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City to pay students for higher test scores
Issue date: 2/14/08
Baltimore students struggling to pass Maryland's High School Assessments (HSA) will earn money for improving their scores, according to plans announced by the city's public school system.
Opponents have called the initiative a formalized system of bribery where the only incentive for the students to learn is money, a charge officials from the Baltimore City Public School System (BCPSS) deny.
"Bribery denotes that you are paying someone to do something that they are not supposed to do, something that's illegal, unethical or immoral. That is not the case with the HSA recovery program," said Tisha Edwards, special assistant to Andres Alonso, chief executive officer of the BCPSS.
"We are providing incentives to students that earn them based on the academic growth while participating in this program," she said.
"The research literature indicates that paying students to improve test scores is like giving athletes steroids. It can improve test scores but will not produce long-term gain," said Robert Schaeffer, public education director for the National Center for Fair and Open Testing.
"We end up creating students who believe that if they are not being paid, they don't need to put in the effort to learn," he said.
Baltimore students who have failed at least one exam will earn $25 for improving test performance by 5 percent. If they improve by an additional 15 percent, they will get $35 more.
A growth of 20 percent more earns an added $50, for a maximum of $110.
Starting next year, high school students in the state will be required to pass these tests in order to graduate.
This will be the first plan of its kind to be implemented in the state of Maryland.
"From a policy level it makes sense. Money is generally the best motivator, and if the system works efficiently, I'm sure that test scores will go up," said Justin Jones, a Hopkins sophomore and Baltimore City College graduate.
But as a Baltimorean and a student, Jones said he was "saddened that there is just no desire to learn. It reflects poorly on this city and this country that we have to pay this next generation to better themselves."
Opponents have called the initiative a formalized system of bribery where the only incentive for the students to learn is money, a charge officials from the Baltimore City Public School System (BCPSS) deny.
"Bribery denotes that you are paying someone to do something that they are not supposed to do, something that's illegal, unethical or immoral. That is not the case with the HSA recovery program," said Tisha Edwards, special assistant to Andres Alonso, chief executive officer of the BCPSS.
"We are providing incentives to students that earn them based on the academic growth while participating in this program," she said.
"The research literature indicates that paying students to improve test scores is like giving athletes steroids. It can improve test scores but will not produce long-term gain," said Robert Schaeffer, public education director for the National Center for Fair and Open Testing.
"We end up creating students who believe that if they are not being paid, they don't need to put in the effort to learn," he said.
Baltimore students who have failed at least one exam will earn $25 for improving test performance by 5 percent. If they improve by an additional 15 percent, they will get $35 more.
A growth of 20 percent more earns an added $50, for a maximum of $110.
Starting next year, high school students in the state will be required to pass these tests in order to graduate.
This will be the first plan of its kind to be implemented in the state of Maryland.
"From a policy level it makes sense. Money is generally the best motivator, and if the system works efficiently, I'm sure that test scores will go up," said Justin Jones, a Hopkins sophomore and Baltimore City College graduate.
But as a Baltimorean and a student, Jones said he was "saddened that there is just no desire to learn. It reflects poorly on this city and this country that we have to pay this next generation to better themselves."
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