Are You Surprised That I'm Proud of You?

In the last few weeks I have been working with a young, second-grade student to help him practice reading. He has such a difficult time that we must break down each word letter by letter, and re-hearse the same word several times in a row. Sometimes, I can see that he is embarrassed to read in front of his classmates.  But he has been so persistent and I can see he is improving, so today I told him that he did a great job.  He said "madlobat" (thank you) and looked at me as though he was surprised  I said he was doing well. I was saddened to see that surprise.  And I wonder if many people praise him just for trying so hard.