Reward System in Educational Settings Essay

The reward systems used in educational settings originates from psychology of behavior that specifically gives specific emphasis on promoting good discipline in educational settings. Education institutions are able to make significant differences in children’s behavior through setting out definite rules and stipulating sanctions and rewards for violating them. The fundamental nature of such systems is the idea that students can choose how to conduct themselves. Therefore, by rewarding and recognizing good behaviors whereas bad ones are punished, it is believed that students will aspire to choose good behaviors. A number of psychologists argue that in most cases education institutions focus on rectifying bad behaviors only rather than recognizing or reinforcing good behavior among students. They therefore criticize such an approach as being too basic because it eliminates the framework within which students’ conduct occurs and leaves total liability up on individual for their behavior. Although such criticizing arguments have been put forward, reward systems have been widely adopted in most education institutions especially primary and secondary schools. There are argued to impact positively on student’s behavior and performance as well as to teachers (Kohn, 1993). In regard to this, psychologists have explained the reward systems using a number of learning theories which relates the psychology and education disciplines. Learning is the means through which cognitive, emotional, and environment influences and experiences suitable for enhancing, acquiring, or making ones skills, knowledge, and values are brought together. Thus, the learning process puts emphasis on events that occur in the learning environment and this is explained by a number of learning theories. The learning theories clarify on how animals and people learn thus aiding us to understand the inherent complex learning process. All the learning theories which have been put forward by various psychologists are grouped into three categories: cognitive, behavior, constructivism and social-cognitive. Motivation of students is the basic necessity to guarantee success of any education enterprise. The dynamics of motivation can be explained as the types of academic and social goals which students brings into the classrooms, motivating elements of such goals, and the existing reward systems that together control the quantity and quality of learning as well as the will to keep on learning (Deci & Ryan, 1986). Motivation has been categorized by psychologists into four groups: instrumental motivation, achievement motivation, intrinsic motivation, and social motivation. However, more than one type of motivation may occur to a student at a given time. Instrumental motivation as a type of motivation is exclusively extrinsic because students carry out tasks as they are influenced by probable final consequences such as the probability of acquiring material rewards or keeping away from a reprimand. Therefore, in cases of such motivation, teachers are supposed to ensure that tasks being performed are put in contexts that students perceive pleasant. Social motivation argues that students execute tasks in order to please people they admire, respect or whose views are of significance to them. In regard to this social motivation, rewards have no significance although tangible as well as immaterial. Besides, rewards are correlated expressly to the perceived association between the learners and the teachers or instructors whose underpinning activities such as praise and approval are considered important. Achievement motivation involves students learning and hoping for success and it has three components: cognitive drive –whereby students attempts to satisfy identified ‘need to know’; self enhancement –learners satisfy the call for self-respect; affiliation –learners seek support from others; Intrinsic motivation is characterized by the absence of external rewards hence tasks are undertaken for the pleasure and satisfaction they bring the students. It appears to be fundamental to high quality participation in an undertaking as well as being self-terminating and self-maintaining. Curiosity and a desire to meet challenges may characterize the learning of students motivated in this style (Ardord, 2006). To clearly explain the system of reward in schools, a few theories are explained. Maslow’s theory of motivation focuses on a person’s striving for excellence and he explained this through ‘hierarchy of human needs’. Maslow pointed out that every human being is a ‘wanting animal’ hence he supposed that an individual’s behavior at any given time is dominated by his/her needs that have largest potency. As lower level psychological needs of a person are sufficiently achieved, the needs for higher level psychological needs come in handy. In the context of education, Maslow’s theory argues that students cannot and/or are not willing to learn or put more effort if their basic needs are not provided or met. Therefore, students require psychological needs to be met alongside their safety feelings and a sense of belonging. Such leads to spontaneous sense as learners who are hungry will not concentrate, nor will learners who are bullied and neither will learners who perceive to be outsiders and without friends. According to Maslow, learners are motivated if they are