Advantages and Disadvantages of Tangible Reward Systems

International School of Beijing, 10 An Hua Street, Shunyi District, Beijing 101318, P.R. China

^* Corresponding author: rayna.ma@student.isb.bj.edu.cn

Abstract

The tangible reward system is defined as the use of material and symbolic rewards to influence students’ behaviors. Tangible rewards are widely used in all education systems and have been researched from multiple aspects. However, investigations on the impact of tangible reward systems revealed controversial results. This article summarizes studies that support and oppose the ongoing debate on whether teachers should use tangible reward systems in classrooms. Previous publications on the impact of the tangible reward system on students from kindergarten to undergraduates were analyzed. The findings were compared on different conditions such as grade levels, countries and regions, and the views of parents, teachers, and students. Literatures indicated that the tangible reward system could be used by teachers to an extent for young students or unmotivated classes only as an initial guide to lead students toward adequate learning behavior and self-motivation. Several suggestions were proposed on how to effectively use tangible rewards in the classroom.