Do you remember those students in high school that used to sit in the back of the class, pass notes, talk, disrupt, and simply not listen to the Chemistry teacher's details about the Periodic Table? The ones that thought Barium was the new chant aimed at opponents during football games? I know...corny, but you get the picture.
It's no mystery that a great number of our students aren't receiving the education they are sent to school for everyday and accordingly, only close to 70% are graduating nationwide. In the state of Georgia the number falls to an astounding 56%. Obviously, these children aren't purely dim-witted or don't have the capacity to learn, they simply don't have the motivation to find interest in school, specifically in math and science as they grow up.
In case you still don't care, the 2001 Hart-Rudman Commission identified the nation's failure in math and science education as the second-biggest threat to our national security. If we don't keep up with the world in education, we won't be participating in the decisions made.
The Learning Makes a Difference Foundation has created the "Learn and Earn" program that provides the kind of motivation that every human can relate to: cash. With its sights set on the
In its infant 'pilot program' state, the results to this possibly controversial approach to learning are promising, gaining praise from parents that say their child has turned a new leaf. Where some students were once failing a class they are now passing and are interested in the subject matter.
Sounds good for them, but if Joe Slacker gets $8/hour to come do some after school studying after spending the morning daydreaming in class, what motivation is there for the students that had the drive from the beginning? These rewards for bad behavior could create an environment that tells everyone studying is only worth it when it immediately stuffs your pockets. The urge that everyone has for instant gratification could soon be satisfied, taking some students' sights off of the more rewarding route they originally bought into.
The answer has to be discovered somewhere in the middle. In an effort to boost underachievers, the school cannot ignore self-motivated individuals. Obviously, the measly $8/hour for a couple of hours of work isn't going to get any adult concerns taken care of like paying off mortgages, but the goal that is actually achieved is igniting the pilot light in young people's brains that gets them interested in subject matter they were never really told they should or could understand with a little bit of work.
Motivation is the key, and sadly, money is the only factor left in high school students' minds that gets them going. As long as they are not written off and presumed to be lost cases incapable of learning, maybe we can discover the tactics that get them interested. It may take a few dollars to get them in, but once they realize they can succeed, the rest is on the house.
Reader Comments ( Page 1 of 3)
1. Ah, liberals. They fall in love with moral relativism, attempt to ban religion-based ethics from the public sphere, and then have the nerve complain when the effects show up in the broader population. You nimrods can't understand that it's your system of thought that creates these situations? For decades you've shoveled your crappy ideology into the public schools, telling kids that grades don't matter, that self-esteem is the most important thing in the world, that others don't have the right to judge you a success or failure on the basis of the life-decisions you make. For decades, you've done your dead level best to transform the university into a place where the only thing worthy of condemnation is condemnation itself. You believe in everything, and so you believe in nothing. Congratulations. You've single-handedly exiled, banned, and litigated out of existence every source of motivation that kids have ever had, including praise, which you lavish to the point of meaninglessness. Don't be sorry. Be different.
Jay at 3:03AM on May 21st 2008
2. So what was the motivation for learning math in the era of religious based ethics? Was it "learn math or God will roast you forever"? I think not.
emelpe at 5:49AM on May 21st 2008
3. In the news today - Learn how Darwinism historically gained its public acceptance by archaeological HOAXES and deception.
http://evolutionfacts.blogspot.com
PROFESSOR X at 6:28AM on May 21st 2008
4. I noticed that many, but not all, of the lowest graded students in my school came from the poorest families.
I imagine it's rather hard to maintain a positive attitude about scholastics when your self esteem is under constant assault- IE- Having to use the school lunch discount coupons, old clothes, stress at home from financial problems, divorce,ect. Constant doom and gloom year after year after year.
Having to work a low paying job to help feed the family may help build character, but this also cuts into precious study time.
It was a tough go for these types of folks 30-35 years ago. It's got to be a whole lot worse now since the safety nets today have far too many holes in them.
