Blog Assignment #12

As you watch RSA Animate - Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us think of the video in terms of education. After watching the video answer the following questions: ~Do you think grades are a reward? ~Do you think people/children do better when there is a reward present? Why or why not? ~
Why do you think people/children do worse on creative task rather than straight forward task? ~Do you like Mr. Pink’s points on autonomy and mastery? ~Do you agree or disagree with Dan Pink’s final statement about if we can get past the ideology of treating people poorly, we could make the world a little bit better?~What do you think of this video in terms of education?

Do you think grades are a reward?  
I think after watching this video that grades , in a school situation, are rewards for good deeds. When I say deeds I mean a good assignment or test. Sometimes rewards can be over used though.
Do you think people/children do better when there is a reward present? Why or why not?
I think for simple task, if you get a reward you do tend to do better because you know you’ll be getting something. But when it comes to creative task, sometimes people don’t do as well because they aren’t pushed in education to become creative thinkers.

Why do you think people/children do worse on creative task rather than straight forward task?
Kids do better on straight forward task because it’s easier and inside the box, but when a child has to be creative sometimes the task becomes hard. This is because kids aren’t learning much creativity in schools. Sure some schools I’m sure are more creative than others but as a generation a lot of kids have issues with being creative.

Do you like Mr. Pink’s points on autonomy and mastery?  
I did like Mr. Pink’s points. Autonomy stuck out because he said “If you want engagement self directed is better.” I liked that sentence. When you get money out of the picture and then let people collaborate they seem to do a better job. This is because they are self directed. They get to choose who they want to work with and what they want to create.  Mastery is so very true. We all do have the urge to get better at things. Mr. Pink had an example of a person playing a musical instrument. People play music not always for the money but because it’s fun and satisfying to get better at it. I liked they way he mentions mastery as being a purpose motive, and I also liked when he mentioned the founder of skype and said “Our goal is to be destructive but in the cause of making the world a better place.” I think in many ways that statement is true.

Do you agree or disagree with Dan Pink’s final statement about if we can get past the ideology of treating people poorly, we could make the world a little bit better?
I agree with Mr. Pink on making the world a little bit better. I think if we do treat people like people and let them be self direct they will be more creative, productive, and successful.

What do you think of this video in terms of education?
This video has a lot to do with education. We as teachers reward our students with grades instead of money, but it has the same effect. Students may would do better if we cut grades because then they could do something they would be proud of not just to get a passing grade (I am a fan of grades but sometimes they aren’t necessary). I also think autonomy and mastery is also very big in education. Kids do like to be self directed and do things on their own. They also try and try until they master a task. We as teachers are there to push them to succeed! This video was very educational and I really enjoyed it.