R1: Chapters 1-7

“Let Emile, he said, never be led to compare himself to other children. No rivalries, not even in running, as soon as he begins to have power of reason. It were a hundred times better that he not learn at all what he could only learn through jealousy or vanity…Thus I should excite him without making him jealous of any one. He would wish to surpass himself.” (James, 1899, p. 27).

            The above quote written by William James prompts me to ask the following question: Should the public school system use reward systems that are implemented in a way that creates competition among other students? Even more, should schools place pressure and emphasis on test scores, which can also create competition among students? As a student in the School Psychology program, I am able to see competition among students as described by William James, particularly due to the pressure of obtaining sufficient to substantial test scores. This pressure is often displayed by the school offering incentives to students who receive top test scores. The issues then becomes whether or not the student is intrinsically and extrinsically motivated to learn. William James implies that learning is not effective when students are comparing themselves to others. Instead, he suggests that effective learning occurs when they are willing to self-reflect, and are motivated by inward desires for themselves rather than through envy and jealousy to beat another peer to the top of academia for some tangible reward.

             In my undergraduate class, I took a course (Motivation and Emotion) in which the majority of the semester was spent on the motivation of individuals. I learned that the best type of motivation is intrinsic motivation in which individuals are internally driven for the purpose of their own desires. Extrinsic motivation is not eternal; it does not last forever and is therefore not effective, especially within the context of learning. I can agree with William James that learning will be more fulfilling and effective when teachers create an atmosphere in which students are internally driven to learn for the desire of their own personal growth.