BILL G at 6:34AM on May 21st 2008
5. There has to be some part of the educational process that teaches kids that they NEED to take the initiative in assuring their own success in life. This program teaches exactly the opposite.
I'll bet these are some of the same folks who went apoplectic when "No child left behind" was introduced because it required testing to standards, thus forcing kids to learn "for all the wrong reasons".
$8.00/hour. Much better reason. Good thinking.
bob at 6:57AM on May 21st 2008
6. I see nothing wrong with the program. It's better than the H1b Visa programs and it's a job that is filled by someone in America. The employer can always get back their investment by underpaying the graduate later.
Cecil Jones at 10:01AM on May 21st 2008
7. Jay, absolutely positively right on the money. These liberals ruin everything they get their hands on and then come up with a nonsense quick fix solution that just makes things worse. You name it, they have ruined it. Welfare, entitlement programs, education, universities, military, discipline, sex education, abortion, etc, etc.
Hey, Okane, now I see why they call you insane. You have the audacity (nice overused word, see I can use it too) to actually support your position with facts.
The last three days while driving through Michigan I had the pleasure of listening to mind numbing Air America programming. It was pure comic relief. These are the best the liberals have to offer. Amazing. Actually, to be honest, quite embarrassing. I really did not know the depths to which the liberals would go to sell their souls to get to the white house. Just plain crazy. Each of these so called experts just mercillessly bad mouthed Hillary. All of a sudden they have come to the conclusion that she is a lying, cheating, coniving bitch. Not only are these all good liberal qualities but really no revalation as we conservatives have known this for some time now.
Let me count the ways these morons, one after another, brought hypocrisy to a new level.
They started out by saying that Bush and all of his friends are elitist, blah blah blah, and then the next second they went into a tirade about the racist W Viginia white voters all being dumb and uneducated because they voted for Hillary. Their proof of racism was that they in fact let Hillary win the state. Of course they could not comment on what it meant that black voters vote for Obama at a greater than 90% clip. That of course is not racism. Never mind that there is no more uneducated group in the country than blacks. That fact or argument was never broached. The premise was that all these legions of black voters were well informed and the whites were ignorant and not informed or else they too would have seen the misgivings of their ways.
Of course anytime they were confronted with any facts, they could not answer them. They sounded like the average poster here. And now I get where all the liberals on here keep referring to my arguments as repub talking points. Now I know what that means. If they do not have an answer they just accuse you of spewing talking points. And of course all the lemming follow suit. I guess that is why they call you insane, Okane. No answer, spew some nonsense.
Then, amazingly, they keep referring to Obama as a black man. Hello, he is half white. Never mind that if it wasnt for the white people in his life, who are as he puts it, typical white people, (what would have happened to McCain if he had uttered typical black people, but I digress) he would be dead or in a gutter somewhere. Or the fact that I was lead to believe it was politically incorrect to refer to someone as black. If ever the term African american fit, it would be in his case. He is african and american after all. I guess it just doesnt sound as attractive somehow. Then they kept droaning on and on about how Hussein Obama is a Christian and they know this to be fact. Actually, his spiritual advisor is a liberation theologian or more precisely a black liberation theologian. If you do not know what that is then you have no business supporting Osama as Ted Kennedy referred to him. (Cenk, I am surprised you missed that little bit of commentary. First he calls him Osama bin Laden and recovers quickly and calls him Osama Obama. Must have been caused by his tumor. Where has the liberal media been on that one). Black Liberation theology is a Marxist, repulsive kill whitey and his god type of belief system wherein they believe the state must be taken over. Think Che Guevara. Socialist revolution. Reverend Wright states that this is what he preaches and has done so since the 60's. Nonetheless, Obama is a Christian because that is what they want him to be. Nevermind the 20 years of indoctrination. nevermind that Barrack used to go by Barry until wrights lessons began. nevermind that he threw his grandmother under the bus all the while failing to do so with Wright.
