We often come across the debate of Extrinsic versus Intrinsic rewards. An Intrinsic Reward is the feeling inside of pleasure for a job well done. An Extrinsic Reward is external – a pat on the back, being told well done, a grade or a physical prize. As an adult Extrinsic Rewards include a salary, a house, a job title and a career.

The aim of every school is to get pupils to an Intrinsic Reward place – ideally for all subjects and topics but realistically for a limited number of topics and subjects. Did you love every subject at school? No. But it did matter that you fell in love with one or more subjects that then formed the basis of your education? Yes.

To move students from uninterested to interested to intrinsically motivated you need a tool – and there is only one tool available. External Rewards. From a congratulatory word, to a sticker to show off, a praise postcard to show parents, a certificate to frame or even a physical prize. What rewards are best is a matter for much debate – the fact that rewards are important is not.

Without External rewards what are you going to do with those not intrinsically motivated? Just ignore them until they see they light? It it impossible for a school to have an Intrinsic only system without leaving the majority behind.

A well thought through reward system that effectively motivates children and drives them to value education is incredibly important.

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This Times Article reports on a Cornell University study on prize based rewards. To quote the article:

“Jackson found that pupils who benefited from the Texas high school programme not only went to college in greater numbers, but also continued to improve their grades and remained in college longer.

His 46-page report finds “no evidence of worse outcomes” and concludes “that incentive programmes may have lasting positive effects even after rewards are no longer provided. Providing monetary incentives to both students and teachers … can lead to meaningfully improved student outcomes”.”

The article also pulls information about the debate on prizes where some consider if defacto bribery leading to a dependence on rewards and others consider it a stepping stone to an intrinsic and long term love of learning. We all know that every school, every pupil is different. This research, and this article, provide some more colour in the motivation debate.

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