Let’s face it, the job market is not what it used to be. No longer is a high school education enough to set you up for life. In the global economy, today’s youth are vying with peers from Shanghai, Mumbai, and Jakarta in the competition for jobs.
Because of this, academic success is more important than ever. But just how far should parents go to encourage their kids to do well in school? Should we provide incentives or money to encourage little Tyler, Charles, or Aisha to hit the books?
In her book, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, Yale Law School professor and self-professed “Tiger Mom” Amy Chua argues that Western parents “baby” their kids. Few parents, in her opinion, lack the stamina needed to make their kids study and put in the work needed to become successful.
Her disdain for Western parenting practices practically leaps from the pages. She would never pay her kids for academic excellence. Why should you have to bargain with kids to make them study, they’re kids after all. Why pay them for something they’re expected to do?
I may not agree with some of Chua’s parenting techniques. I, for one, would never forbid my kids from attending sleepovers, prohibit their performance in school plays, or force them to practice the violin for hours upon end, even during vacations.
But she may have a point when she claims:
“What Chinese parents understand is that nothing is fun until you’re good at it. To get good at anything you have to work, and children on their own never want to work, which is why it is crucial to override their preferences. This often requires fortitude on the part of the parents because the child will resist; things are always hardest at the beginning, which is where Western parents tend to give up.”
Academic success should become its own reward and provide the internal sense of satisfaction that money can’t match.
Yet, what may work for the Tiger Mom, may not work for the rest of us. What parent hasn’t faced the challenge of an under-performing child and considered paying up for good grades?
Heck, even whole school districts have experimented with idea. New York, Dallas, Chicago, and Washington DC have all dabbled with passing out monetary rewards to kids who’ve aced exams, read books, or achieved a high level of school attendance.
The results have been mixed. In Chicago, paying kids for good grades did not raise standardized test scores, but in Dallas, paying second graders to read books brought about dramatic increases in their reading comprehension scores.
Many dismiss the idea of paying kids for academic performance, arguing that it teaches kids that effort and success always have a price tag attached?
But in some ways, isn’t this exactly how the real world works?
Doesn’t the real world pay for performance? Adults get compensated for effort and success all the time. Pay raises and bonuses are the rewards for success in the workplace. Fail to show up at work or slack off and surprise – no paycheck and a pink slip to the unemployment office to boot.
BMWK, so where do you weigh in on the debate? Should you pay your kids to get good grades? Should we have to pay for what’s naturally expected of them? If money is not the answer, what is the best way to get our kids to achieve?
I am a self-professed nerd and love to learn for the sake of it. But let’s be real. What is the real purpose of schooling and education? At its most basic, it is to prepare children for success in the future workforce in which they will get paid for their work. I think paying for grades is a better real-world lesson than allowing kids to grow up thinking that everything is to be handed to them no matter their level of effort or lack thereof.
I am a self-professed nerd and love to learn for the sake of it. But let’s be real. What is the real purpose of schooling and education? At its most basic, it is to prepare children for success in the future workforce in which they will get paid for their work. I think paying for grades is a better real-world lesson than allowing kids to grow up thinking that everything is to be handed to them no matter their level of effort or lack thereof.
I am a self-professed nerd and love to learn for the sake of it. But let’s be real. What is the real purpose of schooling and education? At its most basic, it is to prepare children for success in the future workforce in which they will get paid for their work. I think paying for grades is a better real-world lesson than allowing kids to grow up thinking that everything is to be handed to them no matter their level of effort or lack thereof.
although I don’t agree with prohibiting children from participating in events, I do agree that paying children for grades is ridiculous. I have 2 children (8 & 12) and they both know that a stipulation to living in our household is good grades. My 12 yr old is gifted, scoring 100% on state required standardized tests and even my 8 year old, who may be dyslexic brings in only A’s and B’s.
although I don’t agree with prohibiting children from participating in events, I do agree that paying children for grades is ridiculous. I have 2 children (8 & 12) and they both know that a stipulation to living in our household is good grades. My 12 yr old is gifted, scoring 100% on state required standardized tests and even my 8 year old, who may be dyslexic brings in only A’s and B’s.
although I don’t agree with prohibiting children from participating in events, I do agree that paying children for grades is ridiculous. I have 2 children (8 & 12) and they both know that a stipulation to living in our household is good grades. My 12 yr old is gifted, scoring 100% on state required standardized tests and even my 8 year old, who may be dyslexic brings in only A’s and B’s.
I think that you should do whatever you can to motivate your child to do well in school when they are young. If it is money or a toy or video game, whatever. What is wrong for giving them a little incentive to try harder? It may be the thing that pushes them until they become self motivating, which is what you want.
I think that you should do whatever you can to motivate your child to do well in school when they are young. If it is money or a toy or video game, whatever. What is wrong for giving them a little incentive to try harder? It may be the thing that pushes them until they become self motivating, which is what you want.
I believe it’s up to each parent & the system
they implement for encouraging high performance. I got “paid” for good
grades ($5 As, $3 Bs per report card starting in middle school), got a
bonus for straight As ($50 flat instead of the calculated
$35), but Cs,Ds & Fs were deducted ($1, $3, $5 respectively). Even
with that incentive I never *really* pushed myself to get that $50
(maybe once), but on the flip side, I only once had to deduct from my
balance (a C in science or history once). I kept mostly As, and
graduated in the top 10% of my class with honors & scholarships. I
am currently a licensed Professional Engineer, so I guess it worked out
well for me.I say if parents want to claim that school is their
kids’ job, then pay up. nobody works for free. however if they find
that the money doesn’t produce results, try something else. but I’d
wager that any parent who is involved with their child on this level
will produce a successful kid based solely on their involvement.
I don’t necessarily think that parents who pay kids for grades are “wrong”, but at the same time- I was never paid for grades and never even thought of bad grades as an option. I guess that is always my fear of setting up incentive programs like this for my kids. I want my kids to know that good grades, just like hard work, are a basic expectation- not something that you can decide whether or not you want to strive for because of the money you might get in the end, but a standard.
I don’t think we should pay are kids in order for them to learn better as i think this will breed and unhealthy
desire for money. I think perhaps other incentives should be provided instead.