Should Students Be Paid to Improve Their Test Performance?

• In Event: The Many Faces of High-Stakes Accountability

Abstract

I used meta-analytic methods to determine the impact of offering monetary incentives to students to improve their test performance. I found the impact to be weakly positive for overall achievement (β = 0.074) as well as for mathematics achievement (β = 0.094), but null for reading/language arts achievement (β = 0.037). There was no impact of monetary incentives on students’ intrinsic motivation, attendance, or self-reported study habits. I supplemented the meta-analysis with a narrative review, where the evidence was mixed with regards to whether treatment estimates could be sustained after the removal of the incentives and whether larger cash payments were associated with stronger program impact. Results are discussed in light of policy implications and future directions for research.

Author

• Vi-Nhuan Le, NORC at the University of Chicago