; therefore, teachers must work diligently to make their coursework interesting and relevant for their students.

Read More...

Summertime Math Activities

Core Connections

With summertime just around the corner and school getting out, students are excited to have the coming months off from school work.  While the summer is a much needed break for students (and teachers), it does not mean that students should drop all of their academic efforts.  In an article entitled "Should Summertime Equal Studytime?", Kate, a teacher from Yakima, Washington says, "parents should provide opportunities for learning during the summer, but it doesn't have to be formal."  Learning doesn't always have to be formal as in the academic school year.  Parents can involve their children during the summer months with many different activities.  Simply playing games such as Dominoes can help keep your childrens' minds sharp.  This link, Summer Math Fun, provides many ideas for activities around the house that you can engage your child in.   

Tour Kentucky

Core Connections

Teachers of Fourth grade students in Kentucky have the enjoyable task of educating their students on all aspects of Kentucky history. What better way to get students interested than to suggest a tour of Kentucky before entering 4th grade? As parents plan their summer vacations, students could benefit from teachers recommending a number of historical sites in Kentucky.

The Kentucky State Parks office is sponsoring a series of adventures for families to take part in this summer. Choose from a family adventure quest, a backcountry adventure or a Kentucky history adventure quest. Find out more at this website.
http://parks.ky.gov/offerspackages/ChooseOwnAdventureAd.htm

Read More...