Paying students to go to school

Hey all, I live in California and one of my good friends who is a teacher mentioned that they are starting a pilot program to pay students to go to school.

No, this isn't a joke. The pilot program is starting in the valley. It is originally going to be a small test group of 35 "at risk" low income students.

Basically they will have to apply for the program and get accepted based on needs.

This isn't for the top students, nor the bottom ones. It is targetted at the middle group who may or may not stay in school and make decent grades.

They will make minimum wage and have to maintain certain academic and attendance standards. They get paid half in cash (minus taxes and everything like a real job) and the other half goes into a mutual fund ideally to help fund college.

I'd love to hear some input on this. I know what my initial feeling were.

I'm in school, and i would love to get paid. But sadly by the time it gets to Oklahoma I'll be out of high school. I'm finally a senior!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lol! I was lucky enough to be part of one of these tests, over two years! For my last 2 years of High School, i got £40 a week! It was Sweet!!
There was an attendence figure that you had to get over a space of time, something like 80% over the month.

I am in the U.K. but what you described sounds a lot like what i had.
Heck, i got £40 a week out of it, even when i planned on staying on!
Take the Money and Run!!!!

Originally posted by PurityOfPeace
I am in the U.K. but what you described sounds a lot like what i had.
Heck, i got £40 a week out of it, even when i planned on staying on!
Take the Money and Run!!!!

Was it sixthform with the EMA or EMI or whatever its called, every year below mine gets it...arh well.
Its funny I'm now in my last year of school (17-18) well only have a few exams then I'm free but the year below mine is twice as big as my year, and the year thats coming up to become lower sixth is twice as big as the current lower sixth.
Money related.....me thinks so.


Note to explain the English Education System:
You can leave school at 16 at GCSE level, but if the option is there you can stay on for 1 more year and get AS Levels or stay on for two years and get A Levels (I'm finishing off my A Levels)

16-17: Lower Sixth: AS Levels
17-18: Upper Sixth: A Levels

I really cannot remember what it was called, it was a couple of years ago now for me. I guess all such programs would be similar, so what i had, chances are, is the same thing you have at your school.

Good luck on your exams Wizard!!

Hmm, so apparently the opportunity to get a free high school education isn't enough to motivate some people, they have to get paid while doing it, too? I don't think this idea should be implemented myself, even though I think it would be cool to get free money. The chance to learn and better yourself, and increase employability, should be enough to keep people in school. It's not like kids can't afford to go to public schools, considering it's free; I just don't see the point.

Yeah, i felt similar to what you are saying DragonsDemesne, it should be a big enough incentive to better yourself, with or without money.
Like i said, i planned on staying on, so for me the money was a total bonus!
I must admit though, in my year, the attendence stayed very high, as people knew that they would not be paid if they took needless days off. Therefore, people were in school for most classes, and i can say that it definitly helped many students better their grades.

I go to college in Britain- and because our family has a lower income i get something called ema- which means i get £30 a week- if i attend all lessons.
It is a good idea in a way- beacuse there is a high percentage of people who skive off school- BUT there is another side, it helps me with fees of travelling to college and alos lunches and so on ( i do have a part time job aswell!)- but it stops me from always asking my mum for money all the time!
As a student its great- as we are always skint!!

I'm in NJ, and i have a friend that for the past 3 years she has recieved money from a government scholarship program to go to college. I think its the State Govt of NJ, because she can only go to school here.
She doesn't get much usually like $5,000 per year, but she says it helps a lot.

edit to say: She also lives in a low income town in NJ and has a 4.0 GPA, Dean's list, ect. ect. ect... she's really smart.

[edit on 6-6-2005 by Where2Hide2006]

I should add that this is for middle school students, grades 7-8.

Originally posted by Marid Audran
I should add that this is for middle school students, grades 7-8.

Oh... well. I could kind of understand the program for people towards the end of school. Grades 7-8, are they not somewhat formative years!? What ages are 7th and 8th Graders? i guess around 12 or so, these school years probably shape the rest of every childs life in some way!
They should not need money to lure them in at that age.

