Reward and Punishment: Helpful or Hurtful

If you have not started the habit of rewarding with material prizes-don't!

A conception among some, parents and teachers alike, is that rewards and punishment can be useful and effective when trying to motivate a child to do a desired task, such as homework. However, pupils who are lured into doing something for a reward are less likely to do it again if no reward is given. Similarly, punishment or consequences often evokes in a child feeling of anger, defiance and a desire for revenge. This means that reward and punishment, even if it seems minor, could produce the opposite of the desired effect.

The most effective type of reward is giving praise. Praise that is effective because it refers directly to specific task performances, it is most effective because it emphasizes that success depends on the amount of effort one put in. Receiving praise and good feedback assists learners in evaluating themselves, helping them to create reachable goals. Once your child has established goals for homework or studying, they have already begun the process of becoming a self-regulated learner, or a child who has knowledge of effective learning strategies and how and when to use them. A parent's goal should be to help their child become a self-regulated learner.

Overall, rewards and punishments should be avoided if at all possible. They are quick fixes for parents who want to motivate their children to do well in school. In the long run, learners will be more motivated and eager to learn if their motivation is not determined by conditional extrinsic factors, but intrinsic ones. Using praise only when a child has done well. It is a mild form of reward that can teach that the amount of effort exerted and success are positively linked