Finding The Mojo: Why Understanding How Motivation Works Accelerates Learning.

By Kelly Hutton

Want to instil a love of learning? It's all in the Mojo.

I have always had a deep love of learning. I am an obsessive nerd who likes to research, discover new things, and read non-fiction books from all walks of life. I have always had the motivation to be curious, and this makes me a representative of research, which shows that the more motivated you are to learn as a child, the more motivated you are as an adult (Gottfried, 1990).

I think it possibly stems from early memories when we had very little money and entertainment came from scouring a very 90s encyclopedia, in which my mum would spend hours making me little research tests for her to mark. Or it could even be from the time when I found a love of reading and writing; despite getting a D for apparently making my fictional story too unbelievable (it was about twins that got separated and came back together... in the era of The Parent Trap?!), my mum and grandad marched into school and demanded I was allowed another try for a better mark, in which I then got an A. Either way, something from a young age really encouraged my motivation to learn.

The idea that learning was something I got praised for, that was entertaining, and that benefited me in so many different ways has always stuck with me. I am in no way a naturally clever person; learning knowledge doesn't come naturally to me. I only wish it did; if it did, then I may not have got that D in Maths, which I had to retake to complete my degrees. But what has come naturally is the motivation to keep trying to learn and to enjoy the challenge.

Why is Motivation Essential for Learning?

Now, this may seem like a very obvious answer... motivation is the engine that fuels the learning. It is the reason children choose to engage, persist, and invest effort into a task. Broussard & Garrison (2004) describe it as the attribute that drives us to do or not to do something, but it isn't just a feeling; it's the collection of beliefs, perceptions, values, interests, and actions that shape how we, and children, feel about approaching learning tasks.

Motivation is a predictor, predicting:

• Engagement - children choosing to participate.

• Effort - they try harder and use better strategies.

• Persistence - they keep going even when tasks are difficult.

• Achievement - motivated children perform better academically.

Gottfried's (1990) identified that motivation in early childhood predicts motivation later in life, and that this strengthens with age, meaning it is not just helpful, but it is foundational, with early motivation setting a trajectory for later learning, confidence and independence.

First Step: Understanding How Motivation Works...

So we know how essential motivation is; however, understanding how motivation works is another thing altogether. We have all been there, wishing we could find it under the couch pillows or turn the switch on to make us have that get-up-and-go. One way we can find it, though, is by developing our understanding of how it works.

Motivation isn't just one thing; it is shaped by a series of things:

• Self-efficacy (Can I do this?)

• Values and Interests (Do I want to do this?)

• Self-regulation and volition (What do I need to succeed?)

These three strands are outlined in Broussard & Garrison's (2004) review, and understanding these can help us, as adults, to tailor support.

Self-efficacy:

"Children with higher self-efficacy show greater effort, persistence, and use of cognitive strategies." (Bandura, 1982).

This means that as an individual, we need to believe in ourselves and that we can learn something new, because we have done it before and can do it again. It's that little voice in your head which says "I can do this, I've done something like it before, and I know I can figure it out". With strong self-efficacy, we don't give up straight away, and we give it a try, even if it is tricky.

Values and Interests:

"Children are motivated when tasks feel meaningful, enjoyable, or useful." (Eccles & Wigfield, 2002).

These are the things that matter and are important to us. They act as little rules in the brain, for example:

• If you value kindness, you try to help people

• If you value fairness, you want everyone to get a turn

• If you value learning, you enjoy finding out about new things

Your values are what help you choose what feels right for you, and your interests are what make the learning feel more like fun. The research tells us that interests help us to pay attention, stick with tasks longer, and enjoy learning more (Hidi & Harackiewicz, 2000).

Self-regulation and volition:

"Motivation leads to intentions, but volition determines whether children will follow through" (Corno, 1993).

The self-regulation aspect is our brain's way of being a good coach, helping us to stay focused, stay calm, keep going, make good choices and notice what we are doing and make changes if needed. It is the part which helps us to finish homework even when we would rather play or calm down when frustrated.

Volition, on the other hand, is what makes us stick at it. Motivation helps us to want to do something, but it is volition which helps us actually do it. So if you decide one day "I am going to practise piano every day," it is volition which will help you show up and practise, even when you don't want to.

Understanding these mechanisms allows us, as adults, to:

• Identify why a child is struggling

• Adjust the environment or task

• Support the child's confidence, autonomy, and emotional experience.

Understanding that motivation is broken down into these three elements will help us, as adults, to really pinpoint why motivation may be waning... It's not always because they are just not interested, and it can also allow us to identify if we have unintentionally undermined their motivation, for example, if we over-rely on rewards, which research shows can either encourage or diminish motivation depending on the context (Deci, et al, 1999).

Helping Them Find Their Mojo...

So, we discovered that motivation isn't down the back of the couch; it isn't just a 'feeling ', and it's made up of many components... should be easy to create then, right? Well, probably not; however, it isn't a pointless endeavour as the researchers, scientists and educational psychologists have, thankfully, spent quite a bit of time studying how we can nurture it.

Build Self-Efficacy...

Self-efficacy is actually quite an easy one to support... As adults, we can:

• Break the big things into smaller, more manageable steps and allow the children to 'collect' the successes, which makes them feel more confident.

• Notice the progress, not just the outcome, pointing out how well they have done today, compared to yesterday and how they kept trying; this teaches their brain that effort leads to improvement.

• Remind them of the past successes; the brain will use the old wins to help them feel confident about the new challenges.

• Give just the right amount of help - not too much, not too little (see last week's post about Zone of Proximal Development - this is essential here!)

Help them to identify their values and interests...

• Pay attention to what makes their eyes light up: "I can really see you enjoying your drawing; let's find ways to use your drawing in your learning" It helps them to feel understood and confident.

