The Scholar Motivation Handbook: 50 Methods to Enhance an Intrinsic Want to Be taught
By Larry Ferlazzo
(Routledge/Eye On Training, 2023 – Be taught extra)

Reviewed by Alexis Lecznar

Over the previous 14 years as a center faculty instructor, I’ve been pushed by a aim and mindset to show college students to be ready for the world far past the content material of a social research classroom.

I strongly imagine that for our college students to achieve success in wherever life takes them, they should have the life abilities (communication, crucial pondering, group) and foundational blocks that create success – excess of they should rotely know particular dates and folks. This mindset has inspired me to deliver compassion, understanding, and neighborhood constructing as a instructor and chief in each my constructing and district.

Growing scholar motivation has at all times been a aim, and a problem, of educators. Nonetheless, within the wake of the Covid pandemic there are extra challenges (and extra alternatives) to advertise intrinsic motivation than ever earlier than.

For me to assist college students develop abilities that can assist them with their future, I must work with them on “eager to be taught.” It’s for these causes that I used to be instantly drawn to Larry Ferlazzo’s e-book The Scholar Motivation Handbook: 50 Methods to Enhance an Intrinsic Want to Be taught.

A information to creating your neighborhood of learners

Sensible. Resourceful. Analysis Pushed. Larry Ferlazzo, a highschool instructor himself, makes use of analysis backed methods to construct neighborhood within the classroom and drive intrinsic motivation. He shares his methods and classes realized to assist us all create a classroom neighborhood of learners. By web page 3, I had already made an annotation for my classroom theme within the upcoming faculty 12 months. “…creating an total class environment of a ‘neighborhood of learners’ as a substitute of a ‘classroom of scholars.’ (Ferlazzo, web page 3)

Ferlazzo breaks his “50 methods to spice up intrinsic motivation” into 5 chapters:

• Motivation within the Classroom
• What’s “Autonomy” and Why is it Necessary?
• What’s “Competence” and Why is it Necessary?
• What’s “Relatedness” and Why is it Necessary?
• What’s “Relevance” and Why is it vital?

Every chapter gives particular methods to spice up intrinsic motivation. The why behind these methods is defined clearly to the reader and backed up with a wide selection of analysis. Whether or not you’re a instructor getting into your first 12 months or your fifteenth 12 months, this e-book could be useful to your practices and instruction.

Most spectacular about these methods is that each single one got here with actual world, sensible examples. Ferlazzo has used all of those methods in his classroom and gives detailed and clear examples within the e-book in addition to hyperlinks for the reader to entry all supplies on-line (all of that are free). A hyperlink on the writer’s web page gives a clickable Phrase doc with all of the e-book’s linked references, by chapter.

How I see the e-book impacting my apply by way of the 12 months

As an educator studying this in the course of the summer time, I’m keen to start out utilizing a number of of those methods to work on making a “neighborhood of learners” as a substitute of a “classroom of scholars” immediately in September. Nonetheless, this isn’t only a “skilled summer time learn” – these methods are written for use all 12 months lengthy.

I plan on referencing this e-book a number of occasions all year long because the practicality, examples, and usefulness is obvious on each web page. It’s clear that consistency and observe by way of with many of those methods are what drive intrinsic motivation and a “neighborhood of learners.”

Ferlazzo circles again to constructing a neighborhood of learners quite a few occasions. They aren’t “one and completed” methods – they require intent and consistency. The methods assist to create this neighborhood of learners, and the neighborhood of learners assist to drive intrinsic motivation – the 2 work collectively.

As Ferlazzo states greater than as soon as, “the one factor worse than not giving a Test-in survey is giving one and never taking note of the responses” (Ferlazzo, web page 130). Intentional observe by way of is a key factor with most of the 50 methods.

I beloved how sensible the recommendation and techniques in The Scholar Motivation Handbook are. It’s not usually you discover a e-book stuffed with analysis backed methods as genuine as this one. Studying this e-book felt like having a dialog with a instructor giving their greatest tried and true items of recommendation – these issues the veteran and nice academics simply do this assist make college students wish to be in that room.

Spoiler alert: Ferlazzo offers you 50 of these “issues academics simply do” – the issues that create a welcoming, engaged, and collaborative house. The truth that Ferlazzo’s examples are from school rooms make this e-book that rather more vital, for my part.

One other factor of this e-book I actually loved was the way in which during which Ferlazzo ended every chapter. The final two pages or so of every chapter current a piece titled, “What Questions Can Lecturers Ask Themselves to Guarantee their Methods to Promote ___ are additionally Culturally Responsive.” These questions invite a deep inward reflection on how we, because the instructor, are contemplating all of our college students in our choices.

All through this e-book you’re feeling the nice lengths Ferlazzo goes to in an effort to construct a neighborhood of learners in his personal courses and create a way of belonging for all. I’m excited to share this e-book with my colleagues and revisit it all through the varsity 12 months to assist construct my very own neighborhood of learners.

Alexis Lecznar has been a center faculty social research instructor for 14 years and loves working with college students whereas they’re at a vital developmental stage of their lives. Since getting into the classroom, she has earned a M.A. in instructional expertise. She has additionally had the chance and pleasure of taking over varied management roles inside her faculty and district. In 2022 she was named the Michigan Historical past Trainer of the 12 months by the Daughters of the American Revolution.