Study in US suggests rewards don't improve school attendance

[DJ-1701]

'Rewards don't improve school attendance' - BBC News

 

Snipit...

It's the back-to-school season - and many young people may be feeling reluctant about returning for the start of another academic year.And in many schools there are deliberate attempts to boost attendance by giving rewards, school prizes and commendations to those who have the best records for not missing any lessons.But do such prizes really change behaviour?According to a large-scale study of secondary school students in California in the US, awards for good school attendance seem to make no significant difference - and in some circumstances, could make absenteeism worse.The study, published by the Harvard Kennedy School of Government in Massachusetts, examined the effect of rewards schemes on more than 15,000 students in 14 school districts in California.

[mikes]

i always found the rewards system a bit strange too; are they punishing students for being unfortunate enough to become unwell by not giving them these rewards?

or are they trying to encourage students to come into school while unwell, to claim this reward, at the risk of spreading disease?

or are they suggesting that students fraudulently pull "sickies" to stay off school and that giving rewards will reduce this?

 

if a kid is ill or doesn't want to come to school i don't think a £5 gift voucher will change that myself personally. we used to have rewards in my old school for the form with the best attendance and it was universally ignored.

[FN-GM]

if a kid is ill or doesn't want to come to school i don't think a £5 gift voucher will change that myself personally. we used to have rewards in my old school for the form with the best attendance and it was universally ignored.

 

Agreed. When I was at school if you managed to get no behaviour points and days absent you got a £5 book voucher.

 

1. I don't read books.

2. I got more than that weekly spending money.

 

It was just a waste of time and tax payers money.

 

I can't believe it has taken an official study to come to this conclusion.