There have been several experiments by school districts at paying students for attendance, good behavior, and good grades. The most recent attempts in Washington, D.C. and New York City have shown some promising results. Money is a powerful incentive. Click on the title of the blog entry read the article and leave your thoughts about "money for grades."
36 comments:
Nevel Shah
7th period
Overall, this idea seems good. Receiving rewards for good grades. Everyone is motivated by money, so one would expect to get positive results. Maybe through this incentive Texas would have more high school students graduating from high school. It might even cause a rise of national academic level. However, I feel by paying someone to get good grades would cause more students to cheat so they would get money too. Not only cheating, but bullying those kids to do the bully's homework. Also, it may cause more greed to run across America because those generations that got paid for their grades may only work if they know that are going to get paid. Finally, it may cause even more financial problems now that they would have to be paying the students. But nothing else could motivate a person like money.
7th Period
First, let me start by saying that the government has to be bailed out repeatedly and raise the ever growing debt ceiling, yet kids can get money for “getting good grades”. The logic in that befuddles me to know end. Of course, if I was on the receiving end of such finical stimulation, I would not be complaining, and I would be, for lacking of a better phrase, “working for those dollars”. However, there are flaws in this idea; this teaches kids to work for compensation, as opposed to working for one’s betterment. Implementation of such an idea would negate the principles set by years of precedent. This program undermines the years of education without recompense that prior generations have seen and experience. Our society is seemingly more concerned with reaping the benefits, rather than the hard work and dedication that goes into it.
Sure, it seems like a good idea on paper. People would be more motivated to get good grades, and then that sort of motivation becomes stronger and stronger. Sure, many consider school to be a job in itself. BUT! We have seen how much money corrupts. Do you see people that have grown up in such a world donating to charity? Volunteering to help for the sake of helping? Doing ANYTHING that has an incentive that is intangible to them? No. People will become empty shells that wont have as much happiness because money can be lost and money only lasts as long as it is not spent. Money-hungry businesses cheated and risked more to gain profits before the mid 2000's financial crisis. It doesn't help that the government bailed them out, I agree. Ultimately those children will also not feel the need to achieve more as the same result is always expected. Grades don't go higher than 100, you know.
I think if that's what motivates kids to get good grades, then so be it. But once it becomes the norm, $20 might not be such a big deal anymore - they'll expect 50. Personally I feel like this should be limited to high school kids, and maybe college kids. Anyone younger does not need money like that. And by high school this is more effective than say, a gold star. The author was right in noting that in the end, as adults, we all work for financial motives, so why not start a little earlier? Whether this is financially practical or not I cannot say, but I just hope that it doesn't put even more stress on students who might succumb to cheating (among other things) to win over the pressure. Recently we had issues where students paid smarter kids to take the SAT for them, because of the high importance that one test holds. Throwing money into the mix hopefully does not make students lose the idea of hard work for your own sake and other such principles.
Although the idea of being paid for going to school seems like an amazing idea, at second thought it does not seem to have the same effect. The main goal out of coming out of school is to get a job through the amount of education one received and to become as successful as one can. If the government pays kids for their grades I feel like it defeats the whole purpose of students going to school. Paying kids while going to school leaves out the excitement of having an annual paycheck as an adult. Money would not hold the same value anymore if given excessively to students. Extra money may cause students to get involved in activities that school tries to prevent, such as drinking and smoking. Instead of thinking about paying students for good grades, I think the government should use that money to go back into funds for education, so states such as texas wont have to go through budget cuts.
4th period
My grandparents pay me for good grades. Even though I would work to get good grades without the money incentive, it is nice to have a reward. I don't think it is the school district's role to decide how to reward the child for good grades. If a child's parents want to give him a money incentive, that is up to them. But the school district should not be the one making this decision. Paying the students for good grades could conflict with some families' moral values. Some parents could want their student to do well because they have the incentive of earning a good grade, not money. Overall, I don't think the school district should have the right to pay students.
