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Miss. Wormwood
Miss. Wormwood
Miss Wormwood has the "pleasure" of being Calvin’s teacher. She and Calvin are somewhat opposites. She is strict, focused on rules, and is quite serious. Which, as you know, is the opposite of Calvin. Sometimes she will get distracted in her dreams of retirement, showing the somewhat frustration she has of trying to manage students such as Calvin. Even though it can be hard to deal with a student like Calvin, a smart kid who doesn't like to follow directions, she handles it as best she can. Even though she usually seems annoyed, sometimes she shows a little patience, which hints that she believes Calvin has potential.
Autonomy Supporting Strategies
One strategy Ms. Wormwood could use in her class is allowing Calvin to incorporate his interests into the material. For example, the comic above demonstrates Calvin's interest in dinosaurs to the point that he would be motivated to publish a scientific journal about it. Allowing him opportunities to choose to pursue his own interests will increase his sense of autonomy.
In the comic above, Calvin is not motivated to do a research project on bats. Calvin does not have interest in studying bats and he feels forced into the assignment. If Calvin had the opportunity to choose a topic, he would likely show more interest in doing the research. Additionally, Calvin feels overwhelmed by having to write a report on his research. Ms. Wormwood could also give Calvin and the other students an opportunity to choose how to present their research, like as a presentation or a website like this one.
Autonomy support is greatly effected by how a teacher says things. In this comic, Ms. Wormwood presents one option to improve grades: work harder. This statement attacks Calvin's sense of autonomy by telling him there is no other option. If Ms. Wormwood instead told him something like "there is plenty of room for you to improve" leaves the door open for multiple paths to improvement, retaining Calvin's sense of choice in the matter.
Relatedness Supporting Strategies
Calvin does not feel a relatedness to his classmates. In the above comic, he is singled out by another student for his poor performance. Additionally, Calvin's barfing face sticker makes him feel alone and isolated. Ms. Wormwood needs to do a better job of establishing a respectful and inclusive classroom culture for Calvin and all of her students. By removing the sticker rewards, the imbalance in the rewards, or the negative stickers, Ms. Wormwood would alleviate the conditions that enable this behavior.
Similarly, Calvin is bullied by bigger classmates. This is further severing his relationship. There are multiple ways Ms. Wormwood can adress this. The most effective way is to establish a respectful and inclusive classroom culture from day one. A couple of ways Ms. Wormwood can do this is with ice breaker activities, firmly established classroom rules, and immediate intervention when disrespectful and ostracizing behaviors occur.
Ms. Wormwood could also make an effort to establish a feeling of relatedness between Calvin and herself. In the above comic, she makes no effort to display empathy or understanding for Calvin's struggles and situation. If Ms. Wormwood would stop and resonate with Calvin's self-esteem issue and show him he is understood, Calvin would feel as if his teacher truly sees eye to eye with him and wants to see him succeed. This would be a great first step towards fostering more autonomous forms of motivation in Calvin.
Competence Supporting Strategies
In order to satisfy Calvin's need for competence, Ms. Wormwood should ensure that he, and all students, are provided with the resources or support necessary to succeed. In the comic above, Calvin would feel more confident in this assignment if he understood the subject matter more. Ms. Wormwood should avoid giving out assignments that students do not have the proper background information and/or skillsets to complete.
Similarly, some of Ms. Wormwood's actions make Calvin feel less in comparison to his peers. Instead of giving Calvin a negative sticker in return for a bad grade on a quiz, Ms. Wormwood could give every student a positive sticker as a way to show her appreciation for their effort. This would be a more appropriate use of rewards that would not harm Calvin's sense of competence.
Part of where Calvin struggles is he does not believe in his own ability to succeed academically. Unlike the comic above, Ms. Wormwood should show Calvin that she believes in his capabilities and is willing to support him. Ms. Wormwoods emphasis on negative feedback and working harder as the only way to improve are very detrimental to all of Calvin's psychological needs, but mainly his feeling of competence.
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