From our earliest stages of cognitive development, we have learned from play. Play urges the player to try over and over again even as she repeatedly fails; play generates its own persistence, encouraging the player to continue caring even after her obligation to do so has ended; play is an active celebration of deeper understanding, such that the great players in any field, from baseball to physics, are remembered and celebrated for how well they played.
We owe it to the students, the institution and the larger community to champion our material and point out the relevance that we know exists. Why else would we teach what we teach and do what we do? What instructors and students both want are courses that frame content in engaging ways.
How you choose to use extra credit can enhance a student's learning opportunities. Whether you're for or against the use, a few simple rules will make it easier to deploy. Consider using optional quizzes over the reading material prior to the start of class to encourage students to be prepared for in-class discussion.
The Understanding by Design model teaches us how to create our curriculum backward from big ideas to activities...but what about the benefits of teaching backward? Allowing students to explore larger concepts, while you fill in, here and there, with the details, helps to enliven the experience of the subject.
