Paying Students, Fining Parents

So here’s another example of theory in use in public education. On the one hand, we’re creating high stakes testing for young people at an early age and continuing that through their lives – punishing young people with greater and greater punishments. On the other hand there are school districts and schools that are resorting to creating incentives and paying young people to attend or to get good grades – with greater and greater extrinsic motivators. And now, a bill has been introduced in the Texas legislature that would fine parents $500 if they miss meetings with their children’s teacher.

Bill proposes fining parents who miss teacher meetings
A bill introduced in the Texas Legislature would impose a $500 fine on parents who miss conferences with their child’s teachers. The representative who filed the bill said it was designed to encourage parents to be more involved with their child’s education. CNN/Associated Press (2/1)

I’ve written in a previous post about how the education system is based on a model of compliance. One of the results of a compliance type environment is these acts of desperation – to force compliance where voluntary compliance isn’t taking place.

Instead we should be spending our resources creating a system that instills intrinsic motivation and enthusiasm for learning with voluntary participation from everyone involved – young people and parents and teachers and community members.

Here’s another example of the desperate attempts to get young people to come to school or keep them from skipping school:

Truancy attacked with iPods, food
Schools throughout the nation are enticing students with everything from breakfast to iPods to keep them in school. Attacks on truancy help boost academic performance, administrators say.

More Extrinsic Motivation