Money for Grades?

I read the article at http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/content/education/chi-money-for-grades-11-sep11,0,4916582,print.story about how students are getting paid for their grades, and I originally thought it was a terrible idea. I would probably expect all educational professionals to be in agreement about whichever side of the debate they support, but I found this article at http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3617/is_200405/ai_n9360319 that gives a wide range of opinions from several professionals. Since this is question of educational theory, it surprises me that people who have all studied education, and who have been taught that learning has intrinsic value, do not agree on this issue. After reading these different views, I am a little more understanding of why some people might think it is a good idea to pay students for their grades, even thought I don't support it. We want kids to succeed, and it is hard to turn down paying them if that is the only way they will succeed.

In general, I think it is a bad idea to pay students for their grades for the reason that this article at http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/CollegeAndFamily/RaiseKids/IsItSmartToPayForGoodGrades.aspx states. Yes, students do need motivation to do well in school. However, if they receive money for their grades, they run into danger of valuing money over learning and knowledge. It is setting kids up for the real world where everything is based on money, but the real world would be better if money was not so important. By initiating children into the real world so young, we are giving up hope that society can change. If I had children, I imagine that I would want them to appreciate knowledge for its own sake, and not raise greedy and spoiled kids.

As a taxpayer (even if I don't contribute much yet), I agree with this man's blog at http://blogs.chron.com/lorensteffy/2008/08/grades_money_bu_1.html where he explained why he is opposed to giving students money for good grades because eventually the money will probably come from taxes. Even if it is just now using private donations, that may not always be the case. I especially like how he agreed that better grades mean the student will receive more money- but he meant that better grades mean a better education and a better job.

USA Today has an interesting article at http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/management/2008-09-10-pay-for-grades_N.htm which reports how CEOs of companies, who spend their days motivating paid employees, responded when asked about kids being paid for grades. I find it interested that it reported that more than half of CEOs supported the idea, but only 15% of principles supported it. Principles realize that school is not the same thing as the business world and they are highly educated in educational philosophies, so I believe their opinions are more reliable.