Marti Grizzle
4th Period
I don't agree with paying your kids for good grades. I've never been paid to get good grades in my life, yet I still strive to get A's. There are many flaws in the concept but one of them is the idea of what is good? Is a B a good enough grade to get paid? What if I got a 90 but my friend got a 95.. clearly we both worked hard but would we both get paid the same? That would then mean my friend would no longer want to work as hard to get the 95 but lower her level of hard work to just skim by with a 90. Is getting a 90 or an A the same level of difficulty here at Elkins as is it at Marshall. Definitely not. So who is going to decide which schools and students should be paid and how much each grade is worth? We also come to the fact that everyone will be more focused on getting paid than actually learning the material. If all you have to do is memorize something for a week to get that A on the test and then move on, are we really getting beneficial results? In the end, studying and getting good grades really does pay off. The higher the education a person gets determines the job they are able to "land" and the salary they get into their banks. If kids don't want to push themselves and get good enough grades to go to college thats fine, they are the ones suffering in the end with a minimum wage job. The government shouldn't and is not responsible for holding students hands and bribing them to work hard by paying them money for grades. It is only the parent's and student's responsibility to work hard in school so that they are able to become successful. I understand that people need incentives to do things but how about the simple and costless incentive I've been raised with, you don't do your best in school and you don't get to have fun on the weekends, you'll stay at home in your room. Seems to work. And only the intelligent enough kids to realize that its YOUR future your working for, not anyone else's will come to know that studying is beneficial whether you get paid or not.
Paying a kid to get a good grade would probably work depends on how you raise up your kid. I was able to experience the harsh reality of poverty when I was still young. I learned how to be frugal and find alternative ways to get what I desire. When I moved here in the United States, I learned that kids in here (or at least most of them) are very materialistic and they think that they have an infinite supply of money. Probably the idea of paying your kid to get good grades can fix this problem. Instead of giving them lunch money, they can "earn" it by getting good grades. That way they can be motivated and at the same time striving for success. If the school is the one paying the kid, they can probably reward him/her with a certain goal that can't be reached that easily such as "get all 95 or higher on every classes that you have".
Paying a kid to get a good grade is not a bad way to motivate them to pay attention in class or to study, but then i think the school district should not the one that paying the kids, the parents should pay them. However, if the kids just aiming for the money, they might cheat during the test to get their "reward". When the kids getting more money from a easy way, they will be more materialism.
Malavika Chander
4th period
Personally, I think this is a good idea. However, I believe there should be age limitations on getting paid. Children at a young age should not grow up under the impression that they will be reimbursed for each and everything they do. It is critical for a child to learn the "moral" and "ethical" principles at a young age, so they are instilled within them for the rest of their lives. Once in high school, most students attain a reasonable maturity level to accept money for their accomplishments. Because high school is the typical place where bad habits and influences lead students ashtray, paying them for accomplishments to essentially keep them on track will eventually be a good thing in the long run. The money will be a good motivation to not be involved in such things. It seems to me the only flaw with this would be the financial issues that would result from paying students. Other than that, it seems like quite a good idea.
Taylor Williams
4th Period
I believe that Mr. Canada has a great idea. But I do not believe that paying young kids money is the job of the government. The way I grew up my parents did not believe in paying kids for getting good grades. That was something that was expected from us. I do believe in positive reinforcement but there is a fine line. If the government begins giving kids money for something they should be doing any way is not teaching our kids to be independent. That generation may feel they don't have to work because they can just get a check from the government. And soon we will have nothing by professional students and no teachers or anything else because they don't know how to make it on their own. How would the government choose who gets what? Man kind is greedy and the kids will what to receive more and more and when they do not get what they what the plan will back fire and they will stop trying to get good grades because it will seem pointless. Yet, how would the government afford to pay for the payment of these students? Will the taxes of the people go up? Would it hurt some kids and not really help them? If lets say the government raises taxes to pay for this and there is poor children. And these students have to use the same money they make and have to give it to their mom to help buy food or other things. The child would be hurt from this and won't be able to have a stress free child hood because they are worried about getting the grade so they can eat. Then the effect is more negative than positive. I do believe in awarding kids but i don't think it should be the governments problem. Schools do a good job with pizza parties and other little extra activities. Rewarding kids with money for their grades should be up to the parents and others should not be put in a position to give extra awards to kids they may or may not know.
