Page 102 - Štremfel, Urška, and Maša Vidmar (eds.). 2018. Early School Leaving: Cooperation Perspectives. Ljubljana: Pedagoški inštitut.
P. 102
greatest extent is the need for relatedness. Involvement of the commu-
nity enhances the feeling of worthiness in students. Social support fosters
a feeling of social connectedness which is required in order for children to
internalise social standards (for instance, the value of education) and to
develop respect for social institutions (including school) (Ellias & Hayes,
2013). In collaboration with the community, students build their own social
network, social capital that is just as important an indicator of well-being
as is material capital (Morenoff & Sampson, 2008). Even if a child or adoles-
cent possesses the required skills for school success, the motivation to use
them is related to the perception of social support for school-related activi-
ties (from their parents and the community).
The local community can provide a setting in which the autonomy of
students can be supported, especially since school–community collabora-
tion moves learning activities out of the typical hierarchical learning envi-
ronment of the classroom.
Besides support for basic psychological needs, community-based learn-
ing can target some of the interrelated aspects of amotivation. For students
prone to ESL the typical motivation is amotivation. Amotivation is a com-
plicated construct comprising four interrelated aspects (Reeve, 2015): low
ability (a sense of incompetence and the belief that one lacks sufficient abil-
ity to perform a certain task), low effort (a lack of desire to spend energy on
a particular task), low value (a lack of perceived importance or usefulness
of a certain task) and unappealing task (a perception that a task is person-
ally unattractive). In school–community collaboration, low ability can be
addressed by exposing students to practical assignments with a direct ben-
efit for their local community and therefore their sense of ability (whatever
their initial level of ability is) can be supported. Something similar applies
to low effort. Low value can be targeted with the same activities. When stu-
dents observe that their knowledge is of direct use they can develop a bet-
ter sense of value of school-related knowledge. When schools collaborate
with the community and address the needs of the community (e.g. teaching
computer skills to elderly people in the community) the school curricula
become more relevant and meaningful. Meaningful and relevant curricula
related to students’ own interests and goals promote greater school engage-
ment and intrinsic motivation in all students (Motti-Stefanidi & Masten,
2013). When framing school learning material in a community context it
can become more interesting. The last characteristic of amotivation, attrac-
tiveness of the task, demands some extra effort from the school – when
102
nity enhances the feeling of worthiness in students. Social support fosters
a feeling of social connectedness which is required in order for children to
internalise social standards (for instance, the value of education) and to
develop respect for social institutions (including school) (Ellias & Hayes,
2013). In collaboration with the community, students build their own social
network, social capital that is just as important an indicator of well-being
as is material capital (Morenoff & Sampson, 2008). Even if a child or adoles-
cent possesses the required skills for school success, the motivation to use
them is related to the perception of social support for school-related activi-
ties (from their parents and the community).
The local community can provide a setting in which the autonomy of
students can be supported, especially since school–community collabora-
tion moves learning activities out of the typical hierarchical learning envi-
ronment of the classroom.
Besides support for basic psychological needs, community-based learn-
ing can target some of the interrelated aspects of amotivation. For students
prone to ESL the typical motivation is amotivation. Amotivation is a com-
plicated construct comprising four interrelated aspects (Reeve, 2015): low
ability (a sense of incompetence and the belief that one lacks sufficient abil-
ity to perform a certain task), low effort (a lack of desire to spend energy on
a particular task), low value (a lack of perceived importance or usefulness
of a certain task) and unappealing task (a perception that a task is person-
ally unattractive). In school–community collaboration, low ability can be
addressed by exposing students to practical assignments with a direct ben-
efit for their local community and therefore their sense of ability (whatever
their initial level of ability is) can be supported. Something similar applies
to low effort. Low value can be targeted with the same activities. When stu-
dents observe that their knowledge is of direct use they can develop a bet-
ter sense of value of school-related knowledge. When schools collaborate
with the community and address the needs of the community (e.g. teaching
computer skills to elderly people in the community) the school curricula
become more relevant and meaningful. Meaningful and relevant curricula
related to students’ own interests and goals promote greater school engage-
ment and intrinsic motivation in all students (Motti-Stefanidi & Masten,
2013). When framing school learning material in a community context it
can become more interesting. The last characteristic of amotivation, attrac-
tiveness of the task, demands some extra effort from the school – when
102
