Let's ban the sticker, stamp and star

Enough is enough

Every time I explain my anger to anyone not working in education, they literally cannot believe it. I am talking about ClassDojo, Vivo Miles, and any other counter-productive, damaging contingent reward system. It might be a sticker chart on the wall or a fancy computer program. The result is the same: disengaged, resentful children.

What's bad for the goose

How would you like to be publicly graded every day? Imagine a cute little avatar that represented you, visible to your colleagues. If it would make you feel uncomfortable at best, or angry and resentful at worst — why would children feel any differently? If you wouldn't do it to adults, do not do it to children. Children are actually less able to rationalise it.

And if you are against performance-related pay, you have to be against contingent reward systems for children — because performance-related pay is just a contingent reward system for grown-ups.

Don't we measure children enough already?

Babies are born and the first thing we do is measure their weight. Can they tie their shoelaces? Can they add, subtract, use connectives? And so it goes on. Do we really have to try to measure their goodness too, and put it in a chart? A smile, a thumbs-up, a quiet word — often that is all that is needed. But we do not think about the subtle when we have so many rewarding sledgehammers at our disposal.

A note on the little ones: I am not against giving a reception child a sticker. Of course I'm not. I am suggesting that as soon as we can recognise their efforts in a more subtle way, we should do so.

The problem is, they work — a bit

These well-meaning companies would not sell any subscriptions if their products did not work at all. Of course they work to a degree. You are more likely to improve performance in a specified area when it is linked to a reward.

But contingent rewards are great for motivating salespeople and terrible for encouraging ethical behaviour. Vivo Miles are great at encouraging children to complete a certain task — and actually demotivate them to complete tasks for which they are not rewarded. We rob children of the desire to be self-motivated.

Contingent rewards are great for sales directors. They are terrible for children.

Recognise instead of reward

Most schools and teachers just need to make subtle changes to their practice:

1. Stop giving any form of individual reward that can be counted. This includes ClassDojo, Vivo Miles, stickers, stamps, and good behaviour awards. Stop it now.
2. Concentrate your efforts on the subtleties of building genuine relationships.
3. Celebrate and recognise great effort and achievement in the ways great schools have always done: celebration assemblies, Golden Books, show-and-tell, displays. Use blogging and social media to share the good stuff.

Your reward will be happier, intrinsically motivated children.