51- BRIBE

One of the greatest challenges I face as a teacher is to help my students become better readers. Schools all over the nation struggle with students who have no interest in books. The big questions is: How can teachers turn the students into lifelong readers? After plenty of trial and error, researchers found a mediocre answer to our nation’s reading dilemma: bribery.
My school is one of many within the United States to implement a popular reading incentive program. I have nicknamed the program BRIBE.
BRIBE awards students “points” as a prize for reading a book. Every time a child reads a book that is compatible with the BRIBE program, they are able to take a computerized test on the story. If the student makes an 80% or better on their test, they earn points. These points accumulate over the year as students strive to reach their reading goal. BRIBE texts are color-coded according to grade level and points are allotted according to difficulty. Teachers have mixed feelings about BRIBE, as there are many pros and cons.
Administrators are often the biggest fans of BRIBE. Principal and The Intimidator are often asking how our BRIBE scores are doing. The more points a class earns, the happier the administration. Teachers post their class roster of accumulated BRIBE points outside their classroom doors, for all to see. If a teacher does not have high BRIBE scores in her classroom, Principal will be concerned and ask if there’s a problem.
Teachers often set up additional incentive programs within their classrooms; if a student earns a specific amount of BRIBE points in a quarter, they are allowed to attend a special party. The Media Center has also set up a school wide contest; the two students (one boy and one girl) to earn the most points, before Christmas, will win a bicycle.
BRIBE has many flaws. There are thousands of titles listed with the program, but the collection is nowhere close to including all of the children’s books available. This makes students uninterested in any book that is not a BRIBE book. If they can’t earn BRIBE points, they’re not interested in reading.
BRIBE also creates a bad sense of self- esteem. Not all students in a grade read at the same level; this can make friends feel inferior (or superior). “Why does Gaby always get to read green, when I can only read pink?” Students learn to select books by color-code, rather than genuine interest. Many kids have no idea what type of stories they actually like to read.
Unfortunately, BRIBE does not help children learn to read. The reading incentive program is unintentionally biased; BRIBE caters to the skilled readers. The strong readers easily earn points, while a struggling reader can try their hardest and still be excluded from parties and prizes.
The list of BRIBE drawbacks is lengthy. Many students are so desperate to earn points, they barely bother to read. These children will find any BRIBE book they can, scan it quickly and then rush to the computer to take a test. These students are gamblers and usually fail BRIBE tests and earn few points. It is faster and easier to take several BRIBE tests a day, with hopes of earning a few points, than it is to spend time carefully reading an entire book. Gambler students are easily identified by their high accumulation of BRIBE points and low test score average.
Despite BRIBE’s few positive attributes, the incentive program does encourage students to read. The kids’ desires to earn points and prizes outweigh their dread of reading. During free time, students will ask if they can read a BRIBE book. Although the list is short, the fact that BRIBE does get students to read makes the program worthwhile.
My students, whom have been trained for years by previous teachers, are BRIBE addicts. They beg to take BRIBE tests on the computer. They compete with each other for the highest BRIBE test average and point accumulation. I don’t fight the BRIBE mania, but I don’t encourage it.