Briberies in Academia: Reward Systems Gift Students Who Achieve Perfect Attendance
"But I don't want to go to school!" screams the student. "But don't you want a shiny new iPod, darling?" says Mom. And off to school goes the youngin.
In an effort to foster perfect attendance rates, schools across the nation are bribing students with fancy rewards like cars and iPods. California's Santa Ana Unified School District has been practicing this method and achieved positive results.
Partnering with a local auto dealership, the district hosts a car raffle at the end of each academic term. Students who have achieved perfect attendance for the 180-day school year are eligible to win the vehicle.
“It’s caught on. Our attendance rates have improved,” Santa Ana spokeswoman Angela Burrell told The Washington Times last week. “A lot of people are doing creative things” to decrease truancy rates.
Other raffle prizes include iPods, movie tickets and other items. Districts in other states - Wyoming, Arizona, Michigan and elsewhere - have implemented similar programs.
James Appleton, executive director of the National Dropout Prevention Center, a Clemson University initiative, said that skipping school commonly precedes the dreaded drop-out, adding that teachers are wise to engage students before they completely give up on the school system.
“The idea is that students do not just leave school. They slowly disconnect over time,” he said last week.
Analysts argue that uncovering the root cause of truancy outweighs the necessity of reward systems, regardless of their effectiveness.
“Research indicates that truants often come from low-income families, have parents who lack high school degrees, are victims of abuse or neglect, have mental health problems or have parents with histories of criminality or substance abuse,” Mr. Appleton said. “However, some are highly intelligent and are just bored with school.”
Think back, readers. Would the promise of material possessions keep you in school?
