Ultrinsic

[Anthony Roman Inga]

A few weeks ago I saw a new report about a website called: "Ultrinsic". For those of you whom haven't seen it, it's a website where college students put an amount of money for them to earn (or lose) depending on their grades. This is supposed to motivate students to study and work towards the grade they want, and if they achieve their desired grade, they earn the amount of money they put down for it. Another factor involves them losing the money if they fail to earn it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TqtA8BgBqk It is a financial incentive for students to do their work, and perform well, but what is your opinion on this? Do you think it is right that students to earn money for their grades, and how does this compare to other forms of motivation? Such as natural interest or curiosity for a particular subject. Or is it an effect of industrialized schooling?

[Meredith]

They put the money down, themselves? Not their parents or teachers? Then its their choice and their gamble. Some of those folks may have been paid for better grades by their parents and have decided to continue the strategy. Some may be trying it as an attempt to motivate themselves. Some, undoubtedly, are savvy enough to know what kinds of grades they'll get in advance, so its easy money.

how does this compare to other forms of motivation? Such as natural interest or curiosity for a particular subject

People who've been through twelve years of school often have lost a lot of their ability to self-motivate and actively rely on external motivation. Some will "deschool" from that after high-school or college, but some people never do. Of course external motivation is different from internal, but there are plenty of kids in college because that's what they're "supposed to do" with their lives rather than by something like a real choice.

There are lots of things Ray does because they interest him, but there's also a certain amount of work he does just for the money. He has a lot of skills useful to farmers, but things like fencing and running a tractor aren't all that exciting - they are, however, jobs he finds useful at meeting his financial goals, and are "easy money" by his standards, having been raised around farms, and with farmboy skills. There's nothing inherently Wrong with being motivated by something like cash flow.

[Sandra Dodd]

Thirty years or so ago there were "blackmail diets." People would make wagers about who could lose the most weight. But in advance, they would write checks to charities they would never want to give any money to. And the loser's check would be mailed.

It's gambling. Gambling is ancient.

[Anthony Roman Inga]

Nice responses ;)