Jay Baath, 4th period
I personally believe that the mere idea of paying students to get good grades (which they already should be striving to do) is preposterous. Paying a student to make good grades would put them into the mindset that they need to make good grades JUST for the money, rather than the actual education. Say, for example, a district paid students based on the letter grade they received for each class. The district will pay any student $20 if they can make an A in their math class. Student's who can easily make a high A (95+) would be less motivated to try as hard since they only have to make an A to get the money. The whole idea of paying students to get an education is pretty pathetic in my opinion and just changes the whole point of learning.
Phillip Thai
4th period
I believe that students receiving payment for good grades is an extra push towards a great achievement. Although it may seem bizarre and ridiculous to pay a student to do well in school, money does provide great motivation for an individual and may lead to unexpected results in return. Not only does it reveal that they are capable of exceeding such expectations, but they will strive to continue and push themselves harder to succeed in live. Overall, i believe this is a great idea, but as well contains many flaws.
4th Period
I believe that the paying students for having good grades is a bad thing because it would later on have damaging repercussions. For example, you keep paying students for having good grades, sooner or later, they would become seniors and are going to graduate and go to college. However, they would end up becoming lazy and continue to fail until they cannot be in school anymore and drop out. As a result, the education system of the program would deteriorate due to the increased drop outs and failures and decreased graduates out of high school. So in conclusion, paying students is a bad thing because they would subsequently take it for granted.
I think this is a terrible idea because this would only make their kids to become very materialistic. Everything is dealing with money. There is a lot of things in this world that we do because we like to do. People pursue their interests because they like it, not because of the money. A lot of people in this world don't even care about how much they earn just because they enjoy their jobs. Furthermore, whenever those children grow up with money incentives, they will feel less satisfied whenever they help other people or keep up their good work without getting a certain amount of money. Thus, the way of money incentives can only promote selfishness and can destroy many people's true interests.
Dakota Hanka
7th Period
As a psychology enthusiast and former student, I can verify the idea espressed that positive reinforcement is much stronger at eliciting a response. Studies have shown that it takes a VERY VERY POWERFUL negative incentive, like extreme pain, to discourage an action. Otherwise, if the punishment is mild or even moderate, the subject would rather sustain the pain and continue to do what they want. In that respect, I salute the idea of paying children in order to encourage their participation in the school system. By giving children money, the government entices them to stimulate the economy by spending it, or they can save the money and use it toward college, narrowing the margin of student who require federal financial aid. However, i severely doubt that with our economy in its present condition that any school region or board could (or should) begin this program, as it would surely be a huge burden and strain on already insanely tight budgets. Perhaps when we are in a period of prosperity, we can institute a program like this, but we have to make sure our own house is in order first.
Karly Brightwell
4th period
There are certain things in life that should be done without payment or expectations of reward. If payment for grades becomes a national agenda then this policy will only teach children to do something if the action will in turn benefit them. The idea is unrealistic and immoral. The government just cut spending on education and probably would not use their funds for this purpose. Also, giving money for every good action a child does teaches the wrong message. Children should be able to do something good and accept a personal feeling of pride as their only reward. If paid, the child would only do the right thing if they recieved a monetary reward. This would probably diminsh charities and volunteering, as well as reinforce the wrong things in children beginning at an early age.
Who wouldn't want to get paid for their good grades? At first glance and without much thought, the idea sounds amazing. It motivates students to actually want to go to school while maintaining good grades. On the contrary, the nation would greatly be in debt if they had to pay all the students with good grades. Also, the students who already care about their grades and want to be in top 10 percent are already motivated and don't need to get paid. They would have more competition and cheating will occur more often. I believe that it is okay if the parents of the child pays them for their good grades, but I don't feel that it is necessary for the nation to pay students for their grades.
Chris Joseph
4th period
I can see why this program could be controversial. It depreciates the value of education itself. If we live in a society where one has to be paid to learn we live in a sad society. Receiving an education is a great privilege that many or most of the world never get. In America, kids don't want one.
However, this is the society we live in. Parents saying "Well I never got paid to go to school. Why should my kids?" is just as relevant a question as a parent asking why people are concerned with the environment or why african americans are treated equally. Our societal norm has changed and the only thing to do is to accept it.
