• Analyzing Calvin •

Calvin in the Classroom

If Calvin could describe school in one word, it would most certainly be "BORING." Let's look at some of Calvin's motivational patterns in the classroom and see if we can provide Ms. Wormwood some advice!

Calvin's Motivation: In all the comics shown on this page, it is clear that Calvin has failed to enter even the first phase of Interest Theory; Triggered Situational Interest. Calvin hasn't even been exposed to a short-term spark that would peak his interest in Miss Wormwood's classroom. In the comics above, Calvin struggles with relating to the content being taught in class. He cannot find a connection between what he is learning and how it applies to his life outside of the classroom. Calvin simply just wants to focus on himself. Individual factors and a sense of personal identity are a very important contributing factor to ones' interests, but Calvin hasn't had the opportunity to truly understand how the material affects him as an individual. He has no sense of belongingness in the classroom, the material he is learning doesn't seem to have any relevance to his cultural values, and Calvin has no emotional connection to the content.

Why Calvin has this Problems: The role of Utility-Goal Relevance is lacking in Miss Wormword's classroom as she doesn't try to emphasize the relavance or usefulness of any of her topics to Calvin's life. She fails to explain how Calvin can utilize the information he's learning outside of class, therefore Calvin doesn't feel connected to the material on an emotional, cultural, or social level.

Advice for Miss Wormwood: Miss Wormwood should choose content that is relevant to Calvin and his classmates. Relevancy helps students understand why the content is worth knowing. It puts the "boring" information into perspective of their current or future lives. Explaining how Calvin can use the skills that he is taught in class would address his concerns in this comic. Effective communication and collaboration (for social interactions), Mathematics (for future financial prospects), Leadership opportunities, and so many other relevant skills are developed through our schoolwork that we do not realize-- and clearly Calvin does not either. So Miss Wormwood should express the development and application of these skills during her lessons.

Calvin's Motivation: In the comics above, we can see the situational factors that peak Calvin;s interest. Calvin clearly has a more enjoyable time outdoors. This supports the theory of biophilia, which states that people prefer natural environments as opposed to man-made environments. In the first comic, it's obvious that Calvin would much rather be in the outside world versus in the classroom. He has a deep interest in dinosaurs and would rather spend the day outside learning about them rather than inside the classroom learning about something else. Calvin is interested in hands-on learning as evident in his working with Dinosaurs. Calvin shows that he is actually interest in science and would even like to contribute to a scientific journal and that is in-part due to his interest sparked from working with bones and the outdoors hands-on. It's also important to note that Calvin recievs more social interaction and social support when he is outside of the classroom because he is able to actually spend time with Hobbes.

Why Calvin has this Problem: Calvin doesn't have the opportunity to learn about what he is truly interested in when he is in the class. Calvin much prefers the outfoors but de doesn't get the chance to go outside very often and there are never any lessons related to dinosaurs.

Advice for Miss Wormwood: Miss Woodward should foster Calvin's interest by taking learning about his hobbies and interests. When the student is presented information that they are interested, they are prompted to take more control in the development of their knowledge in the content area. Miss Wormwood can create a personal dialogue with her students through surveys or journal prompts. As seen in the second comic, Calvin understands the Scientific Process and is interested in archaeology. Perhaps Miss Wormwood could incorporate scavenger hunts or inquiry lessons that allows Calvin to develop his interests. In addition, she could also switch up the location of class. They could hold a class period outside or in the gym, which allows the students to be engaged with a new environment.

Calvin's Motivation: Calvin has failed to even reach Triggered Situational Interest because he hasn't been exposed to a lesson/assignment that has sparked his interest. Calvin doesn't enjoy the Miss. Wormwood's assignments. He believes that they are boring, irrelevant, and are too much pressure. The first phase of Interest is often the most important as it can foster an even deeper interest later on. It seems that Calvin is in a phase that is the complete opposite of Triggered Situational Interest. The assignments that Calvin is being exposed to are making him less interested in the class content.

Why Calvin has this Problem: Calvin wants the opportunity to work on more creative assignments, but Miss Wormwood only provides Calvin with few assessment options. Calvin hasn't been exposed to assignments that grab his attention or provoke his imagination. This limits Calvin in being able to show all of the knowledge he truly has.

Advice for Miss Wormwood: Miss Wormwood needs to incorporate the idea of choice in her classroom. As seen in the first comic, Calvin needs to be given different format options for assessments. Offering alternatives will allow Calvin to demonstrate his knowledge in a way that is comfortable for him-- which will give Miss Wormwood a more accurate idea of what Calvin understands and what he doesn't. In addition, when a student has the ability to choose, they will often be more engaging with the content because they will choose something that they are interested in. The second comic shows Calvin wanting to engage in debates about polarizing topics, but is reprimanded for it-- so perhaps books that delve into complex societal issues like 1984 or Fahrenheit 451 would be of interest to Calvin. Miss Wormwood should also provide flexible seating, as sometimes, something like a swivel chair can help a student focus on their work, and keep their attention and interest on their work and not their wiggles.

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