The idea is that they see stuff that they want at that age (new sneakers, xbox, etc.) and hopefully they will not turn to selling drugs or gangs to get this stuff.

It was pointed out to me that basically in schools they condition the kids with a socialist mentality and then when they hit the real world they are ill-prepared for life in the capitalist world. It was hoping that this, combined with some early financial planning classes would help break these kids out of the cycle of poverty.

Originally posted by PurityOfPeace
Good luck on your exams Wizard!!

thanks

Originally posted by misspickle
it helps me with fees of travelling to college and alos lunches and so on ( i do have a part time job aswell!)- but it stops me from always asking my mum for money all the time!
As a student its great- as we are always skint!!

I think the EMA has good and bad aspects, at my sixthform however there are people who are going to sixthform simply because their friends are and they can now get a little bit of money.

I'd raise my hand to the idea of splitting the EMA three ways:

1. A general increase to the front line standards of equipment.
2. A small financial bonus for high coursework and exam results (sixthform/college not for GCSE).
3. An increase in assistant funding for those who need it due to financial reasons.

I guess with the scrapping of the EMA, the fund could easily be split between the three ways.


[edit on 7-6-2005 by UK Wizard]

I don't like that their starting this in 7th and 8th grade. I mean there grades don't count. So why would they even bother then. I mean If i were a student in 7th or 8th grade I would keep my grades up while they are paying me. But when I became a freshman I would garentee that my grades would probably drop becuase I wouldn't care about them, bc I'm not getting paid for them.

Forgive me if I missed it, but who is paying for this? Where is the money coming from?

Originally posted by Jonna
Forgive me if I missed it, but who is paying for this? Where is the money coming from?

Currently it is private funds, however, if successful there is the possibility of perhaps attempting to gain some public funding. There is a new Rand study coming out soon showing that California is really sucking in education and both sides of the aisle will be using it to press their agendas.

Basically, the idea for eventual public funding is that the taxpayers end up paying for these students anyway through the prison system, so why not pay early, keep them in school and then hopefully keep them out of prison.

If i was a tax payer in California. I would hate to pay kids to stay in school. I feel the deserve what they get. If they decided to drop out of school and one day end up in prison. Its their fault. People warned them. We shouldn't bribe people like that. Its a waste of money.

Where will the money come from? Taxes?
Who applies, the student or the parent?
will the kid get ALL the money or will parents "keep" it?
Do the parents work....or do they see this as a means to support them?

In that case.....I say NO!! Why should I have to pay someone to go
to school? huh?

That's called proper parenting!! Send your kid to school, if he/she does not go then bring them to school and humiliate them. Im not talking about skipping a day here or there...im talking about the kids who skip like weeks and days at a time......

I DO NOT want my tax dollars supporting some little kid that cant even motivate himself to go to school without getting paid. BS.

Self motivation! School sucks, oh well....it's your life...not mine...
my money...not some kids.

I never got paid, only time I missed was sick times or doctor times for checkup on leg and back my sophmore year after my car accident.

Don't they have truant officers? SO if the little bugger is skipping can punish him?

Also, if they start paying, I am going to sue so I get money. I went to school for 12(13 if you count KG) years and never got paid. That's it, wait for the lawsuit, 12 years, 30 bucks a week for 25.7 weeks a year, that is 771 a year, 9252 for 12 years. I'll take cash.

Originally posted by SportyMB
Where will the money come from? Taxes?
Who applies, the student or the parent?
will the kid get ALL the money or will parents "keep" it?
Do the parents work....or do they see this as a means to support them?

In that case.....I say NO!! Why should I have to pay someone to go
to school? huh?

That's called proper parenting!! Send your kid to school, if he/she does not go then bring them to school and humiliate them. Im not talking about skipping a day here or there...im talking about the kids who skip like weeks and days at a time......

I DO NOT want my tax dollars supporting some little kid that cant even motivate himself to go to school without getting paid. BS.

Self motivation! School sucks, oh well....it's your life...not mine...
my money...not some kids.

Exactly! Who would want to pay for someone to go to school when they don't even want to go? If they want to ruin their life by being a dumb dropout, then let them! They will face the consequences shortly after.