MOTIVATING THE STUDENT

MOTIVATING THE STUDENT TO WORK UP TO FULL

POTENTIAL FOR SUCCESS IN ENGINEERING STUDY

1 • INTRODUCTION
• We aren’t born knowing how to be effective.
We learn how. We learn from our parents,
from our teachers, from our peers, and from
supervisors and mentors. We learn from
workshops and seminars, from reading books,
from trial and error.
• Developing our effectiveness is a life – long
process.
• When we join an organization as a
professional, we generally receive lots of help.
The organization benefits if we are effective
and so it takes steps to ensure that we are. 2
• Industry executives are well aware that new
engineering graduates have a long way to go before
they can ‘earn their salary’. New engineering hires
are thus provided with the formal training, on- the –
job training, close supervision, progressively more
challenging assignments and time to mature.
• If new engineering graduates need orientation,
training, monitoring and time to mature to be
effective, how is it that as engineering educators we
expect our students to know how to go about the task
of engineering study the day they arrive?
• Strangely, when new students (or, in fact, new
faculty) join the engineering college, they are left
primarily on their own to figure out how to be
effective and successful. 3
• Engineering colleges seem to be more interested in
evaluating their newest members (students/ new
faculty) than in doing things to ensure that they
become effective and successful.
• Within engineering education, this ‘Sink or Swim’
approach is not working.
• Many of the engineering students who graduate fail
to work up to their full potential.
• The good news, however, is that the process of
engineering education initiated recently a shift from
the ‘Sink or Swim’ paradigm to one of ‘Student
Development’. The first year engineering curriculum
is slightly revised with the primary goal of enhancing
student success. 4
2 • KEYS TO SUCCESS IN ENGINEERING STUDY

• What makes the difference?

One student with seemingly limited ability and
poor initial preparation succeeds in getting
meritorious engineering degree. Another
student with outstanding ability and excellent
preparation fails. How can that happen? What
are the keys to success in engineering study?
• Three primary factors differentiate
successful engineering students from
those who fail.
Determination Don’t give up!
(Most Important)

Effort Work hard

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Approach Work smart
3 • DETERMINATION

Determination means having an unwavering

commitment to the goal of graduating meritoriously
in engineering (Firmness of purpose) – To persist
even in the face of adversity. People who succeed
are people who when they get ‘knocked down’ by
some adversity, they get up; whereas, people who
fail are people who when they get knocked down,
they stay down.
The most likely reason you will fail to do well in
engineering study is that you have difficulty with
subjects or with teachers or a personal problem, a
relationship problem, or a health problem. You will
encounter some adversity and use it as a reason
(an ‘excuse’) for failing to do well.
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The Importance of Goal Setting:

 How can you ever expect to get somewhere

if you don’t know where you want to go?

Acquiring a meritorious B.Tech.

Degree is the Primary Goal
 Setting goals is the easy part. Achieving the goal is
the real challenge.
 You must make your day-to-day decisions and
choices based on whether a particular action
supports your goal (i.e., moves you closer to your
goal) or conflicts with your goal (i.e., moves you
further away from your goal).
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 Once the primary goal is set, you can begin to place value
judgements on the things you do (actions), the attitudes you
hold (thoughts), and the feelings you have (feelings).
 Productive Actions: Actions that support or move you closer
to your goal.
Non-productive Actions: Actions that tend to move you away
from reaching your goal.
 Positive Thoughts: Thoughts that would cause you to take
productive actions
Negative thoughts: Thoughts that would cause you to take
non-productive actions.
 Positive feelings: Feelings that produce positive thoughts
which in turn produce productive actions.
Negative feelings: Feelings that produce negative thoughts
which in turn lead to non-productive actions.
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Examples of Negative Thoughts and the resulting
Non-productive Actions.
Negative Thought
I’m so far behind, I don’t get
anything out of my teacher’s
lectures.
I learn better by studying by
myself.
Subject is too hard; I just can’t do
it.
Teachers don’t seem to want to
help me. They make me feel
stupid.
I don’t like having my life run as
per a prepared plan.
I don’t have time for student
organizations.
I’m not good at writing and don’t
like doing it.
Non-Productive Action
Cut class
Spend time studying alone and
not able to follow thoroughly
Procrastinate; put off studying
Avoid seeking help from teachers
outside of class
Waste time by not scheduling
your time
Avoid participation in student
organizations
Avoid opportunities to develop
writing skills. 9
 And how do you keep adversity from stopping
you?
 How can you keep failures from discouraging
you?

