The Pros and Cons of Rewarding Pupils

If you are interested in the the pros and cons of rewarding pupils it is worth picking up a copy of the TES from the 17th July. Its article ‘Prizes are no way to reward pupils, expert says’ explains how Marvin Berkowitz, professor of character education at the University of Missouri-St Louis believes that rewarding pupils is not a good idea, and one of our own Carrot Rewards teachers, Sarah Morey, Assistant Head Teacher at North Leamington School, highlights the other side of the debate.

Professor Berkowitz believes that rewarding good behaviour is not actually good for children, and that prize giving assemblies, motivational posters, and gifts for children are “killing” classroom culture. He believes that if a child’s good character or behaviour is highlighted in class or at an assembly, at this point everybody hates that child and they are uncomfortable. Instead he believes “All I have to do is go up to a pupil, put my hand on her shoulder, and say ‘I saw what you did. That was so kind, keep it up.’ No audience, no one else, walk away.”

Sarah Morey argues that “verbal praise is a very important part, but there is a place for both. Especially with pupils who perhaps don’t have those role models at home.” Her school, North Leamington School use signs in the corridor to highlight the importance of respect and excellence. She explains, “Quite often these behaviours aren’t necessarily exhibited by students’ parents. So we focus on the behaviours that will set students up to have the happiest life they can.”

Students at North Leamington are rewarded for sustained proactive behaviour through www.CarrotRewards.co.uk and then entered into a lottery that allows them to win cinema tickets or amazon vouchers. She highlights that no students are forced into the spotlight, “We pre-warn students if they are going to get a reward. Teachers quickly pick up on the ones who don’t want it done in front of the whole class. It’s not about forcing things on people.”

The full TES article is behind the paywall, but a link to the introduction is below. https://www.tes.co.uk/news/school-news/breaking-news/how-rewarding-good-behaviour-can-harm-children