I would like one of those telecycles myself.
About the tuition, that is somewhat the effect of tying scholarship moneys
to GPA. We get the same effect that you described by lowering tuition to
those who receive scholarships based on grade performance. Students who
need a certain GPA to keep their scholarships will go to great lengths to
preserve their grades, at the expense of learning. They will drop a class
because they fear that they will not get a high enough grade, select easy
course fare, select easy professors, and get anxious if the professor
diverges from test-specific material. Don't you see this behavior? I do. In
the learned helplessness versus mastery orientation approaches to
achievement motivation, lh has performance as its goal, and mastery
orientation has learning for its own sake, as its goal. Thus, learning for
its own intrinsic joy is sabotaged when we reward test performance with
extrinsic rewards- e.g., grades tied to scholarship money- which
constitutes another form of the overjustification effect.
At 01:35 PM 4/20/99 -0400, Michael Sylvester wrote:
>
>THe Associated press reports that a researcher has found a way to get
>teens to lose weight.
>A stationary exercise cylce is connected to a television in such a way
>that the TV
>will only stay on contingent on pedaling behavior.When the teen stops
>pedaling the TV goes off.
>This pedaling-per-view (ppv) seem to work in reducing weight.
>Would this be a good example of the Premack principle?
>A low probability behavior (exercise) is being reinforced by a high
>probability response (watching TV).
>The researcher also postulates that if people had to pay to ride elevators
>and escalators,walking behavior would increase.Let me know about this
>idea:
>Would students improve academically if tuition was tied to GPA?
>For example,students getting a 2.0 average one term would pay higher
>tuition on the subsequent term,whereas those with a 3.0 average would
>see no tuition increase for them on the subsequent semester.
>
>MIchael Sylvester
>Daytona Beach,Florida
> "my karma ran over my dogma."
>
>
Dr. Joyce Johnson
Assistant Professor of Psychology
Developmental/ Experimental
Centenary College of Louisiana
Shreveport, LA