 The age - old saying:

We learn more from failures than we

do from our successes.

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• Learning to Overcome Adversity:
 The four Commandments for you to
persist even in the face of adversity are:

 You must be willing to risk failure

 You must passionately hate failure.
 Persistence is a necessity, just as the
willingness to acknowledge defeat and
move on.
 A measure of your potential to succeed
is how you handle adversity.

Believe in yourself. You can do it!

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4 • EFFORT

 The relative importance of Ability and Effort was

perhaps best put up by the famous American
inventor Thomas Edison:

Genius is one percent Inspiration

And ninetynine percent Perspiration
 Do you believe that people succeed because of
their ability (a natural quality that you have no
control over; that some people have it and other
people don’t)?
 It is a self – defeating belief. It can provide you
with a rationale to accept failure in yourself.
 Or, do you believe that people succeed because of
their effort? This belief is empowering because
the amount of effort you put in is in your direct
control. You can choose to put in more effort and
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in doing so reap greater success.
• Effort is both Time and Energy:

 Poor academic performance can usually be traced

to insufficient effort.
 There are two distinct components to the effort you
devote to your studies– time and energy.
 Analogy: Distance Traveled = speed(rate) X time
 Completing a specific task requires that you devote
energy or mental power and spend time on the task
if you want to be both effective and efficient.
 Accomplishing an academic task will require you to
devote adequate time and to focus your energy and
mental power.
 Your success in the study of engineering is to a
great extent in your control.
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5 • APPROACH:
 Although some tasks will depend solely on effort,
your effectiveness and efficiency in accomplishing
most tasks will depend on both effort and
approach.
 In other words, success in engineering study
requires not only that you work harder, but also
that you work ‘smarter’.
• Become a Master Student:

 You realize that to become a Master of any play, you

need to spend time both playing and learning more
about the game through reading, taking lessons, or
watch experts play.
 To become a master student you must not only play the
game- i.e., be a student - you must also devote time and
energy in acquiring the necessary academic and non-
academic skills, attitude and approach (soft skills).
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• What is required to acquire a meritorious
B.Tech. Degree?

 You must develop a high level of

commitment and motivation so you are
willing to make necessary choices and
personal scarifies.
 You must learn how the educational system
works and learn how to be effective as a
student.
 Learning to be efficient and effective at the
task of studying engineering will have
enormous payoffs for you. Not only will it
enhance your success as a student, it will
provide you with skills you need to be
effective as a practising professional 15
engineer.
6 • MODELS FOR ASSESSING YOUR ENGINEERING
EDUCATION
• One most positive and unique aspect of your Engineering
Education is that you are working for yourself to prepare
yourself for your future.
• Consider the Saying.

No deposit (=investment), no return

• Your education will represent a tremendous deposit in

your future. Your return will be in direct relation to what
you put in.
• Whenever you make a conscious choice to avoid learning,
growing or developing, you are not getting away with
something – you are working against yourself!

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• Enhancing the quality of your Education:

 Three models (= frameworks) from which to

view and derive the best from your
engineering education are presented.
 The models will assist you in answering
such important questions as :

 What is the purpose of engineering education?

 What should I know when I graduate?
 How do I know if I am getting an excellent
education?
 How can I enhance the quality of education?
 Will I have the knowledge and skills to get my
dream job?
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• Self -Evaluation & Self – Development:

 These models are useful for self-evaluation

and development.
 You measure yourself against each aspect
on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being high).
 In areas you feel you are strong, just keep
doing what you have been doing.
 In areas you feel you need to improve,
map out a plan for self-improvement.

