The cover of the latest Time magazine: "Should Schools Bribe Kids?"

I've not yet read the article but I do have an opinion about the question. The short answer: no. I wonder how we can get back to knowing how necessary education is. I am reading Three Cups of Tea and it's a beautiful book because the Pakistani children were scraping in dirt to get an education. In this country our kids seem to have lost the need for it. Or, the desire. Giving students ipods or laptops will not make them better students. I learned without those things. So did many others. All it encourages is a student body that thinks we need to give it something in order for it to do work.

Alfie Kohn wrote a book called Punished by Rewards. His argument is that we have hurt our students by making them think they should be rewarded for everything. When I worked at the Rockland Country Day School the same idea prevailed at the assembly. Just about every student got a certificate for participation in anything: the 7th grade plant sale, the organic garden, etc. In fact, there was little difference between acknowledging those who led and those to simply participated. Then there were the athletic awards. All athletes received medals. The outstanding players got a speech and a trophy. Those who were outstanding in academics did not receive such prizes.

The educational system in this country is going to hell precisely because we have gotten to the point where we think we need to bribe students.

It's time we started looking at teachers who make a difference in their student's lives and rewarded them. Or, better, got rid of those teachers who do nothing for their students. Just showing up for a paycheck is perhaps the attitude that made students uninterested in learning. Let's correct that before we start doling out bribes to get students to do work.

Now I think I'll read that article.