As the new school year begins, some kids will be leaving class with more than just books and homework assignments. They could also be getting money.
Programs that pay kids to learn are expanding rapidly across the country. In New York City, the school system gives fourth- and seventh-graders in 59 schools $5 to $50 for taking standardized tests. In Tucson, some students get $100 a month if they show up at school every day and maintain at least a C-minus average. Another New York City program that offers up to $1,000 for passing Advanced Placement tests has paid out nearly $1 million to 1,161 students. A Texas program also pays for top AP scores, and similar initiatives are being rolled out in six more states. And beginning this fall, 14 middle schools in Washington will pay 3,000 students for attending class, arriving promptly, turning in homework, getting high grades and using good manners.
Not bad ideas, you might think -- unless you look at the vast body of research on what motivates kids to learn. Over the last 35 years, dozens of studies have found that rewarding people for learning backfires.
True enough, financial incentives can elicit an initial burst of effort. But when people get paid for an activity, they start to calculate its monetary worth and other motivations -- its inherent value, fun, camaraderie or the satisfaction it provides -- fade away.
All children are born with an internal desire to learn and hone their skills. Humans are born helpless and dependent; our very survival depends on acquiring new skills. Curiosity and drive toward mastering the world is hard-wired into our brains. That's why all babies play with their toes and pop objects in their mouths. That's why acquiring competence feels so good. And that's why almost all children start kindergarten excited about learning to read or solve math problems.
What drains this excitement -- research shows that intrinsic motivation declines steadily from third to ninth grade -- is a curriculum that doesn't connect to children's goals and interests, and the increasing dependence on grades, competition or awards as motivators.
Dozens of studies have shown how these extrinsic motivations ruin kids' interest and enjoyment in learning. For example, in an ingenious 1973 study, Stanford University psychology professor Mark R. Lepper and his colleagues gave three groups of preschoolers magic markers and construction paper. One group was offered a "good player award" -- a certificate with a red ribbon and a gold star -- for drawing a picture. A second group got the award but didn't know it was coming. The final group he simply let draw.
