The Self-Determination Theory of motivation (SDT) has significantly guided educational policy and research. It maintains that learning succeeds when brought about by autonomous rather than controlled motivation, and that extrinsic reward motivation cannot engender effective learning. We present an alternative approach, rooted in recent insights from the neurobiology of memory. In exploring environments to reap rewards, people pursue interrogative goals, accompanied by dopamine-based hippocampus activation, leading to the formation of rich relational memories. In contrast, seeking to avoid punishment or loss involves imperative goals, with amygdala activation driving the perirhinal cortex to form disjoint item memories. We suggest that structuring learning and evaluation to diminish failure and increase repeated opportunities for successful performance, as in gamification, may engender effective learning incorporating broad perspectives and rich associations. This may occur even in the absence of intrinsic motivation to master a particular subject. Employing this insight in instructional design may benefit many educational frameworks. Motivation is the main catalyst for human goals, behavior, and actions (Brooks, 2009; Buelens, Sinding, & Waldstrøm, 2010). Understanding the underlying factors of motivation is crucial to a better understanding of

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The article presents the results of research conducted among Polish teachers. Their aim was to check the prevalence of neuromyths in schools and kindergartens, and to identify predictors of both belief in neuromyths and the level of knowledge about the structure and functioning of the brain. The obtained results partially confirmed the reports from international studies. Neuromyths turned out to be very popular among Polish teachers, even despite the high level of basic knowledge in the field of neurobiology. The research also revealed a number of factors that determine the level of the above-mentioned knowledge. The influence of age, gender, seniority, workplace, interest in training in neuroeducation, earlier access to knowledge in the field of neurobiology or the use of neuromyths-based work methods in educational practice has not been confirmed.

This article is a review of the Self-determination theory (SDT) of Motivation. The theory identifies motivation as a continuum ranging from amotivation to extrinsic motivation and finally to intrinsic motivation (Ryan & Deci, 2000). Intrinsic motivation, thought of as the highest form of motivation satisfying the innate psychological needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness. These psychological needs are given as a prototype of self-determined behavior and activity. The theory suggests that extrinsic motivated behaviors can vary in the extent to which they represent Self-determination, ranging from the lowest type of external regulation motivation to the highest type of integrated motivation. In this review I wish to present the SDT theory of motivation and to argue that intrinsic and extrinsic motivation must be reconsidered. Although I acknowledge the positive effects of intrinsic motivation I urge educators and researchers to consider the benefits of extrinsic motivation. I critically examine the evidence for and against the model, discuss its limitations, and identify critical gaps for future research.