What Age/Level Did You Really Start Studying? How to Encourage Your Kid To Study?

[city]

Contrary to popular myth, there are many studies showing that when children expect or anticipate rewards, they perform more poorly. One study found that students’ performance was undermined when offered money for better marks. A number of American and Israeli studies show that reward systems suppress students’ creativity, and generally impoverish the quality of their work. Rewards can kill creativity, because they discourage risk-taking. When children are hooked on getting a reward, they tend to avoid challenges, to "play it safe". They prefer to do the minimum required to get that prize.

Here is a good illustration of why we made the mistake of believing in rewards, based on benefits that appear on the surface. When an American fast-food company offered food prizes to children for every book they read, reading rates soared. This certainly looked encouraging - at first glance. On closer inspection, however, it was demonstrated that the children were selecting shorter books, and that their comprehension test-scores plummeted. They were reading for junk-food, rather than for the intrinsic enjoyment of reading. Meanwhile, reading outside school (the unrewarded situation) dropped off. There are many more studies showing that, while rewards may well increase activity, they smother enthusiasm and kill passion. Individuals anticipating rewards lose interest in activities that were otherwise attractive. It seems that the more we want the reward, the more we come to dislike what we have to do to get it. The activity required of us stands in the way of our coveted prize. It would have been smarter to just give the kids more interesting books, as there is plenty of evidence that intrinsically enjoyable activity is the best motivator and performance enhancer.

[city]

^^just borrowed that up from a very interesting site. and i agree.

rewards kill passion and creativity.

[empy]

i don't think i ever "really started" studying...and i went from nursery school all the way through a master's degree.

i guess i just feel that i never reached my potential...o baka tamad lang talaga :bwahaha:

but it's true that the people skills and leadership experience through my extracurriculars were just as important to me out here in the real world as my book knowledge.

[CVT]

Thank you guys for all your input. Sana nga latebloomer lang ang aking panganay katulad ni CLAVEL3699.
And with M54_Powered, who hasn't really exerted so much effort, but has achieved so much,- it speaks well of your genealogy and ability. My kudos!
Kay GlennSter naman who has 'really studied' almost all of his life and is willing to start over and continue studying,- hats off!
Ihateyouandme surely is competitive. It augurs well to what we see now in the real world, specially with this thing called globalization. We need a lot like you to turn this country around.
As for me, I really never stopped studying. Unlike M54_Powered, I always give 100% of what I have to supplement my natural (limited) ability to absorb knowledge. Maybe it is not the high tech things we learn that counts most,- but in our self-discipline to learn new things inspite of the hurdles and difficulties, that we become more equipped to adapt to situations in our environment.
I really never asked my son to get high grades,- just for him to give his best in the things that he's doing. At the end of the day, he will not be wondering, what if...? Maybe I am asking too much from him. Maybe I want him to be 'just like me'... I really appreciate your input... It has helped me a lot during the last couple of days....

[city]

enjoy while he's young...his best will surface naturally. be his buddy. nothing beats a father and son team as the best motivator when it comes to learning.

[mazdamazda]

IMO...

what is more important is the school / teachers that your kid is facing with.

my belief is that, if magaling ang teacher and na-absorb na niya sa classroom yung mga tinuro, hindi na kailangan mag-aral sa bahay other than to do assignments and stuff.

[GlennSter]

i think the "rewards" or any other style of learning is also culture based.psychologist should also consider culture if they are to use this method.

for the filipinos...i strongly believed that we are inherently creative and passionate about things. so i strongly believe that for filipinos, "rewards" system is GENERALLY a good style for parents.

[empy]

CVT, thanks for the kind words, but i don't mean to imply that i cruised through student life without being challenged - i'm hardly a prodigy. there was many a time when i failed, or didn't perform well, because i could have put more effort in.

definitely a lesson learned that i am applying towards the raising of my own son. wag kang gumaya sa tatay mo! whapaak!! :twak:

[city]

Rewards and praise condition children to seek approval; they end up doing things to impress, instead of doing things for themselves. This can hold back the development of self-motivation and makes them dependent on outside opinion. When children get used to getting goodies for "performing", they become pleasers, over-reliant on positive strokes. Rewards and praise can create a kind of addictive behavior: children can get addicted to recognition, and thus lose touch with the simple joy of doing what they love. So many of us are addicted to prestige: we get depressed when admiration fails to come. Instead of doing what we do for its own sake, we fish for flattery or reassurance, and when the applause dies away, we sink into despair. Giving rewards or praise can be habit-forming. This is because the more rewards we use, the more we have to use them to keep children motivated. Praise cannot create a personal commitment to "good" behavior or performance. It only creates a commitment to seeking praise.

[miLes]

GlennSter - pareho tayo 21 years nagaral

CVT im sure your kid will turn out fine, the fact that you're one concerned parent and you're even willing to learn and ask advice on how to encourage studying, my parents were never like that, yes they gave support but not verbally or rather showingly and i turned out fine, never at the top of the class but i finished through everything even getting a gold medal at college