Should students be paid to have good grades?: Having good grades in school is seen as an important part of growing up, but it’s not something that should be incentivized by paying students. In fact, how much money you make is largely dependent on the college you go to and the depths to which they offer their studies. Most schools also have financial aid programs in place so students don’t have to take out loans for tuition or other fees.
The main argument for paying students who put in a lot of work is that it would help them achieve more goals, like going to college or getting a job after graduating, at a lower cost. While this may happen for some people, there are many others who wouldn’t be able to achieve those goals because they lack the means.
Throughout elementary, middle, and high school, students are expected to do well in their academics. Some children take the pressure of this responsibility very seriously and put in a lot of effort, but others may not care as much. In order to prove that they are worthy of being rewarded for their efforts, teenagers will often receive good grades. It is not uncommon for students to make sacrifices during the school day, such as foregoing extracurricular activities or participating in voluntary work, just so they can earn money by working more hours or taking on additional studying that might be required to attain higher grades. Similarly, some schools reward students with credits towards college classes if they do well on assignments like papers or tests.
The Importance of Good Grades
The importance of having good grades as a student includes the following:
- Good grades are required for admission to colleges and universities.
- Good grades give you a higher chance of getting a job in your field, even if this isn’t your career goal.
- Good grades will show employers that you work hard, have discipline, and are dedicated to what you do.
- Bad grades may make it harder to be hired because employers might think students don’t care about their work or have no future potential.
- Bad grades can lead to damaging social consequences. For example, having bad grades in high school can lead to not having friends if your friends are the ones who did well in school, but it can also lead to teachers not recommending you for a good college if they are the ones grading your papers.
- Good grades are important for showing parents, family, and friends that you do care about your own education.
By looking at all these aspects, it can be seen how important having good grades is to a student. If a student does get bad grades in school, this can be bad for their self-esteem (and may even lead to many bad social consequences) because it will make them not want to work hard in school the next time they go back.
Advantages of Paying Students To Have Good Grades
The advantages are:
- Students become self-motivated to do well in school, which boosts their self-esteem.
- Higher education rates increase because students are more keen on pursuing college degrees.
- The cost of education decreases as parents and teachers stop spending money on rewards and incentives.
- Some students have jobs and can’t afford to pay tuition, so they drop out. But if they could get paid for better grades, they would be less inclined to quit school.
- The percentage of failing grades decreases because many students stop struggling academically due to their constant fear of failing or not being able to keep up with the workload.
- The competition gets more intense as students have to outshine each other.
- The pressure to succeed decreases as students are not so afraid of dropping out of school.
- Parents will be happy when their son or daughter graduates from college and they don’t have any financial burdens on them.
- Schools will be much happier because they don’t have to waste time and money on rewards or incentives for the students.
According to a survey on the benefits and disadvantages of paying students for good grades, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. The survey goes like this:
- The competition becomes more intense as students have to outshine each other.
- Students become less afraid that they will not keep up with the workload.
- Students will work harder because they will have to do well in addition to getting good grades.
- If a student doesn’t have good grades, he or she won’t be able to go beyond high school, thus missing out on opportunities such as scholarships.
- The student will be motivated and try harder to achieve his or her goals.
- The percentage of failing grades decreases as students will not have to deal with the pressure of getting a failing grade.
- Parents will be happier because they don’t have to pay any extra money as incentives or rewards for good grades.
- The student can clearly see what he or she needs to do in order to succeed and make more money.
The Cost of Paying Students to Have Good Grades
The decision to pay your students to have good grades is a difficult one. It’s easy for you to see the benefits of paying a small sum of money or a whole lot of time, but it’ll be hard for them. However, there are some risks that go along with handing out cash in hopes of receiving perfect grades, and one such risk would be money being paid away from the institution. Or worse, not enough students are taking advantage of this program, so you end up wasting your time and effort on something that’s not actually worth your time and effort. This article will talk about some of the issues that are inherent in the choice to pay students for good grades.
Money is not the reason you should pay your students to get good grades. The decision to hand out cash in hopes that all of your students will receive As or maybe even Bs is based on other factors. These other factors include:
1: How much time do you have available to spend with your students?
2: Whether or not there are enough deserving students willing to accept this program
3: Whether or not there are enough eligible students who would take advantage of this program.
Conclusion
Paying students to have good grades is a controversial topic. It seems that there are many schools that are doing this already. In the past, pay-to-play has been used in Africa, where the concept of paying children for grades was not new and it was an important source of income for those families. But this practice is still prevalent in developing countries, as well as in some less developed localities that lack much-needed resources and funding.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do good grades matter in life?
Grades by no means define a student, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t very important. They can influence your class, college, scholarship, and career opportunities.
Do good grades mean more money?
Good grades in high school translate into higher salaries after graduation, according to figures released today. Students who do well in exams at 18 go onto earn as much as 40% more post-university than peers who flunk their exams but still go onto higher education.
What are the effects of getting good grades?
Colleges and scholarship committees will review your teen’s transcripts. Better grades, higher test scores, and involvement in a variety of activities can help your teen get more money for college. Talk to your teen about the realities of student loans
Do grades have a positive or negative effect?
It seems reasonable to believe that earlier/previous grades have effects on student motivation for learning in that a history of high grades have positive influences whereas a history of low grades has negative influences on student motivation and learning.
Do good grades motivate students?
While grades can certainly be a motivator for some students, they also have been shown to decrease intrinsic motivation and interfere with the process and quality of learning.
References
- Baattleby.com – Students should not be paid for Good Grades Essay
- Verywellfamily.com – Benefits of getting good grades in High School
- Theclassroom.com – The Advantage of good grades in College
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