The Engagement by Design Playbook: Creating Learning Environments Where Students Thrive, Edition 2
About this ebook
Every teacher dreams of a classroom buzzing with curiosity, but creating genuine engagement is tough, especially alongside today’s endless distractions. If you′ve ever felt like you′re pulling teeth to get a hand raised, you aren′t alone! The Engagement by Design Playbook helps K-12 educators shift from demanding compliance to cultivating real curiosity.
Rather than treating engagement as a switch that’s simply "on" or "off," this hands-on guide shows you how to intentionally design environments where students feel they truly belong. Douglas Fisher, Nancy Frey, Dominique Smith, and James Marshall explore building authentic teacher-student relationships, fostering clarity, introducing productive challenge, empowering student agency, and more.
Designed to be applied immediately, this playbook features:
- Engagement Attractors and Repellers to help you notice subtle signals that draw students in or push them away
- Ask a Bot prompts that act as your personal AI thinking partner for lesson design
- Start-Stop-Keep reflections to help you gracefully refine your teaching practice
By making these intentional shifts, you’ll learn to build an inviting classroom culture rooted in trust. Ultimately, your students will benefit by shifting from passive observers into confident contributors to their own learning journey.
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About the author
Douglas Fisher is a professor and chair of educational leadership at San Diego State University and a teacher leader at Health Sciences High and Middle College. Previously, Fisher was an early intervention teacher and elementary school educator. In 2022, he was inducted into the Reading Hall of Fame by the Literacy Research Association. He has published numerous articles on reading and literacy, leadership, and curriculum design, as well as books such as Your Introduction to PLC+, Welcome to Teaching, How Feedback Works, Teaching Reading, and RIGOR Unveiled. Fisher loves being an educator and hopes to share that passion with others.
Nancy Frey is a professor of educational leadership at San Diego State University and a teacher leader at Health Sciences High and Middle College. Her published titles include The Courage to Learn, The Art and Science of Coaching, How Scaffolding Works, and The Illustrated Guide to Visible Learning. Frey is a credentialed special educator, reading specialist, and administrator in California and learns from teachers and students every day.
Dominique Smith is an award-winning educator, author, and school leader who has dedicated two decades to transforming schools into inclusive, safe, and empowering spaces for students and educators alike. He currently serves as principal at Health Sciences High and Middle College in San Diego, California. Smith earned his doctorate in educational leadership from San Diego State University and a master of social work from the University of Southern California.
James Marshall is a professor of educational leadership at San Diego State University, where he also leads the Doctorate in Educational Leadership program. A credentialed teacher, he began his career as an informal science educator at the San Diego Zoo. Jim′s passion centers on the design of learning programs that yield predictable results. He has written broadly on needs assessment, learning initiative design, implementation, and program evaluation. His published books include Right From the Start: The Essential Guide to Implementing School Initiatives, Fixing Education Initiatives in Crisis: 24 Go-To Strategies, and RIGOR Unveiled: A Video-Enhanced Flipbook to Promote Teacher Expertise in Relationship Building, Instruction, Goals, Organization, and Relevance.