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7 •ATTRIBUTES MODEL (COMBINES INPUTS
FROM STUDENTS, FACULTY AND INDUSTRY)

• Institutional Assessment:
• In today’s tight fiscal climate, engineering institutes
are being urged to take up internal revenue
generation and are being held more accountable for
their productivity.
• Institutions are being asked to establish educational
objectives and outcomes and to show that these
objectives and outcomes are being met.
• Similar to the student assessment of the degree to
which the student meets the educational objectives or
expectations set by the University.
• Your engineering college may have a list of attributes
that it strives to impart to its students.
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• One engineering programme may emphasise proficiency in
technology, whereas another may require every student to
acquire ‘learn how to learn’ skill or cooperative education
experience working in industry.
• A set of ten attributes combining inputs from students,
faculty and industry representatives:

1. Problem Solving (The ability to identify and define a

problem, develop and evaluate alternative solutions,
and effect one or more designs to solve the problem)
2. Technical skill (A broad and in-depth technical
background).
3. Communication skills (Effectiveness in
communicating ideas).
4. Mathematics/Science proficiency (A fundamental
understanding of mathematics, physical, life and
social sciences).
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1. Ethics and professionalism (High professional and
ethical standards).
2. Open Mind/Positive Attitude (A mature, responsible and
open mind with positive attitude towards life).
3. Computer literacy (The ability to use computers for
communication analysis and design).
4. Motivation to continue learning (The motivation and
capability to continue the learning experience).
5. Business Management Practices ( A knowledge of
business strategies and management practices.
6. World Affairs and Cultures ( An appreciation for and
understanding of world affairs and cultures).

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• Relative Importance of these Attributes as ranked by
students, faculty and Industry Reps:
R Students Faculty Industry Reps
ank
1 Problem Solving Problem Solving Problem Solving

2 Computer Math/Science Communication

Literacy Proficiency Skills
3 Math/Science Communication Ethics and
Proficiency Skills Professionalism
4 Communication Technical skills Open
Skills Mind/Positive
Attitude
5 Technical skills Motivation to Math/Science
Continue Learning Proficiency
6 Motivation to Ethics and Technical skills
Continue Learning Professionalism
7 Open Open Mind/Positive Motivation to
Mind/Positive Attitude Continue
8 Attitude
Business Computer Literacy Learning
Business
Management Management
Practices Practices
9 Ethics and World Affairs and Computer
Professionalism Cultures Literacy
10. World Affairs and Business World Affairs
Cultures Management and Cultures
Practices
• The most important attribute as recognized by all the
categories is Problem Solving.
• Greatest gap between the view of Students and Industry:
Ethics and professionalism ranked #3 by Industry and # 9 22
by students.
8 • EMPLOYMENT MODEL
• The single most reason you have chosen to study
Engineering is the availability of jobs.
• In view of this, you need to consider what factors are
important to employers and work to develop yourself in
these areas. Employers look for the recruits with the
following qualifications:

1. Personal qualifications including maturity, initiative,

enthusiasm, poise, communication skills, appearance,
and the ability to work with people (attributes: 1, 3, 5 &
6)
2. Scholastic qualifications as shown by percentage of
marks / grades (attributes: 2, 4)
3. Specialized courses and industry training (attributes:
2,7)
4. Experience in campus activities, especially participation
and leadership in curricular and extracurricular life
(attributes: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 & 10) 23
• How you fare in the interviews with prospective employers
will depend on how well you prepare yourself in the four
areas listed above.
• To be strong in each area, you must make a conscious
commitment to make it happen.

9. STUDENT INVOLVEMENT MODEL

• You want to get quality education – i.e., to have the

knowledge, skills and attributes that will result in your
being highly sought – after by employers.
• What do we mean by ‘quality’ or ‘excellence’ in
education?
• An excellent education is one that maximizes
student’s intellectual and personal development –
possible only through ‘Student Involvement’:

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• Definition of Student Involvement :

The amount of Physical and Psychological

Energy that the Student devotes to the Academic &
Co-academic Experiences.

• Five measures of Student Involvement:

1. Time and energy devoted to studying
2. Time spent on campus
3. Participation in student organizations
4. Interaction with faculty members
5. Interaction with other students
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Involved Student:
An involved student is one who devotes
considerable energy to studying, spends a lot of
time on campus, participates actively in student
organizations, and interacts frequently with faculty
members and other students.

Uninvolved Student:
An uninvolved student may neglect studies, spend
little time on campus, abstain from extracurricular
activities, and have little contact with faculty
members or other students.
• Which of these statements best describes you?
• In this way, you can assess the quality of the education
you are receiving
• Increasing your level of involvement and hence 26
enhancing the quality of your education is up to you.