I could go on but I must admit it is truly eye opening. And the best part of all that is to think Cenk was not even smart enough to get or keep a show on that station. Crazy indeed but not surprising. Now, how about those talking points. Ps. I havent been back to this hack blog in a few months but I see Captain Negative is still a moron. General women behavior. What is that? Great argument. Maybe thats why you are not married and still live in your mothers basement.
german guy at 9:34AM on May 22nd 2008
8. So let me get this straight, kids don't want to learn, they're irresponsible failures, and we're paying them to give them an education?
SCREW THEM. Let them fail. We need more manual laborers anyway. That money can be put to use sending the kids who WANT to succeed and work HARD every single day through college.
Jesus, it's like we think we can throw money at everything and it'll get better.
SCREW. THEM.
Strados at 11:15AM on May 21st 2008
9. There is a big difference between those who want to learn and those who do not.
Those who want to learn improve their future earning potential by studying Math, Science, History and ENGLISH.
Those who do not want to learn become social parasites and spend their study time memorizing the lyrics of all the latest rap albums, working on their spin move in the paint, perfecting the leaping finger tip catch and knocking down a Forty and Fatty afterwards!!!!!!!
To simplify it: Makers and Takers.......
http://www.amlibpub.com/top/makers.html
Paul Sparcello at 12:00PM on May 21st 2008
10. Sounds pretty good up front, paying a kid to learn. But in this day and age, what's to stop other people from claiming discrimination against children who study?
Willet at 12:07PM on May 21st 2008
11. "Ah, liberals. They fall in love with moral relativism, attempt to ban religion-based ethics from the public sphere, and then have the nerve complain when the effects show up in the broader population." - #1
Yeah, because I'm sure the Christian version of chemistry is better: "Remember, God is ultimately responsible for holding molecules together." Yeah, Christian fundies, lets teach our kids that science really doesn't matter because God does everything anyway.
God DAMN - get a fucking brain! Not everything in this world is the "Liberals" fault, and you blaming everyone but yourself (or your "party") will not fix anything. Get over your hate and grow up. Oh, I forgot, hate and Christianity go hand in hand. I guess "love thy neighbor as yourself" and "do unto others as you would want done unto you" were just suggestions.
I am a liberal, and a straight-A student, and this idea sucks. Sure, some kids might show up for the money and stay for the education, but most will just pocket the money and buy a dime bag after school. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
K at 2:41PM on May 21st 2008
12. Culture of Exclusion…
The article states, “the 2001 Hart-Rudman Commission identified the nation's failure in math and science education as the second-biggest threat to our national security. If we don't keep up with the world in education, we won't be participating in the decisions made.”
Why then, did it fail to identify that one of the factors contributing to students’ poor showing in these subjects is a sense of disconnection between their efforts and what results those efforts might bring. Billy Joel’s song, “Allentown” said it all: ‘So the graduations hang on the wall…but they never really helped us at all…no, they never taught us what was real, iron core, chromium steel’. How do you expect children to learn if you don’t teach them things that actually matter in their lives? How many of us are going to become chemists—or work in field where chemistry is relevant? You say that the graduation rate among high school students is too low? I agree with you. But why, when we look at trade and technical schools, does the graduation rate go up? A machinist for instance has to understand grades of material, be able to measure in microns, convert to/from foreign measurements read, understand and sometimes correct specifications…Not a job for a dummy! The difference is we are showing them a direct connection between learning and doing.
