Cash for Grades
Education opens many doors.
But should the main one be at the bank?
School districts throughout the country are increasingly paying students for coming to class, taking tests, and improving their scores as part of controversial incentive programs known as “cash for grades.”
In Baltimore, high school students who make the grade can make some money—up to $110 for raising their scores on state assessment tests.
In Albuquerque, New Mexico, passing students can turn a school day into pay day, earning $300 if they attend 90% of their classes for the year.
And near Atlanta, eighth and eleventh graders who take part in a special after-school study program are paid $8 an hour—more than the
minimum wage in most states.
Supporters of earning while learning point to increased attendance and higher test scores at underperforming schools where no other form of educational motivation has worked. “We’re in competition with the streets,” said one Bronx junior high school principal of her students. “They can go out there and make $50 illegally any day of the week. We have to do something to compete with that.”
But critics of the programs—many of which are privately funded—say the payments are simply bribes, and that using money as a motivator sends the wrong message to kids about their responsibility to learn.
Would George Washington Carver have come up with his inventions in horticulture if someone had “bribed him?” asked one critic. Would Marie Curie have been inspired to spend long hours in the lab? “What kind of message do we give unmotivated kids,” he wondered, “when we give them something they never earned?”
Tell us what you think: Should schools pay students to learn? Is learning all the way to the bank responsible?
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Why not?
Why not get paid for doing good? It is a positive incentive, and is earned honestly. Students that are already doing well, let’s reward them for their accomplishment. This might keep them on the right track and aware that if they continue and make money now – no telling what will happens when they get in the real world.
For the underachiever and not so motivated students, this payday could be used as a motivation for them. They want things in life also. If they know that just a little hard work pays off, they might just gave it a try. School is challenging for a lot of students. We need to offer as much incentives as we can to keep them in the right frame of mind.
Dolita Robinson | 1 year, 3 months ago
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Seems Natural
It seems like it is human nature to put our efforts into endeavors that we expect to benefit from. I do not believe that children should be penalized for not realizing how many future benefits an education will provide them, these incentive systems seem like an ideal method to provide kids immediate, concrete benefits.
In middle and high school I received money from my parents for each semester that I earned all A’s. As an undergraduate I got money from scholarships, which were dependent upon maintaining a sufficient GPA. Now in grad school I need to live off the stipend that my school provides. Although many academics could make more money in other professions, most do not work for free. A love of knowledge is not incompatible with the desire to earn an income.
Kenny | 1 year, 3 months ago
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School System is Messed Up
In the given school system, this is the best way to motivate the unmotivated- AND THAT’S A PROBLEM. Students should not be paid for something they should do in the first place, especially with the tax money of those that are responsible. The underlying theme here however, is the fact that the school system in its entirety is messed up and needs to be rebuilt from the ground up so that such motivational techniques are not needed.
Anonymous | 1 year, 2 months ago
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Foster mom
Whatever it takes for kids to improve their education would in turn help improve their self esteem. It may give them just the encouragement they need to “make something of themselves”.
Anonymous | 1 year, 2 months ago
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Why don't we just give up?
I like purelabor’s response.
Education is a gift. What especially irritates me that kids have ALREADY been doing this! Now some lazy punks want money to accept this gift? They can pick out a nice labor job, this idea is terrible. Want to know what my incentive was? Anything lower than an A in most classes gathered a nice penalty. Seriously, today’s kids are lazy brats. Let’s not feed this.
Anonymous | 1 year, 2 months ago
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homemaker
I wish they had done this in 60’s and 70’s. I didn’t graduate. In my small town, it was okay to quit school, get married, and have children, in poverty, and now at 57 years old, I have no high school diploma. Learning has come hard for me. I wish it would have been different. Maybe kids with no chance will pay taxes instead of using the taxpayers’ money for prison or welfare for their children. This is so much better and makes them prouder to raise their children to get an education.
Anonymous | 1 year, 2 months ago
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mother
I think the students should get pay – they working regular hours. College people get pay for them to be in college and the state helps them to buy books and gives scholarships. What is the difference between regular studenst and college students? They work hard like a regular job, but if the student doesn’t want to learn no matter wha,t he will be a failure.
Anonymous | 1 year, 2 months ago
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BLA BLA BLA Critics get a life
Drug dealers, p sites, and gangs will pay an average of $10.00 an hour. Let’s get serious go to some of the inner city hoods across the country and you will find children getting paid $10-20.00 for every(10 Pack) of heroin that they sell.
Encouraging a child through financial means CAN be a positive learning experience i.e. budgeting, networking and scheduling, setting and creating goals for actual life experience.
Anonymous | 1 year, 1 month ago
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school
School is for education.
Anonymous | 1 year, 1 month ago
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Mr.
I think this is a fantastic idea. This is the greatest thing. This will motivate my great grand kids.
Anonymous | 1 year, 1 month ago
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