In a previous blog post I explored the unique nature of my local-school. It is the only single-track school in all of Saskatoon Public School Division. All students are enrolled in French Immersion. According to our programming the only time students or teaching staff should speak English is during English Language Arts. I am very pleased to be placed at this school and enjoy many of the perks of a single-track French Immersion school.
At our school we have a problem, not all students willingly speak French as much as they are expected. A local-school committee was been struck to explore ways to increase the use of French by all students and staff in the school. This committee put forward a recommendation to the staff to create incentive programs to encourage students to speak French as much as possible.
One of these programs, Ici on Parle, has staff weekly evaluating students’ effort to speak French in and out of class. This data is then forwarded to the local-school principal where it is tracked and plotted for the school. Students who score 9 or 10 out of 10 are then awarded star status and their name is placed on a billboard. The principal has been making announcement in the morning welcoming new students who have been awarded star status. Reminders and encouragement are offered to all students to keep working at this goal.
Our last school assembly officially closed the first reporting period for French use in our school. It was announced at the assembly that students who had gained star status were going to be treated to a pizza party on behalf of the school. Students with star status were recognized in front of the school with a certificate.
Since the assembly, more students are trying to be recognized for star status knowing that the previous group of students were treated to a pizza lunch to recognize their effort. The incentive program has increased the number of students who are speaking French and making an effort to use French as much as possible at our school.
Here is where I was curriously surprised. One student that I work with outside of his regular classroom was granted star status by his classroom teacher. Because he had star status he was able to enjoy the free pizza lunch. When working with this student he seldomly ever makes an effort to use French in class. I was quite surprised to see him recognized at the school assembly. The next day I asked him, “Comment as-tu pu être une étoile si tu ne parles jamais en Français?” (How were you able to be a star if you never speak French?) He smiled and said, “My teacher gives us French dollars in class so I speak French so ha!” This student will happily conform to any desired behaviour so long as there is an incentive. The school’s incentive motivates him to speak French so he does. His regular classroom teacher’s incentive motivates him to speak French so he does. In my program there is no incentive to speak French, it is expected. This student does not meet this expectation because there is no incentive to motivate his behaviour (although use of French is evaluated and documented on the Progress Report he receives).
This has always been my concern with incentive programs. In exchange for something of value, persons conform to a desired behaviour or action. In most cases, once the incentive is removed or left in place for too long thus removing it’s allure, the incentive no longer incites the ideal behaviour or outcome.
I am a life-long learner. I am exited about learning new things and the process of discovery (My friends call me a nerd). My reward for being a life-long learner is intrinsic. How can life-long learning be possible for students if their every action is motivated by something extrinsic (one could equate the Progress Report to an incentive program not so much a report of student growth). Learning needs to be learner-focused and draw heavily on the persons schema, passions, and interests. If it isn’t, our society’s answer seems to be- extrinsic motivations will get people where we want them to be.
