Jim Grover's eighth graders are engaged in a cooperative learning task. He expected a high level of ...

Jim Grover's eighth graders are engaged in a cooperative learning task. He expected a high level of interest, but the students are restless. Jim's observations are puzzling.

In the "wolves" group, Mick and Rick are whispering with their backs to the group. In the "manatees," Ginger is looking out the window, and she is very pale. The "hyenas" are discussing the topic, but keep getting sidetracked in arguments over who came up with the good ideas. Finally, two of the three "otters" who are not absent today are sitting staring at Marty, the third, who keeps standing up and then sitting down, at a rapid pace.

Jim's students may have current needs that are getting priority over his learning objectives. Identify four of those needs, based on the students' behavior. Using at least two levels of Maslow's hierarchy, explain how the students’ needs affect their motivation to be on-task in Jim's lesson.

For one of Jim's groups, suggest a motivational strategy that would address the problem, and explain why Maslow would expect it to work.