To me, it doesn't matter how kids learn, or why they learn. It is just that they are learning. As long as people are willing to make sure children receive an education I see no problem. Actually, people's willingness to sacrifice money for education shows a strong resolve for the importance of education.
Lauren Philpott
7th Period
I do not believe that children should be paid for their grades. The fact that we would have to PAY our children to learn is sad and pathetic. They should want to do well and learn more just for the sake of knowledge itself. Plus, I don't think our country has the money to pay these kids for their grades, since we're already in massive debt. If the government wants to encourage parents to give rewards when their kids do well in school, that's fine. However, i do not believe that the government should be responsible for the children's own will to learn. If they can be productive members of society, so be it. Otherwise, they can be ignorant hobos.
Offering financial incentives for kids is quite a questionable idea. I think the method should perhaps be employed in the high school and college phases of life, but the middle school and elementary phases would be a waste of money. I feel as though putting the money into funding the school may lead to better educational programs. However, for some people, going to school is a pain and not like a job because you receive nothing from it. If the class is very challenging, then money should be provided. But when it comes to easy classes, that seems a bit useless from my perspective.
Will Ripley
7th Period
At a first glance, this idea seems like it would be effective. And indeed, although the plan would be effective if executed, the very reason behind its efficiency is where the plan goes wrong. It may sound cliche, but people should not be motivated to do well in school with the incentive of money. It would take out the purpose of earning an education for oneself, and instead kids would not be satisfied with a well-earned 100 on a quiz, if it did not have a money prize attached to it. Overall, although the idea would be effective, it would have a harsher negative consequence that would override the positive aspects of the plan.
Kenneth George
4th
The idea of paying kids money for their grades, is a pretty good incentive. Kids want money for their own desires and by applying this concept to kids in school helps motivate them to do better and increase their chances of getting an "A" for money. I personally find that if I got money for my grades that would inspire me to reach for those A's. However, in the economy that we are in today, do we really have the luxury to pay children for grades? If we had wanted to do something like this program in every state then our economy might possibly plummet even further into the depths of the abyss. Overall, to do a project like this, WE NEED MONEY!!!
Troy Cinek
Period 7
I am in strong disfavor of the idea of paying kids for grades. Growing up in my house, getting good grades is expected, and anything below a B is unacceptable, and even a B is slightly frowned upon. I have heard some of friends say that they get a certain amount of cash for every A on their report card, but grades have never been "bought" in my house. I do not think that offering money for grades is a good idea because it gives kids the wrong idea about what working hard means. Not every good thing a kid does is going to be rewarded, and how are they ever going to learn that if the only reason to work hard is to get money. Not only is this idea not ethically right, it is not reasonable either. Our country is 15 trillion dollars in debt and our schools can barely afford to keep the air conditioners running, so where exactly would this money come from. Overall, I think this is an idiotic idea, for kinds a 100 years ago would have gladly made good grades just because they wanted to learn.
Eamonn Gossard
Period 4
To me this plan sounds very similar to scholarships, which no one seems to have objections to. If you are good at something, our society says that you should get some form of a reward. Granted that this reward in an ideal world is the personal satisfaction of success, however this world is far from ideal. Therefore, simply extending the reward of the students who get the best grades is only logical. If students are willing to work for scholarships or to simply get into college, they will certainly be willing to work even harder for direct monetary compensation. Additionally, school districts already receive money for students getting good grades and test scores. So why aren’t students seeing any of this money? Well, we have gotten two ice cream parties, but in reality, the district doesn’t deserve the money any more than the students. Finally the notion that a nation that is as deep in debt as we are, is giving out money to anyone student is absurd. If parents want to incentivize their children that is fine, but I really don’t want the government coming in and making things worse.
Chris Harrell
per. 4
There are definitely two sides to this topic. I get paid for my grades and it has only made me work harder. I think this is a good idea becuase it is giving kids an incentive to do well in school. Especially for the kids that have many extra curricular activites, this gives them a chance to make money since they dont have time for a job. This gives them the opportunity to learn how to handle their money and the chance to be independent before they go off to college.
On the flip side, I dont believe that it is the governments responsibility to pay kids for it. The government has enough problems to deal with that are much more important than this. It also does not help the financial situtation our nation is in. If kids are going to be paid for grades it should be given to them by the choice of their parents.
