When I was growing up, my parents utilized monetary incentives to push me to earn A’s; it worked too. They knew I could make A’s, but they also knew it took extra time and effort on my part. Without the cash incentive, I might have settled for B’s. Thankfully, my parents knew me well and recognized my desire to make money kept me from just getting by with a B. I did what it took to score the higher grades. In high school, my parents’ $20 promise for a straight A report card became my dangling carrot every six weeks.
While I realize there are many who are vehemently opposed to paying students to get good grades, I’m not–and not just because my parents did it with me; I see value in it. Parents may need to determine their family’s scale, of course, and recognize money it isn’t the only incentive. Their kid might be more motivated by something else–money is just one “payment” option.
First, not unlike sales commissions, it teaches students that they reap what they sow. Effort and earning walk hand in hand in the real world, so why not instill that in our kids early? Even now, if I work I get paid, and if I don’t work, I don’t get paid.
School IS a job for kids. Depending on where their education takes place, kids are expected to rise early, be prepared, dress appropriately, fulfill requirements, advance, pay attention and listen. Adults receive compensation for the work they do, why not kids? Why is it called bribing if we do it with our kids, but called salary or wages for adults?
Next, I think it is safe to say that most kids are intrinsically motivated on some level about some things, but not necessarily about their education. For this reason, I’m not opposed to extrinsic motivation–such as giving rewards. It is obvious to me that an eleven-year-old may have difficulty linking their current effort in learning with a future career. Motivation changes with age; case in point, in college I was never paid to make good grades, but by that time I was mature enough to recognize its relevance to my future.
My son Kenny barely held it together the other day while constructing a bibliography for an essay he researched online. “It doesn’t make sense to put a period here! Why is it italicized? Ugh…there are so many MLA rules.” Then, I watched as he sat down for a full hour on his Xbox and worked his way through a new game without any attitude or extra pushing on my part. He loves to learn, yes, but it isn’t always on a subject matter that constitutes great education. I watched him fail over and over during that game, but the intrinsic motivation to advance to the next level superseded his frustrations and was all the reward he needed to strive toward excellence.
For Kenny, a straight “A” learning incentive might be a coupon for one Saturday of uninterrupted Xbox time with his daddy or friends. He’d love that. He’d work toward that with rigor. In other words, each person has their price tag. Meredith would do the same thing for iTunes.
I just cannot see the strength in all the arguments against external learning incentives. “But they’ll lose their love of learning!” Really? How many students do you know who embrace all subject matter equally and with the same fervent attention? I will rework a post a gazillion times to get it right, but not a math problem–after about the fifth time I’m looking for the solutions manual. The reward of creating the written word that says exactly what I want it to say has value to me–much more value than puzzling through an equation, for example. However, if Meredith and I say, “Okay, we’ll download and watch this movie if we can get a 90 or above on this quiz!” we will work harder to achieve the goal. The reward multiplies itself; we grasp a process, receive a good grade and watch a (hopefully) good movie.
How old are your children and what type of learning incentives have you implemented for your kids’ education?
Heather Sanders is a leading homeschooling journalist who inspires homeschooling families to live, love and learn. Married to Jeff, Heather lives in the East Texas Piney Woods where she currently home schools two of her three kids.