self-actualized and any hindrances affects learning environment considerably (Ibid, 2006). Skinner came up with a theoretical framework referred to as operant conditioning to explain that human beings cannot learn best without being provided or promised with a reward. He argued that human beings like every other organisms makes a direct and anticipated response –operant- when they are aware that there is a reward. Therefore, in cases where a response happens and emphasized, there is increased probability that it will happen again when a comparable stimulus is present. Hence, skinner argued that student’s tend to learn best when behavioral change occurs. In his experiment, Skinner had come up with learning units referred to as ‘contingencies of reinforcement’. These are sequences within which behaviors or responses are followed by reinforcing stimuli. The outstanding learning principle in this theory states that behaviors/responses are naturally produced without bring out stimuli. Besides, such behaviors are operants as their production can be instrumental in punishing or reinforcing consequences among students. Therefore, this theory is useful in understanding a person’s learning, social interaction, and human development via making open a number of normal law relationships created into human life by God. Thus, the theory concurs on the necessity to have a system of reward in schools based on students’ behavior which seems notable (Tayo, 2001). Penn in his work argues that in self-worth theory, motivation is the one of most vital factors to determine the attitude of learners as well as their behavior as a sense of self-respect. The answer to self-worth is learner’s perception of his/her own capability particularly when compared to others. If an imaginary hierarchy of self-worth is drawn, learners will tend to give ability the first priority, followed by effort and performance. The theory as claimed can be explained by equating both worth and ability. The author quoting other psychologists writes that applying personal goal-setting arrangements (gives learners a chance to define their own criteria for success), outcome-based evaluation and instruction (slower learning students experience success without competing with faster learning students), attribution learning (facilitates uninterested learners to consider failure being the lack of effort instead of ability), and cooperative learning activities (facilitates learners in understanding that individual effort contributes to personal as well as group goals) removes barriers to achieving motivation and redirects learners’ behavior far away from letdown-avoiding activities in educational settings (Penn, 2002). Extrinsic and intrinsic motivation theories differ only in terms of goals that different student have. Intrinsic motivation argues that students study just for the sake. The learners derive personal satisfaction as well as learning new ideas from learning and regard the m as a reward (Anti-Bullying Network, 2000). On the other hand, extrinsically motivated students are influenced by outside influences for instance praise from peer and teacher, attaining good grades, and/or any other form of reinforcement a peer or teacher can offer. Some people have argued that intrinsically motivated students tend to learn more as compared to those who are extrinsically motivated. Reason may be because intrinsically motivated learners as well extrinsically motivated. However, extrinsically motivated learners are seldom motivated intrinsically. Extrinsic rewards encompasses use of tangible rewards such as payments and gifts so as to keep learners interested in particular subjects as well as motivate them (Deci & Ryan, 2002). Intrinsic motivation has for a long time been criticized for its unconstructive influence on intrinsic motivation as well as being claimed to have a short term effect. In regard to intrinsic motivation, learners have the feelings of self-determination, pride, and competence. However, students are highly interested in activities when they are motivated by gifts, prizes, grades, or money as long as they received anticipated reward. Therefore, with time a student who receives a reward for their performance in a particular subject, they gradually become interested in it and develop intrinsic motivation. A big difference exists between tangible rewards (candy, money, certificates) and verbal rewards (praise, positive feedback). Tangible rewards influences intrinsic motivation negatively and destroy self-regulation (Wilson & Corpus, 2001). Conclusion Although the reward system has for a long time been applied in schools, a couple of issues need to be addressed if it will remain effective. Teachers and parents needs to be consistent in using rewards and sanctions, the reward system whether individual, cooperative or competitive should be monitored on regular basis, keeping-off from rewards that have monetary worth or those that indicates that school tasks are of no value, and making certain that rewards are deserved and genuine rather than being routine (Anti-Bullying Network, 2000). Whichever the reward system an education institution adopts, a positive culture in schools is established reason being efforts and good behaviors of the pupils are recognized. Thus, most students tend to put more effort so as to achieve established rewards and as a result the overall performance of school improves.