Motivation as an Elixir to Participatory Pedagogy for Academic Success in Schools: Implications for the Nigerian School System

Motivation is a significant tool in educational systems all over the globe. The success or failure of pedagogy may be adduced to teachers and the way they motivate their students to learn. A student may know what and how to study, and may realise that studying is important, yet she may not study because he lacks the motivation or drive to self- regulate him/her. This study, therefore, brings out how the teacher can motivate his students so that they can effectively learn. The concept of participatory pedagogy, the relativity of motivation to students’ performance, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and its effects in classroom instruction, some motivational theories and their relationship to learning, teachers’ role in motivating students to learn and the implication for the Nigerian school system were investigated. The essence of the study was to point out the relevance of motivation and how it works in the school pedagogy. Motivation influences an individual's behaviour to and performance in a task. Motivation directs behaviour towards a particular goal, makes students enthusiastic about a task and also fosters their persistence in classroom activities. A well-motivated student may find learning interesting so much so as to prevent academic and emotional problems from arising, and increase their performance.Key words: Intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, academic success, learning improvement