Rewards that don't really reward
This course opened my eyes to the idea that extrensic rewards like gift certificates, free meals,tokens, etc. for outstanding performance in a class may actually work against the student in the long run. I didn't think about what happens when the rewards go away, perhaps in some future class. I will concentrate more on the intrensic rewards from now on, combining them when the opportunity presents itself.
Good post, Daniel. That topic in this course really opened my eyes also and make me think more about rewards and their long-term consequences.
I was taking a graduate course in Javascript and for the final project the instructor gave students the option of completing certain criteria for an "A" and lesser criteria for a "B". The projects would still be evaluated and graded as usual, but students opting for the lesser criteria could only achieve a "B" at best. I think this was a way for students to feel more confident that they could at least score a "B" in a very difficult subject. But I'm not sure it would be a good practice in all cases. Sometimes the entire course material needs to be presented and learned for the grade.
Ronald, interesting concept and it does have a place but needs to be examined against the curriculum overall. When we consider a structure such as bloom's taxonomy we need to first ask what is the necessary outcome for the course. Do we need our students to walk away from more awareness or an ability to synthesize information and build new outcomes? The higher levels of bloom's would much more support the scenario you describe versus the lower layers. I hope this makes sense and please feel free to further this discussion with more questions or your own thoughts on this matter.
James Jackson
Daniel, another takeaway is to engage your students in conversations about the differences between extrinsic and intrinsic values and how extrinsic tend to be less meaningful versus intrinsic. Glad you enjoyed the class and were able to take something back into your classroom.
James Jackson
I have personally seen this go very wrong. A certain campus gave out so many "gifts & prizes" at the beginning of the term, that by the end of the term,students were no longer interested in the classes but more interested in how they could win more "stuff".
As a former elementary school teacher I have personally seen the rewards system go bad. The teacher used treats as rewards to get students motivated. Participation and performance went off the scales. The technique was only ever intended as a bit of an "ice-breaker" at the beginning of the term. After the rewards ran out, the students became even more listless and apathetic than they were before the treats.
