Drive assignment

Discuss a time when you’ve seen one of the seven deadly flaws of carrots and sticks in action. What lessons might you or others learn from the experience? Have you seen instances when carrots and sticks have been effective.







We currently have a Caught Being Good award system at our site.  If a teacher sees a behavior we want to encourage, they can give the child a slip that has the child's name, grade and classroom.  This slip then goes into a tub from which names a re pulled out each day.  If your name is pulled out, you can get a prize from the principal's prize box.  This system has good points and bad points.  Some students are thrilled that they have received a slip and have been recognized.  Most of these students probably would do these good deeds anyway without expecting any type of reward. For other students, I'm not seeing the same result.  These children ask if they pick up a piece of trash, or do their homework can they get a caught being good slip.  That's not really the point of the system.  These good deeds are part of what it is to be a good citizen at our school.  I wonder if this system for some works the opposite, just like what is stated in the book.  This isn't how real life works.  As adults, most of us don't expect someone to give us something tangible just because we do something kind for our community or for others.  I tend to put a name in the box for students who offer to help without asking for something in return.   I make sure that I put the reason why and read it if their name is called during morning announcements. Then it's a surprise for them. I go back and forth about this type of recognition system.  If our kids always expect a pat on a back whenever they do something courteous or that is well within their job description- they may be looked down upon by future acquaintances or employers.


I have sen carrots and stick systems work when it is done sparingly- like a contest.  For example, I wanted all of the federal survey cards back by a certain date two years ago.  I mean 100% of the cards back.  Our school is a uniform school and I don't give very many free dress days.  So I got on the PA system and stated that if we got all of the cards back, by " Date x", the whole school would get free dress the following Friday.  It worked, although, I still think the kids should have brought them back- just because.

As you think about your own best work, what aspect of autonomy has been most important to you? Autonomy over what you do (task), when you do it (time), how you do it (technique), or with whom you do it (team)? Why? How much autonomy do you have at work right now? Is it enough? 

I would say that at this time I would say autonomy with team is pretty important.  I have seen both as a classroom teacher and now as an administrator how important it is to work with people who have the similar goals, expectations, work ethic, and sense of responsibility and accountability to name a few things.  Unless you open a newly constructed school, most site principals do not get to choose who they work with when they come to a site.  There are different camps at a school- those who will go along with most ideas, those who can go with the majority, and those who make things difficult no matter what the idea is.  It makes what should be the simplest task excrutiating.  I do have some autonomy when I get to interview, however, lately it seems like Human Resources is just placing people at sites to get them off of their rolls- no matter if it is a fit to the school site or not. It is really difficult to move someone from your school site once they are there unless they decide to move themselves through post and bid processes.  Right now, I would say my team is my biggest challenge and I do not have much say over it as most were there when I got there and the out of the 8 moves that have happened during my tenure, I've only got to interview for one of them, the rest were placed.  Some have been great additions, others are taking a lot of work.  Nice people, but not fitting with either the school or neighborhood culture, lacking the teaching rigor needed in classrooms- it makes things challenging. At times, I feel like I'm spending a lot of time managing adult issues based upon the concerns I have listed above.  Contracts are alive and well in our district, and it's very difficult to move people unless they want to move.  Some flexibility in this would be good, although I'm not sure how to do this without it being seen as retaliatory in most cases.