Have parents succumbed to the same pressure as schools—to push students to get good grades and test scores at all costs? A Time magazine editorial suggests that while more and more parents are paying kids for good grades, they may want to think twice before pulling out their wallets.
Fundamentally, writer Suzanna De Baca asserts, paying for good grades may send the wrong message: that doing well in school is all about financial gain, and not about the learning process. Instead, she suggests, parents need to instill a love of learning in their children, as well as the idea that working hard and applying themselves in school is their responsibility.
De Baca also reveals other potential traps of paying kids for good grades: Do you keep paying once a struggling student has improved his performance? If you pay your daughter to improve her grades, do you also pay her older brother, who always gets straight As, without the lure of a cash payout?
Read Related: Best Ways to Support Your Kids’ Education
The author asserts that paying kids for good grades, for chores, or for picking up their dirty clothes from the floor sends a message that these behaviors are optional, and teaches them to “anticipate payment or recognition for doing what is expected”.
Instead, she suggests, reward good grades at report-card time, or at the end of the school year with a shopping spree, a trip to the amusement park or another favorite activity. And don’t forget regular praise for good effort and performance, starting from a young age. That praise and recognition will have greater long term value for your kids than any cash reward you can offer.
Read more at Time Healthland.
Julian Castro’s mother said that she paid her sons for good grades: one dollar for As and seventy five cents for Bs. She also emphasized English in the home and did not emphasize bilingualism.
Bilingualism is fine if you have access to a good education and can become fluent in both languages. Unfiortunately, many do not have access to a decent education and end up sounding stupid in two languages. (Sad, but true.)
I wish Mamiverse would be honest and tell its readers that to be successful in this country you have to be fluent in English.
There was one article here a few months ago about a woman who demanded that her daughter only speak Spanish at home. It was ridiculous. People around the world are paying big money to learn how to speak English. Latinos will have to compete with native born speakers of English, and with immigrants who immerse themselves in it, and study it in their free time. Time to wake up…
Hi! Thank you for your thoughtful comment. We are strong advocates for bilingualism, although we don’t see the correlation between that and this particular piece. Again, we appreciate your time and effort in commenting!