Students all around the world slack off, skip school, and get bad grades for tons of reasons, but the most common is lack of motivation. Without immediate rewards, students don’t always apply themselves as much as they should. This is problem that many schools are choosing to combat These are money rewards or different types of rewards. This can lead to better attendance, more finished assignments, and increases self-worth. I strongly believe that school rewards are a very good idea.
Better attendance can be achieved by rewards because it is possible for kids to achieve attendance so they will attempt to achieve it. In Georgia at Stone Creek Elementary School, the school started giving out prizes for perfect attendance, including game consoles and ice cream. The rate of missed attendance at school for 15 or more days of school during the year dropped by 10%. This probably had more success than just giving students money at the end of each semester because earning a PlayStation is more exciting to kids than some money they can just spend later.
Rewards on assignments can get more completed assignments because students know how to complete an assignment. Because of this, when kids are offered rewards for completing an assignment, they complete it because they know how to do it. ‘If the reward is tied to the performance on the test, the effects are small if there at all,’ said Jeffrey Livingston, an associate professor of economics at Bentley University. ‘But if you tie it to the preparation for the test, the studying, like incentivizing reading a book or doing practice tests … that tends to have much bigger effects.’
Offering money to students for better grades or assignments can increase self-worth. When students start getting paid, it sparks a type of competitive atmosphere. For example, when I am in Architectural Wonders, the competitive atmosphere motivates us to work harder for the fame of winning. Since everyone has to work equally hard and feel like what they are doing is important, it will boost their self-worth Working harder leads to better grades, and the reward is given. Rose Marie Hills, principal at MS 343 in Mott Haven said, ‘It’s an ego booster in terms of self-worth. When they get the checks, there’s that competitiveness — ‘Oh, I’m going to get more money than you next time’ — so it’s something that excites them,’ In conclusion, I believe that paying students for good grades will attend more school, more finished assignments, and increases self-worth. I strongly believe rewards are the way to solve all of these problems.
