I’ve seen a bit of criticism of Michelle Rhee’s shake-up of the Washington D.C. school district, which includes a program co-sponsored by Harvard that pays middle-school students up to $100 for meeting attendance and performance goals.
But with her exemplary background in public management (with a master’s degree in public policy from Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University), I’d say she’s just the right person to shake things up in Washington D.C.’s school district.
Under the previous administration, by the way, “only 12 percent of the District’s eighth graders are proficient in reading and just 8 percent are proficient in math.” (Source: CNN.com, 09/09/2008.).
With a track record like that, I don’t see how anything but RADICAL change would help.
So, I support Rhee’s education experiments. Maybe they’ll improve things a little. Maybe they will lead to additional programs that will also improve things a little. Bit by bit, all these changes might lead to big improvements.
This, by the way, is not the only “learn and earn” experiment going on in our schools. The Learning Makes a Difference foundation (LMD) is running an after-school tutoring program outside of Atlanta that pays kids to attend tutoring sessions.
Going back to the D.C. situation: twelve percent of eighth-graders “proficient in reading?” That’s a complete disgrace. How can anyone justify continuing with the “same old, same old” when the old ways have obviously not worked.
What do you think? Would you support a program that pays kids to attend school or do their homework? When trying to help kids that can’t read by the eighth grade, would you change your mind?
noT
money money money money monnay here comes the money!
i think it could be a qood idea, but if we have to pay taxes then no. &; to the people who say that they’d be waistinq their money, they arent… obviously they wouldnt qive the money to people with sucky qrades &; who dont do jack in school. they do qive it to the people who do work hard. not the slackers. so YEH! WHAT NOW?!
These pay to learn programs sound like a good idea, but there are huge pitfalls. Just one: stop paying the kids, and they think it’s time to stop going to school. Do we want to teach them that? Here’s an article I coauthored that explains the vast body of research on what happens when you pay people to learn:
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-grolnick5-2008sep05,0,2652576.story
Kathy
http://www.kathyseal.net
http://www.pressuredparents.com
BLOGGING at http://pressuredparents.wordpress.com/
I think this is the most absurd idea anyone can come up with! When are the KIDS to be held accountable? Everything is always pinpointed back against the teachers and now you want to pay kids to attend school when in reality that is what they are supposed to do anyway?!?!? I am a 10th grade math teacher in PA, and I think kids these days are so lazy. They want everything done for them because that is what they are use to at home. Mom and dad will do whatever to get them out of their hair. You really think paying a student to come to school is going to change attitudes of these kids today? I don
Ya i think kids should be paid that would be awsome!
ALERT ALERT ALERT
Some districts are JAILING parents of students with 5 unexcused
absences. This is outrageous. Scary. Abuse by the government.
Paying students to attend is at least a sincere
intent by those suggesting it. Not nice to call it “idiotic” as in some postings.
Come on folks. Be polite.
I think that paying kids isnt a very good idea. I go to school and a few people just don’t pay attention, so you’d be wasting your money on some of them.
I think that paying kids isnt a very good idea. I go to school and a few people just don’t pay attention, so you’d be wasting your money on some of them.
I don’t have a problem with this concept,because my motto now is, “What ever it takes”. We never know what kind of circumstances our students are coming from. For some the last thing that is nurtured at home is academics or study, so if there is an individual or an organization that is willing to provide incentive for them to do what is beneficial for them, I say go for it. Who knows, along the way the student might just learn to appreciate academics. On the other hand those students who do what is nescessary anyway and have the support at home, “it’s just icing on the cake”.
No, we’re not in the classroom to raise other people’s children, but being a student is like their job. If they do it well, they get paid in the traditional way and the not so traditional way.
I would looooooooooooooove if kids got payed for showing up to school. because i am a kid and i love $$$$. Cha Ching!
We also have such problems in Portugal, but pay for them to go to school? We want to give them positive values. Giving students money is making them lazy, idle, take the wrong decisions, lead a bad life and get vices they won’t run away. If students want some money, they should find a part-time or a holiday job.
Dear Barbara
Im from England, UK. We have similar problems over here with truency and bad school behaviour but i think paying a child would seriously mix up their values. Children should be brought up by parents to value their education after all its free here in the UK. We now live in a sue culture where everyone thinks the world owes them a living. very sad indeed. Helen, UK.
Dear Barbara
Im from England, UK. We have similar problems over here with truency and bad school behaviour but i think paying a child would seriously mix up their values. Children should be brought up by parents to value their education after all its free here in the UK. We now live in a sue culture where everyone things the world owes them a living. very sad indeed. Helen, UK.
I think paying a child to go to school is the most idiotic thing any one can come up with. Positive encouragement works in the school I work in. I am the Computer Teacher Assistant and I do the computer lab along with tech support. I have never offered anything to a student other than compassion, caring and understanding. But we have a “Caught You Being Good” program. When a student is being good the staff member that sees it gives them a colored coin. When they go to lunch they stand up in the cafeteria and tell why they got the coin. Then they exchange the coin for a pencil of their choice. The students love that. We have also offered them the opportunity to behave at lunch and we do a free ice cream drawing for each class in all grade levels. There are other ways than paying students money to get them interested in school. Yes, middle school is totally different than elementary school, but positive encouragement goes a long way. Even a hug or a high five from an adult puts a smile on a students face. Each individual teacher or teacher assistant that has a class has the opportunity to develop a good listener program also. If you listen and pay attention in class you could be chosen as the “good listener” and given a chance to choose something out of the treasure box.
Absolutely NOT! We are already paying FOR those students to have a free public education. Here’s a few other ideas: Police–write tickets to truants. Lawmakers–pass laws refusing to give students driver’s licenses and work permits if they don’t show up and perform.
PARENTS–DO YOUR JOBS! If you need to kick their truant little behinds all the way to school, do it. Quit buying them every little thing they desire. How about No truant/failing Child Left sitting on their Behinds playing video games! Make them earn it and BE CONSISTENT. Demand respectful behavior out of them and quit blaming the teachers because your “poor little angel” acts up. Tell your kids, “Yeah, school is tough. Sometimes it isn’t fun. Hello–life lesson–life isn’t easy. Toughen up, quit whining, pay attention, do your work, and make something out of the gift of life I gave you!” Let’s start a nation-wide movement like that and then watch the test scores climb!