Sit. Stay. Good, Student.

I am all for giving students rewards. Correction...I am all for giving students awards. I was corrected by the ADE staff once upon a time. An award is earned or given as merit; a reward is offered for doing something that is noble or good.

Over the weekend, a very heated discussion was being had among some friends and myself. Is it good to give students rewards? 

In the article My Biggest Regret as a Teacher: Extrinsic Rewards by David Ginsburg (from edweek’s blog) stated that he regrets ever having started a reward system in his classroom. Why? 
“It sets them (students) up for future failure. That’s because success is about delayed gratification, not instant gratification.” 
Think of Pavlov’s conditioning training. If I do what I’m supposed to do, I get a treat. 

Following the rules and working hard are rewarded with prizes, stickers, a smiley face. Some students respond well to that, but are we hurting the masses or helping them to become successful?

People who are successful in life have learned to self-discipline and self-motivate. They do what they do because they enjoy it! 

How can students become successful if we constantly give rewards for just doing what they are supposed to do? They can’t. And they won’t. 

Many struggling students think they’re incapable of succeeding; slacking off or sabotaging classroom activities become a means of self-preservation. David states, “These kids need confidence, not candy.”

The way to elicit students’ cooperation is to empower them, not control them. We should be making students feel successful by giving them knowledge and power! Think of this: are you helping “students feel[ing] fulfilled because of that they were learning, not because of what they were earning”?

Read the entire article here or subscribe to edweek’s blog for free.