Matt Perry strategy journal 2

I have just finished doing chapter 4 in the Marzano book and a huge lightbulb went off over my head. First off I want to make it crystal clear that I adore my teacher she has helped me so much working with these younger students because I am accustomed to 7th and 8th graders not 5th graders(I am in Ohio 5th graders are in middle school). The one thing that stands out to me where she needs improvement is how she rewards and praises her students. I am there for the first two classes of the day. The first period class is middle to high functioning and they do quite well in class. When we are going around playing a trivia game or working together on a map or something she will hand out treats or stickers or something like that for getting an answer correct. This seems perfectly fine to me and according to Marzano she is doing an alright job when it comes to this class. The problem occurs when the second period class starts, the children are low functioning and they struggle at times in the classroom. Instead of just giving out treats or other rewards when they get an answer right she will give them both verbal and treat rewards when they come even close to the correct answer. According to Marzano this is detrimental to both the students who get the answers correct and the students who answer incorrectly. It hurts the students who got the answer correct because they see that they no longer have to try their hardest to get the question right because they see that giving it the ole college try will get them the same reward. The students who answer incorrectly are reinforced for their incorrect answer so they try just the same or even a little less. Hopefully after reading this chapter I will be able to implement a reward system when I run my classrooms that fosters a determination in my students to do the best job that they can at all times.