This study tests the effectiveness of a program designed to use extrinsic incentives in improving the motivation of disadvantaged students to achieve academic success. This study seeks to determine whether the specific extrinsic rewards provided in the program actually improve the success of students on classroom tests. A secondary purpose of the study is to assess the extent to which that success, if achieved, becomes itself a reinforcement sufficient to maintain continued success in the classroom. Ignoring age and grade, students from the sixth, seventh, and eighth grades were grouped by their skill level in mathematics and assigned to an individual teacher. The study was conducted during four consecutive two-week periods. Base-line data were obtained during the first two-week period of both experimental and control students under regular classroom conditions. Extrinsic incentives were applied to the experimental group during each of the following two-week periods and identical measures were taken during the same period of both the experimental and control groups. The analysis-of-covariance statistical treatment was used to compare changes on test success. The .05 level of confidence was held as the standard for statistical significance. Two extrinsic incentives, a free movie and a monetary reward, were employed to bring about improved performance on mathematical tests. Separate and combined effects of the incentives were examined for the total group and for subgroups based on sex, ethnicity, and initial mathematics ability.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:unt.edu/info:ark/67531/metadc500791 |
| Date | 08 1900 |
| Creators | Ward, Gerald Wilson |
| Contributors | Smith, Paul F., Sunderman, Harold C., Cross, Charles Jack |
| Publisher | North Texas State University |
| Source Sets | University of North Texas |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | 3, v, 139 leaves: ill., Text |
| Rights | Public, Ward, Gerald Wilson, Copyright, Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. |
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