• Connect with the things they care about; if they love animals, link it into their maths, reading or science.

• Give them choices wherever possible. Choice, at any age, boosts motivation.

• Talk about what matters to you; help them to explore what your values are, so they can identify their own. If they do identify their values, use them in ways that support their learning and reinforce the value so they feel seen and understood.

And a big one! Celebrate curiosity. If they ask lots of questions, no matter how tedious it may feel, encourage it. "Curiosity is a powerful motivator for learning" (Kang et al, 2009).

Develop their self-regulation skills and volition...

• Again, break the big tasks into smaller steps, which makes it feel easier and keeps the brain calm and focused.

• Teach "pause and plan" especially when they are feeling frustrated. Remind them that they can "Pause, take a breath and think of a plan". It helps the brain to practise self-regulation.

• Set goals they can actually achieve. Volition grows when they are succeeding at what they set out to do, so support "I'll read for 10 minutes tonight" instead of "I will read the whole book tonight".

• Celebrate when they stick at things; notice their volition. "You kept going when it was hard, that's amazing" will provide the positive reinforcement they need to know they can do the tricky things.

• Create routines: This makes it easier for their brains to remember what to do and when to do it. "After work/school, we have a snack, then homework, then play" The routines support both self-regulation and volition.

The routines I have developed in my Functional Skills Tutoring sessions incorporate all of these elements, and I do this by:

• Ensuring clear success criteria: children are guided with tutoring on how to decide on an outcome based around their interests, and then this is broken down into small, doable tasks.

• Providing weekly reflection moments, where progress is highlighted clearly, tricky elements are reviewed and reflected upon, and children are reminded of just how capable they have been. Through the reflection, I also guide them through adding, removing, or reordering tasks without shame to teach that changing direction is part of learning and to reduce perfectionism.

• Creating timelines, weekly plans and visual task boards to help children plan and organise in a way that works for their brains, reducing overwhelm.

• Drafting everything and documenting their ideas so the children can see their thinking over time; and this reinforces their competence.

• #Starting everything with the child's own interests and is whittled down to specifics through information dumps and grouping activities.

• We explore the "why" behind each interest, helping the children to understand what matters to them.

• Allowing them to choose what their work may look like (a poster, model, a video or story, etc), which reinforces autonomy and personal values.

Together, these steps teach children to stay organised, manage emotions, adapt plans and persist- the exact skills needed for long-term motivation... because essentially, Functional Skills Tutoring is not just about the 'information' they have learnt, but about the inherent skills and life-long impacts it has on their brains to want to keep learning.

If you would like to know more about Functional Skills Tutoring, for your child or in a professional capacity, please do feel free to reach out to me!

This is the last of the blogs for this summer term. I am taking a well-earned rest and will be back in a few weeks with more of my musings and research!

References:

Bandura, A. (1982). Self-efficacy mechanism in human agency. American Psychologist, 37(2), 122–147.

Bjerknes, Wilhelmsen, & Foyn‑Bruun (2024) — Bjerknes, A‑L., Wilhelmsen, T., & Foyn‑Bruun, E. (2024). A systematic review of curiosity and wonder in natural science and early childhood education research. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 38(1), 50–65. https://doi.org/10.1080/02568543.2023.2192249   Verbatim line: “Both curiosity and wonder are considered important motivational factors for learning during early childhood (0–8 years).”

Corno, L. (1993). The best-laid plans: Modern conceptions of volition and educational research. Educational Researcher, 22(2), 14–22.

Deci, E. L., Koestner, R., & Ryan, R. M. (1999). A meta-analytic review of experiments examining the effects of extrinsic rewards on intrinsic motivation. Psychological Bulletin, 125(6), 627–668.

Devine & Apperly (2021) — Devine, R. T., & Apperly, I. A. (2021). Willing and able? Theory of mind, social motivation, and social competence in middle childhood and early adolescence. Developmental Science, 25, e13137. https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.13137   Verbatim line: “Teacher-rated social competence was associated with individual differences in both theory of mind and children's motivation to develop and maintain social relationships.”

Hidi, S., & Harackiewicz, J. M. (2000). Motivating the academically unmotivated: A critical issue for the 21st century. Review of Educational Research, 70(2), 151–179.

Kanfer (1990) — Kanfer, R. (1990). Motivation theory and industrial and organizational psychology. In M. D. Dunnette & L. M. Hough (Eds.), Handbook of industrial and organizational psychology (Vol. 3, pp. 75–170). Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press. Verbatim line: “This chapter reviews and evaluates modern developments in motivational psychology as they pertain to individual behavior in organizational settings.”

Kang, M. J., Hsu, M., Krajbich, I., Loewenstein, G., McClure, S. M., Wang, J. T., & Camerer, C. F. (2009). The wick in the candle of learning: Epistemic curiosity activates reward circuitry and enhances memory. Psychological Science, 20(8), 963–973.

Lai (2011) — Lai, E. R. (2011). Motivation: A literature review. Pearson Research Report. Pearson. Verbatim line: “Motivation refers to reasons that underlie behavior that is characterized by willingness and volition.”

Rolina et al. (2026) — Rolina, N., Degeng, I. N. S., Sulthoni, & Kuswandi, D. (2026). The effect of the ergonomics of the Reggio Emilia approach and mastery motivation on early childhood independence. Qalamuna: Jurnal Pendidikan, Sosial, dan Agama, 18(1), 317–330. https://doi.org/10.37680/qalamuna.v18i1.8411 (doi.org in Bing)   Verbatim line: “This study examines the effect of the Ergonomic of Reggio Emilia Approach (EoREA) and Mastery Motivation (MM) on Early Childhood Independence (ECI).”