Effective praise is a powerful tool for motivating and engaging students, but it’s often underutilized. When used correctly, praise can improve relationships between teachers and students, reduce behavior issues, and prevent loss of instructional time. There are three main types of praise: personal praise, effort-based praise, and behavior-specific praise. Among these, effort-based and behavior-specific praise are found to be the most effective in fostering student empowerment and motivation. When delivering praise, be specific, clear about expectations, praise the process and progress, be sincere but avoid overpraising, be sensitive to cultural differences, and avoid comparisons to other students to make it meaningful and effective.
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