tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6865007.post3400758514496170276..comments2023-11-05T00:59:10.828-07:00Comments on decorabilia: money for grades, and it's not from your parentsJim Andersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09928624189124041120noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6865007.post-66852222099472071002006-09-02T11:38:00.000-07:002006-09-02T11:38:00.000-07:00I'm not sure it's the best way to invest in educat...I'm not sure it's the best way to invest in education, but if it's an easy political sell then I say it's great idea. Part of it should be that students have to be transparent about what they do with the money. Maybe they'll get competitive about who gives the most to charity or who picks the best charity. Instead of cash maybe some cooperation could be solicited from Paypal to ensure everything is recorded and spent online. And/or if any want to just save their winnings, the school could offer savings bonds some kind of term account that carries a penalty for early withdrawal.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6865007.post-75175860972784128442006-09-01T20:07:00.000-07:002006-09-01T20:07:00.000-07:00We already have kids "going into education for the...We already have kids "going into education for the money." They hear every day about the earning power of a diploma, how much more they can make with a bachelor's, how education is the key to their economic future.<br /><br />I agree that Fryer stereotypes the middle class--but his research stands on its own regardless. Dollar for dollar, it gets results. In a desperate situation, results matter.Jim Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09928624189124041120noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6865007.post-37337845622879076052006-09-01T19:28:00.000-07:002006-09-01T19:28:00.000-07:00First off, Fryer's stereotyping of middle- and upp...First off, Fryer's stereotyping of middle- and upper-class families as all paying money to their kid for grades. It's wrong on two levels: I know I never got a dime for a grade (nor needed one...I was so grade driven until HS that it was sad), and many of the upper-class kids I teach get money, BMWs, trips, etc., etc., from their parents regardless of their GPAs. <br /><br />I'm all for positive reinforcement: when I taught sixth grade, I gave "Room 36 dollars" which could be exchange once a month at the "Room 36 Bank" for candy, comic books, sports cards, the right to sit in my chair, yatta yatta yatta.<br /><br />But the CRITICAL KEY to ANY positive reinforcement system is to work towards its extinction. I was doling out the bucks early in the year to get the kids to understand the way we acted in my room; later in the year, the idea was that they were still on-task and pleasant, but they had forgotten why, and I could stop giving out money. If I did my job right, I had duped them into understanding the joy of learning for learning's sake.<br /><br />Fryer won't do that. Learning will become a means to a materialistic end, and not an end in itself (or, perhaps sadder, not a means to better the world that's screwing their families over).<br /><br />Incidentally, I'd be in favor of junking grades altogether--write a couple of paragraphs about each kid rather than giving that damn letter. It'd be a lot more work for my colleagues and me, though, so it ain't ever gonna happen.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6865007.post-75861026199281539062006-09-01T16:18:00.000-07:002006-09-01T16:18:00.000-07:00Stupid idea. If we get kids going into education f...Stupid idea. If we get kids going into education for the money, we'll have an even more self-centered material-maniacial society than we already have.<br /><br />Let the black youth sit on their pipe dream of becoming athletic heroes and making millions - I want kids who are motivated to learn by the passion for learning, not by greenbacks, no matter their color.Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14725086672767452284noreply@blogger.com