Why Parents Shouldn't Offer Cash for Good Grades

I can understand the incentive to reward students with cash for good grades. The motivation of getting enough money for that new video game or trip to the mall can be all a student needs to actually focus on school work. But there are a few hidden problems that might not be apparent at first with rewarding academic performance with money.

To begin, when do you start rewarding this type of behavior? In my own experience, parents rarely decide to encourage students already performing well in school with cash rewards; it's the sibling who is struggling who is offered the prize. This creates a double standard awarding one time efforts versus consistent performances that could result in intentionally poor academic performances from the consistent student. The only thing that can make this situation worse is when parents say "But you don't need the money to do well." A young student wouldn't understand that. Their A is worth just as much as their brother's A, but their brother is rewarded while they are ignored.

Additionally, there is a difference between getting a good grade and actually learning. Students motivated primarily by a monetary reward may very well just be memorizing the facts and parroting back everything their teachers say. This can easily allow them to excel in a primary education environment. Memorization exercises are a great way to stimulate the brain, but there is far more to learning than being able to run off a list of every president or all the counties in a given state. Students should be encouraged to actively participate in school to expand their minds, not their wallets. By offering a cash incentive to do well, a struggling student will inevitably take the shortest route possible: no thought, just action. In the end, the student is no better off when they reach a situation requiring actual critical thought than if they never received those good grades for cash in the first place.

Finally, rewarding students with cash for good grades establishes an unrealistic perspective of the world at a young age. If a child receives money every time they get an A, they'll soon begin to expect rewards for every good thing they do throughout their life. What if they go out for the sports team, put in a great effort, and don't make it on at all? Are they going to wonder why they were punished? Is the parent going to try and encourage them to do better by throwing money at them till they're a football star? While money may seem like a good incentive to improve a student's academic performance, it sets a bad example in their life. Most people will not be rewarded in such a tangible way for every good thing they do. It may be tempting to reward a child for good grades with money, but it just sets unrealistic expectations for how they will be treated in the real world for every good performance.

Parents should be encouraging their students to do well in school, but not by offering a cash reward for good grades. The motivation should be feeling good for a job well done, not feeling good because they can go to the movies with their own money. A mind is a terrible thing to waste just for a few extra bucks.