Running Head: INTRINSICALLY MOTIVATING STUDENTS

Intrinsically Motivating Students With Four Corners

Racheal Boyd
Towson University

INTRINSICALLY MOTIVATING STUDENTS

Intrinsically Motivating Students With Four Corners

In grades K-12, there are at least two children who are not paying
attention during class, and in most college classrooms, there is usually
at least one-person asleep, or occupied by a technological device, or
work from another class. Unfortunately, these incidences are all too
common, and a result of having no motivation to learn. To make
matters worse, many educators are teaching to the test, without
considering how the material is delivered, and most importantly how
the student receives it. As a result, students are not retaining the
information they should be learning. This is problematic, especially
because this can be changed, by providing a very simple thing:
intrinsic motivation.
Intrinsic motivation is characterized by performance of certain
behaviors and actions that are done out of sheer enjoyment. Students
are not always interested in the required material, nor is the material
always engaging, so it is important to provide intrinsic motivation in an
effort to increase learning. Moreover, in an effort to truly promote
intrinsic motivation, the educator must keep the components of
intrinsic motivation in mind. The components include: challenge,
curiosity, fantasy, and control (Malone, 1981).

Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

INTRINSICALLY MOTIVATING STUDENTS

Abraham Maslow argued that all humans are motivated by the

same basic needs, which are organized in a hierarchical fashion. He
coined this theory Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. His theory includes
five types of needs: physiological, safety, belongingness and love,
esteem, and self -actualization (Petri,R., & Govern, J., 2013). Maslows
concept is also characterized as being prepotent in nature; lower needs
take precedence, and must be satisfied before higher needs (Petri, et
al). The lowest tier of needs, are physiological. Physiological needs
include basic things like food, water, and sleep. Following this tier, are
safety needs; safety needs are inclusive of a stable home, and work
environment. The third tier on Maslows Hierarchy is love, and
belonging. These needs are met, when humans feel loved, and apart of
something like a relationship, a peer group, work, or family. The second
to last need is esteem, which includes having a need for self-esteem, a
need for esteem from others, achievement, status, and responsibility.
Maslow stated, that only when those four needs are met, can the
individual be self-actualized. Self-actualization is characterized by first
meeting the basic four needs, being free from psychopathology, and
the ability to embrace change.

Teaching Activity
In an effort to promote intrinsic motivation of a new topic,
students will play a modified version of the classic elementary school

INTRINSICALLY MOTIVATING STUDENTS

game Four Corners to review Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. Students

will first be divided into four teams, and each team will select a leader.
After this, students will stand in the corner, based on the hierarchy of
needs. This means that corner 1 will symbolize physiological needs,
corner 2 will symbolize safety needs, corner 3 will symbolize love and
belonging needs, and corner 4 will symbolize esteem leads. In the
classic version of the game, there is a leader, who stands in the middle
of the classroom, and calls out a number. If your number is called, you
are eliminated from the game. In an attempt to make the game fun,
and challenging, instead of simply calling a number, the person in the
middle will call out an example of a need; so if the person is describing
an esteem need, they will use a word like achievement to refer to
corner 4. If an example of your need is called, you are eliminated until
the next round. In the classic game, as well as the revised game, the
last student standing becomes the new leader, and the game
continues. Another change, between the revised game, and the classic
game are the titles. The students want to become the leader, which
will be titled the self-actualized individual. The professor will start
the game as the self-actualized individual, in an effort to make the
game fair.
As previously mentioned for an activity to be intrinsically
motivating, it must possess certain components. Four Corners serves
as in intrinsically motivating game to reinforce Maslows Hierarchy of

INTRINSICALLY MOTIVATING STUDENTS

Needs, because it contains each component. Non-purposely was the

component of challenge mentioned in the description of the game. This
component is probably one of the more critical components of intrinsic
motivation. Malone argued that in order for an activity to be
challenging, it must produce feedback, and possess meaningful, and
easy goals. Feedback is automatic in this game; if an expression
related to your corner is called, you are eliminated. This is a great
example of clear feedback. The other aspects of challenge are related
to the goals, which are also clear in Four Corners. The goal is to be the
last person standing, in an attempt to be the self-actualized
individual.
The main goal of Four Corners is to become the self-actualized
individual. This goal speaks to the challenge component of Malones
theory, as well as the fantasy component. In reality, Maslow argued
that many individuals never become self-actualized, so this provides
game players with the opportunity to become something that is
deemed mostly unattainable. The belief that self-actualization is almost
impossible also appeals to our cognitive, and emotional feelings about
fantasies. As a result of becoming the self-actualized leader in Four
Corners, game players get to exercise another component of intrinsic
motivation: control. Although the individuals hanging around in the
corners waiting for a term to be called do not experience any control,

INTRINSICALLY MOTIVATING STUDENTS

the leader does. Essentially, the leader chooses who becomes the next
leader.
The final component of Malones theory is curiosity. This game
easily is easily consistent with the idea that curiosity is sparked by
novel and surprising, but not incomprehensible information (Malone,
1981). The novelty, and surprise is simply created by using words
related to the type of need, verse actually saying the need itself. Using
expressions also appeal to the idea of cognitive curiosity, which is
discussed in the article. Because the actual need is not being named,
students are forced to think, and make associations.
In conclusion, there are a number of ways to instruct students
successfully. The key to educating however is to make the material
stick. Educators want students to retain the information, and make
connections to real-life. What better way to help students do so, then
providing ways to intrinsically motivate them to learn? Although game
play is just one example of a means to provide intrinsic motivation in
the classroom, it is a great example, which can ultimately lead to other
forms of providing intrinsic motivation to students worldwide.

References
Malone, T.W. (1981). Toward a theory of intrinsically motivating
instruction.
Cognitive science, 5.

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Petri,H., & Govern, J (2013). Motivation: Theory, research, and
application (6th ed.) Belmont,CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.