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Not so surprising: The NY Post reports, "An overwhelming number of schools participating in a controversial program that pays kids for good grades saw huge boosts -- up to nearly 40 percentage points higher -- in reading and math scores this year. About two-thirds of the 59 high-poverty schools in the Sparks program -- which pays seventh-graders up to $500 and fourth-graders as much as $250 for their performance on a total of 10 assessments -- improved their scores since last year's state tests by margins above the citywide average." It's part of the city's cash incentives-for-the-poor program, OpportunityNYC. A principal 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."
Students Who Get Cash For Good Work Do Better
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It's the same media that NEVER mentioned Muslims' hatred of Israel as a possible motive for 9/11.
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As long as this money comes right out of the set budget, and the budget doesn't see an increase to support this, then I'm all for it. I wish I got some scratch for my good grades.
Yeah... having these kids turn into productive members of society, instead of turning into criminals who will mug me on my way home sure is not worth paying more in taxes. I need that money to buy a new iPod after they stole the previous one, and also to keep some extra cash on me for, you know, the muggers. As for the taxes, they are better paid to the cops, but not too much... if we could train them just enough to stop shooting each other, that'd be good enough, right?
I wasn't bribed by my school to earn good grades and I turned out pretty well.
"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."
Yeah, right. Then they find out how much money they can make selling drugs.
Also, who's going to cash the checks for them?
They'll use debit cards.
Its a sad state of affairs that we have to resort to pay offs to motivate students.
Doing well and becoming successful later on in life is not motivation enough these days.
I think that has always been the case for families with money... so now its just come to the city supplied funds (and if my child was getting paid from the city for getting good grades - I'd be saying sweet!)
It sure is tough to be cynical about something that works really well. The trust fund article is a lot easier to make fun of.
I'm sorry, but this is absolutely brilliant. Seems like it could the most efficient use of public funds to boost student performance. It's not a payoff. They have to do work and do well to get it. I can't think of any simpler, more effective way to entice kids to learn and at the same time prepare them for life in the real world. Genius.
How about teaching them simple economics? That should accomplish the same task without bribing them to do what they're supposed to be doing anyway.
There's a big difference between learning about economics in school and living the experience of market incentives. And just teaching simple economics would be great, except it doesn't address the root of the problem this policy is intended to remedy - motivating students to actually do their schoolwork.
But at the same time all these kids bragging about getting money will be mugged of their hard earned dollars as soon as the word gets around the hood.
My parents paid me for good grades years ago. This is just the city paying kids whose parents don't know what a good idea it is to pay for grades, or who can't afford to do it themselves. It does work, especially if your kids don't get much money otherwise. Wouldn't you work harder to learn your stuff if you knew you were going to get cash out of it?
Is this based on straight A's, or is a B two C's and a D get money also? Does gym count?
Why couldn't they have done this back when I was in school? I could have cleaned up. Yeah, sure, trouncing the grade curves was always fun, but I wouldn't have objected to a little cash. Not that these kids are getting a "little" cash. $500? Yowsa.
I wish I had that in school. I grew up with Asian parents so I didn't get rewarded for getting As.
The sooner we teach kids The Hustle, the better.
There's something really wrong with the fact that children need to be bribed to do well. That they lack self motivation, and only can be motivated through their greed.
Actually this is nothing new. They have had college scholarships for students who did well in high school for a long time.
What about the high school ball players that get a free ride to some of the most prestigious schools? Of course they drop out half way through there edication expeunce, and turn pro and therefore some poor parent who is paying for that full tuition gets screwed carrying the weight of those jocks.