Learning to Motivate in Varied Contexts: A Narrative Study of Three Novice Teachers

Abstract

The ability to create motivational learning environments is considered a key teacher competence, which, when developed early, can have a decisive impact on novice teachers’ determination to remain in the teaching profession during their first years. Using a narrative approach, this multiple case study explores the experiences of three beginning teachers of English in relation to their development of motivational strategies. From a perspective of personal and relational agency, the study seeks to establish which internal and external supports and obstacles are described by the teachers, including their “inner voices”, and those of students, colleagues, school leaders, and the educational system, when learning to foster their students’ motivation to learn. The disparity in the outcomes of the different processes of professional induction reveals the importance of teacher induction programs that provide novice teachers with confidence and autonomy, while also addressing student motivation in community and collaboration.