As I begin this article, I want to fully disclose that I have never been a fan of rewards for participation, motivation, or self-esteem. The “everyone gets a trophy” mentality has been detrimental for years, doing more harm than good, and the spillover continues to damage the development of young people, and in turn, have a negative impact on a number of things we do in high schools. I have written about this same topic previously on this site, and after recently reading a bit more on the topic, and am going to discuss it a little further.
In a recent Harvard study led by Carly Robinson, it was found that attendance awards, generally used to motivate students to come to school, can actually lead students to miss more days of school. This study included 14,000 students in California in schools that gave out awards to students for school attendance. Many of the students, once they received an award, started attending school less often. The question then becomes, why? We will get to that in a few minutes.
Rewards are a very big deal in American culture. They have been used in all aspects of society to motivate performance. Whether it is Employee of the Month in a department store, or the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, rewards permeate our society. We have organizations that spend huge amounts of money to publicly recognize people. The CMA Awards are just one example of a major television production, and each year the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame puts on an incredible program. At the local level, you can most likely put together a list of rewards people are given pretty quick! Just check out the local newspaper and someone is being recognized.
So, why am I bringing this up, and why is it a negative for kids? Well, research is showing that rewards do not necessarily do what we want them to do. They do not motivate people the way there were necessarily intended.
There is a sense that there is a saturation of rewards. Everyone is giving them. In a school, look around a lot of classrooms and hallways and you will see stars for this, names on the wall for that, and any number of ways kids can be recognized. The volume of rewards has increased dramatically, and in some instances, you do not have to do much to get one. Today, many of our students have figured out the game that they have to play in order to get the reward, and some simply do not want to play the game.
To the casual observer, one would think it works because there are kids with stars and names on the wall, right? Wrong. If it worked, wouldn’t all kids have a star and all kids have their name on the wall? Youth wrestling tournaments give medals to any youngster that pays an entry fee and shows up, so why aren't youth wrestling tournaments turning kids away? Go to some schools and get your picture on a banner when you are a senior. Why don’t all seniors go out for athletic teams to get their banner on the wall?
There have to be reasons why. Let’s take a look at a few possibilities, some of which have already been alluded to. Tim Elmore provides a number of possibilities, and in my opinion, the biggest mistake people have made when it comes to giving rewards is that they have done it for behaviors that are expected. I have had a number of colleagues question why are we rewarding students for doing what we expect them to do? That has bothered me for a long time, and I suppose I get criticized because of my lack acknowledgment of kids. I’ve done some of this, but I have a hard time handing out praise or rewards for things students, or anyone else, should be doing. Rewards should be given to those who exceed expectations. I will never apologize for having high expectations, and neither should anyone else! Exceeding those expectations is what should get recognized.
Elmore points out that we must make sure that we understand how the reward is perceived by those who receive it, as well as their peers. I remember a classmate of mine, Bruce Feigenbutz, who did not miss a day of school from Kindergarten through his senior year in high school! That is impressive, and goes beyond anyone’s expectations. As an educator, I am impressed and would certainly agree that giving a reward to someone for that kind of accomplishment is warranted. That said, for the majority of high school students, consistent school attendance is not seen as something cool at all. In some school cultures, really good grades are not cool either, at least for some members of the student body. How much influence they have will often determine how a reward is perceived. Some students will resent the recognition if they believe they are going to be mocked for their success. Thus, a reward for attendance may in fact be something kids do not want.
I’ve already pointed out that too many rewards reduces the meaning. Here is a real quick example. Compared to a lot of high schools, we have a high standard for admission into the National Honor Society. To even be considered, a student must have a 3.5 GPA, which is actually higher than the national recommendation. For the most current induction, there were 30 students eligible to apply, and through the selection process, fourteen were inducted. Our NHS Chapter has 29 current members. We have another school almost exactly the same size in our area that had 100 students eligible this year, and over thirty were selected. Their GPA requirement is 3.25. Which one of these is the greater honor? How about schools that have an overwhelming number of valedictorians? How much an honor is it when 20% of the senior class is recognized as a valedictorian? The rarer the reward, the higher the value. For something to be motivating, it has to be valued.
What do students value? What kinds of rewards do motivate? That is something that those giving the reward need to find out. In some communities with high poverty levels, the reward of a free college education paid for by wealthy benefactors has had a huge impact on academic performance. I’m not so sure that would have the same impact in wealthy communities. In some schools, access to free computer time has been an attractive reward. For many, finding ways to reward excellence or exceeding expectations can be quite difficult. What researchers have shown time again is that to be most effective, the reward must have intrinsic value. The individual must have a high level of personal satisfaction and sense of personal accomplishment for the reward to have value, regardless of what it is.
I have to admit that the hair stands up on the back of my neck when I am with various groups and we are talking about students and the topic of rewards come up. In most instances as soon as that happens, I ask “What are our expectations?” and generally follow with “If kids meet the expectations, why is it necessary to reward?” Other than a “thank you” or “good job” do we really need to give more?
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