It begins with our culture which, contrary to the intentions of our Forefathers (and the very reason American Revolution), has become a culture based on exclusion. Like the Ancient Greeks whom, in spite of their supposed ‘Platonian’ ideals, used language to erect social barriers to keep the classes separate. Why else, do you think ‘layman’s terms’ exist? Example: A young woman meets a man at a party and he tells her he’s, “a brain surgeon”. Well, unless she’s REALLY stupid, she knows he’s full of s***. Obviously, a real “brain surgeon” would say he was a doctor, physician, surgeon or neurosurgeon depending upon whom he was speaking with. So, our children learn that the knobby protrusion at the front of their leg where it bends is their ‘kneecap’ and only those few with a talent for languages or an interest in medicine will even retain that it’s proper name is the ‘patella’. Trust me, language is the key. Do you realize that most Americans think extrapolating is something you should do in public?
We’ve become a country of ‘specialists’ with each person living like ‘idiot savants’—perhaps brilliant at what they do but woefully ignorant beyond that. Electricity—you must hire an electrician, batteries—you need a engineer, computers—you need a ‘geek’, everyday technologies that are the nuts and bolts of everyday life have gotten away from us. And whom do you suppose is responsible for this cultural divide? Like any crime, you must follow the money. Who stands to gain? I can’t help but feel that, if our society wasn’t one in which 90 percent of the wealth is controlled by 1% of the population, we’d have a social climate of, ‘inclusiveness’ wherein kids would grow up feeling optimistic about the future and empowered to effect positive change in their lives. In the current, state of affairs, it is understandable that they feel disenfranchised.
Keith J. Mohrhoff at 3:08PM on May 21st 2008
13. The racism, assumptions, and outright ignorance in this comment section is appalling! You all have such fiery rage for people that believe anything different than you, it shows you can't even pay attention long enough to go over all the points presented. Now, somehow you all believe Liberals are the ones implementing these programs, only Black kids are the ones needing some of this help, White kids don't get incentives for getting better grades, and they will only use the money for drugs afterwards. Guess what...WHITE KIDS DO AND SELL DRUGS TOO!! WHITE KIDS FAIL AND DROP OUT OF SCHOOL TOO! Idiots, sorry excuses for Americans. Is this the base of Conservative ideals? Hate, assume, tear down, and write off? I guess your next solution will be to just kill these kids. I hope we wake up enough one day to have a conversation about issues rather than spew hatred. What good does that do?
JX3 at 3:55PM on May 21st 2008
14. Strados, finally, I agree with something you said. Jx3, why the complex? Maybe it is because this program comes out of Atlanta where over 90% of the students are black? Is that maybe the basis for the comments, although I didnt really see any. Little guilty maybe? Kill them? No they will probably kill each other for us. but not a bad idea. It may be cheaper. Did you know that there are entitlement programs out the ying yang that pay these little monsters money just because they dont behave? Some of them make more money than the elderly that have worked their whole lives. Tough if it hurts your feelings for me to say it, but yes, another liberal democ rat policy, program, priviledge, entitlement...Absolutely ridiculous idea. I have a better one. No studying, no good grades, no attendance, no welfare. No matter what color. There you go. Before you spout off some racist crap. Lets see that applies to more, the white kids as you say, or the blacks and latinos.
german guy at 5:11PM on May 21st 2008
15. Don't see the racism? Hmm, maybe your comments just now saying that Black kids should kill each other FOR US? Is there something about imagining the death of young Black people that makes you smile b/c you DON'T have something against them?
I don't even think the people that started this program are looking to pay kids to be "professional high school students." Regardless to what many here believe, Liberals don't want students to do badly. This probably is a bad idea, but IT IS AN IDEA! Don't slam people for trying. Many are getting desperate to find new ways to motivate kids to see the benefits in studying for themselves. Some of the students see they can do it and are motivated by their success, when no one ever told them they could do it. Crazy enough, teachers are there to teach kids and motivate them. I know its asking for a lot when we don't put much emphasis on education in this country anymore, we'd rather just say forget them, like some are saying here.
Simply immediately pushing students aside to do what befalls them outside of school is not the answer, it won't solve the fears some Americans have of these young people. We assume they don't WANT to succeed, that they are born with a desire to have nothing and live badly.
JX3 at 5:39PM on May 21st 2008