Chapter 4: Reinforcing Effort & Providing Recognition

You may find this hard to believe, but not every student understands that effort is just as important as the final product! There are several ways to encourage increased effort, however. Younger children learn from examples, such as the tried-and-true "Little Engine That Could" story. Teachers can also use examples of well-known role-models, like professional athletes, entertainers, etc. Think of movie characters, too!

In the upper grades, I suggest using rubrics over checklists. There is a difference, you know! A few of us discussed this briefly at an earlier meeting, but it's worth bringing up again: A "Checklist" is usually a tally of the quantity of characteristics present in student work. A Rubric, on the other hand, contains numerous descriptions of the qualities of student work.

What makes rubrics vastly more valuable (my opinion, not the authors') than checklists is that students can read a description of the quality of work that will yeild the desired score, and understand what kind of effort is required. Kids can read to understand the difference between various achievement levels in each desired quality.

Rubrics have the added benefit of supporting good work in certain categories. Students can see that they have done well in, say, writing topic sentences and focusing on a thesis, but need work in conventions and grammar, for example. Rubrics help break down the "good/no good" feelings that go along with grading and help kids focus on their strengths and developing their skills.

The authors suggest combining a rubric for effort with a checklist to rate their overall performance.

As far as rewards in education, there are two camps. There are those who feel that learners should feel intrinsic motivation to continue to succeed, and external rewards have a negative effect on student motivation. ("What will you give me if I choose to do this assignment?") Others feel that almost everything we do has some sort of external reward. Face it, they would say, would you come to work each day if you didn't receive a paycheck? So, they would argue, why not reward the kids for the work that they do each day?

There's no correct answer here. Different kids are motivated to perform by different resources - some internal, some external. And you'll have a random mixture of kids of both types in every classroom, every year.

So, what works? According to the authors on pages 55-58:

1. Rewards will not necessarily reduce intrinsic motivation
2. Rewards help most when kids meet or exceed a goal that is known to them ahead of time (random rewards are far less helpful)
3. Abstract rewards are more helpful than tangible rewards (there are hundreds of ways to give praise to a child or recognize a child's achievement)

Recognition for achievement should be personal to the child. Take the time to pat them on the shoulder and tell them quietly that you appreciate the hard work they put into a project (regardless of the grade they may have earned).

Kids LOVE stickers and stamps! Even in high school! Get a variety of them (stamps are a bit more eco-friendly, but stickers can be peeled off and worn for the rest of class) so kids will be surprised when they see them.

Make sure that every child has the opportunity to earn praise, too, but remember that kids may have a wide range of skills. If you teach a music class and a child can't hold a note with a bucket, give them a task they can excel at and tell them they're doing a good job when they do it.