Persuasive Essay

Erika M

1-26-12

Period 3

Persuasive Essay

Kids deserve rewards for good grades

Some children just don’t have the motivation to do well in school like other kids do or maybe some of the children just can’t pass the classes as easily as others.At SPA, the students currently don’t get fully recognized for their hard work or any special incentives that differentiate the hardworking students from those who don’t really try.If students get rewarded for good behavior and good grades then they’ll want to try harder to prove that they can do well in school and feel more appreciated instead of just acknowledged.

If students feel that they aren't being acknowledged enough for their hard work then they might lose the drive they need to do good in school. Unlike myself  knowing that I have to have top scores to become a doctor, other students may not have a goal for when their older so they don't really think that they have a reason to do well in school. Edward L. Deci, a psychologist at the University of Rochester, who reported that, "once the incentives stopped coming, students showed less interest in the task at hand than those who received no reward." When my brother was younger he didn't really like school so my dad started rewarding him when he had good grades or behavior and he started to try harder to do well in school and even though he no longer gets rewards he knows that if he keeps doing good then something great will come out of it when he finishes school. Some parents aren't exactly on top of their child’s schoolwork so they won’t know whether or not their child is behaving in school or even passing their classes.

Letting a student know some of the rewards they can earn if they get good grades will motivate them to do better in school. Some students need reasons to do well in school and the rewards don't always have to be money. For example if a student actually tries really hard and gets good grades they have a chance at getting something that they really want or need. Ineffective study habits, the authors believe, may be hindering scholastic achievement and the real problem could be inefficient academic preparation instead of a lack of effort or drive. Ineffective study habits, the authors believe, may be hindering scholastic achievement and the real problem could be inefficient academic preparation instead of a lack of effort or drive. Ineffective study habits, the authors believe, may be hindering scholastic achievement and the real problem could be inefficient academic preparation instead of a lack of effort or drive.

Getting rewards for good grades can make the student who accomplished this through hard work feel pride in themselves and hope to being able to get a good career when they graduate  high school. "Students who are rewarded score higher on the SAT and enroll in college at a higher rate than those who are not", according to Kirabo Jackson, an assistant professor of economics at Cornell. Psychology research, however, shows that although cash and prizes may boost compliance in the short term, over time they often decrease students' interest in the tasks for which the kids are being rewarded, and may even decrease interest in activities that don't win them anything. In the cash programs being studied, economists compare the academic performance of groups of students who are paid and students who are not. Results from the first year of the A.P. program in New York showed that test scores were flat but that more students were taking the tests, said Edward Rodriguez, the program’s executive director. Students like to know that others care when they get good grades even though some might not like to show it and it makes them feel good when they get acknowledged for their hard work even if they don’t say so.

Giving students incentives for their hard work shows them that they are being acknowledged and they feel good about doing good in school and getting good grades. Student should get rewards so that they get motivated and they are able to obtain a reason to do well in school. The rewards should also be fair because it’s not as easy to do well in school as it is for others. Parents, Teachers, in some cases Staff should at least give students rewards for their good grades or behavior such as gift cards for iTunes or time for unsupervised Internet, or even little things that a student wants.