I think the monetary incentive is a good idea, but there's so much that could go wrong with it. Just in the other comments alone, people have talked about students being corrupted, the government not spending money wisely, and the students becoming greedy. I'm pretty sure that if this idea were implemented on a larger scale, there would be more groups with more aspects of the idea to criticize, causing more outrage and unnecessary trouble. So to avoid this, I think the monetary incentive should not be put to use. If you think about, people with good grades do already get paid. Colleges and companies offer so many scholarships and financial help to those that deserve it. This is an investment on their part. It would benefit the student afterwards too once they get a job. I just think that a person should strive in whatever they do to better themselves and get whatever benefits are offered.
Lyka Reyes
7th Period
I believe that giving rewards for good grades is a good idea because it motivates kids to get good grades. However I do believe that the incentive of money could bring about greed in children. the idea of good grades resulting in money could cause a child to do whatever it takes to get a highgrade, even if that means cheating. Overall I believe that it is the parents decision whether or not to pay thier child for good grades.
Christian Camera
4th Period
In my opinion, I totally disfavor the idea of paying kids for getting/having good grades. People should not be motivated only by money in order to become successful. It has been proven that money does not bring complete happiness in peoples lives. I believe that people should get good grades in order to accomplish self satisfaction. It is a personal choice to get good grades and I personally do not favor the idea of pretty much wasting money on kids that are not motivated by their families/friends,and teenagers that all they think about is getting money the easy way.
Samuel Gallegos
4th Period
Receiving rewards for good grades has its pros and cons. It persuades kids to get good grades and learn. The cons are that the child is being praised for something that should be expected. When was a pat on the back and a dinner for the child's accomplishments too little. Motivating children can be hard though. I admit that I would work much harder if my parents paid me for my grades. Once children understand that by working hard and getting good grades they can do anything they want, they won't need any more incentives. If kids were given money from their school district for getting good grades in the form of scholarships kids would be motivated and they would understand that they are working for their future.
Rewarding a child for good grades is no doubt always a good idea. Financially rewarding a child is good every once in awhile. Mixing up rewards seems to be an effective way to keep a child working hard in school. But giving money for every good grade seems a bit much. One time grades could be rewarded with money, the next time with ice cream, the next time with letting the child pick what to have for dinner. Change it up every time so that the child is motivated to keep up grades in order to see what fun thing is in store next. As for high school students, money for good grades is almost sure to keep them motivated, and in high school motivation can sometimes run short.
Tia Wettman
Period 4
4th period
The idea of bribing students to make good grades is shocking to me. Of course students wouldn't mind being praised for their hardwork. But if I were a parent I wouldn't want my child to be bribed with money for doing the right thing. It would only increase in more cheating and those students will never learn the value of working for their money. Having a part time job while being a student has taught me responsibility, time management, and the fulfillment of working hard for my own money while still maintaining good grades. If the government goes through with this and starts bribing students with money beginning at a young age, will they be ready to go into the real world on their own? Students shouldn't want to make good grades because of the praise or rewards that they'll receive but simply for their future and success.
Thampuratty Jayadevan
Period 7th
This idea seems like a good incentive to have kids do well in school. However, to me this seems like bribery coated with thin layer of encouragement that kids will find delicious. Not a very good idea since they can become addicted to this very special item. Kids or not, if they dont learn to do something just because they want to achieve something in their life then its pointless. They will expect reward for every little thing they do in their life and if they dont get it they will be thrown in a ditch and who knwos may be they will never be able to get out. So personally i think that this is a very bad idea. Encourage them with words and a glimpse of their would be future if they did good academically and i think that will be sufficient enough.
If kids were paid for the grades they make I feel that it would actually be very beneficial for everyone. However, the pay of the grade they get would be minimal though therefore no one over takes this asset. And also so that the government wouldn't go into a over the top debt. Not that we're already in one. Never the less, the benefit of this would be that the kids would actually learn so that they could have something to show for the work they put in for the grades. This would make the kids smarter and then also make the entire body of people smarter causing for many advancements in things. And of course advancements in anything is normally very good and very useful in the long run. Therefore this is a good idea in my opinion.
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