Helping Students Develop an Appreciation for School Content

Abstract

The topic of content appreciation (i.e., developing a broad valuing of curricular content) has not received the attention it deserves. In this article, the authors present Brophy's (2008a; 2008b) model of content appreciation in the context of a hypothetical case study of a teacher trying to foster content appreciation. In doing so, they illustrate and discuss 3 principles central to Brophy's model: (a) teaching worthwhile content, (b) framing content to stimulate appreciation, and (c) scaffolding appreciation within the motivational zone of proximal development.

Notes

Jere Brophy was a friend and mentor. His work on content appreciation was an inspiration for our own research programs. Jere's breadth of knowledge, knack for getting to the core of an issue, and personal attentiveness will be sorely missed.

1. Research has shown that when students are more interested in the content and have more transformative learning experiences, they often display deeper and more enduring learning (Ainley, Hidi, & Berndorff, 2002; Pugh, 2011).