Should Students Get Paid For Good Grades?
As a young boy growing up in a ghetto neighbourhood, I hung out with the wrong people. I never gave a crap about school and as a result, my education paid for it. I FAILED kindergarten and early grade school. Homework was tossed in the trash the moment I got it and test papers were left blank. I didn’t even know how to spell my name. I hung out with kids years older than I and girls flocked to like I was the hot shit. My poor parents, desperate to turn my life around, knowing the one thing I could not get at my age, offered a deal. I would be rewarded $20 for every test I scored an A on. I realized a golden opportunity when I saw it, and I began to study for tests. From an R at midterm, I climbed …show more content…
It ensures a good career, which in turn leads to good money. In some cases, good grades will lead to scholarships, which can save students hundreds, perhaps even thousands in school expenses. Critics also argue that rewarding money for good grades sends the wrong message to students. What becomes important is the end goal, not the journey to get there. Furthermore, students lose motivation unless money is involved. However, I would have to disagree. Grades are simply a measurement of a student’s learning level in school, not a reward. The only reason it is seen as a reward is because the level of difficulty of achieving good grades. Once a student manages to achieve it, they feel good about themselves, similar to how one feels good when receiving a reward, thus the two can easily be misidentified. However, unlike a reward, a good grade has a temporary “feel good” effect. As a result of this, one good grade will not always motivate a student to work hard and get another good grade. Rewards, on the other hand will. The students will want to get MORE money, and as a result, will try to get a good grade to do so. Moreover, students will NOT get the wrong message when money is involved, rather they will learn how the real world works. To achieve a good grade, students will have to work hard. Similarly, for an adult to make money, they will have to work hard. If you do not work hard, you will not get good
As a young boy growing up in a ghetto neighbourhood, I hung out with the wrong people. I never gave a crap about school and as a result, my education paid for it. I FAILED kindergarten and early grade school. Homework was tossed in the trash the moment I got it and test papers were left blank. I didn’t even know how to spell my name. I hung out with kids years older than I and girls flocked to like I was the hot shit. My poor parents, desperate to turn my life around, knowing the one thing I could not get at my age, offered a deal. I would be rewarded $20 for every test I scored an A on. I realized a golden opportunity when I saw it, and I began to study for tests. From an R at midterm, I climbed …show more content…
It ensures a good career, which in turn leads to good money. In some cases, good grades will lead to scholarships, which can save students hundreds, perhaps even thousands in school expenses. Critics also argue that rewarding money for good grades sends the wrong message to students. What becomes important is the end goal, not the journey to get there. Furthermore, students lose motivation unless money is involved. However, I would have to disagree. Grades are simply a measurement of a student’s learning level in school, not a reward. The only reason it is seen as a reward is because the level of difficulty of achieving good grades. Once a student manages to achieve it, they feel good about themselves, similar to how one feels good when receiving a reward, thus the two can easily be misidentified. However, unlike a reward, a good grade has a temporary “feel good” effect. As a result of this, one good grade will not always motivate a student to work hard and get another good grade. Rewards, on the other hand will. The students will want to get MORE money, and as a result, will try to get a good grade to do so. Moreover, students will NOT get the wrong message when money is involved, rather they will learn how the real world works. To achieve a good grade, students will have to work hard. Similarly, for an adult to make money, they will have to work hard. If you do not work hard, you will not get good