Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
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Student "Futures"

Micropayments to teachers based on student's later performance
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Stock options do incentivize the workers to look out for the long term interest of the company.

How about a similar thing for teachers? Maybe I could give 1% of my salary to a fund that contributed to any of my past teachers. This would be very little for me, but given that a teacher teaches ~1000 kids in their career, and I had ~100 teachers, this could add up to a good incentive.

I'd say this is really only 1/4 baked, since I can't seem to figure a way to do this where it would NOT lead to "productization" of the kiddies, and would NOT lead to every teacher trying to make their kids into salesmen, doctor, lawyers, and leave us with no social workers, volunteers, artists, etc...

Also, in a more far-fetched drawback, the teachers may go try to "off" each other... in cases like those teachers who taught Bill Gates (last one left would get more, since the 1% is split equally among past teachers...)

OK... let me bake this a bit longer by restricting this concept to strictly vocational programs (such as ITT Tech, DeVry U, and any training for a certification program). Here, the student has already nearly explicitly signed up to a goal that the outcome of this should be a long-term increase in salary. And maybe, instead of being mandatory, would allow the students to opt for a .1% tax for 10 years instead of paying all (or a sig. portion) of the tuition & fees.

And to bake it a bit longer, but burn the outside: Combine this with a tax-preparation service, so that the former student's income is efficiently & effectively measured & centi-tithed as per the deal.

sophocles, Aug 22 2003

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       I wish Bill Gates was my student.
kbecker, Aug 22 2003
  

       Well Soph, as you have said, this idea needs some work. It would be complicated. The feedback loop would be very slow. You have foreseen that abuse or distortions would creep in somewhere; they always do where money is involved. The proper incentive for teachers should be the satisfaction of doing a good job. The pay is reasonable as it is. I think we do not want teachers acting for the big payoff. It is usually clear which students are going to end up with the most money.
  

       You must have some experience either as teacher or student to inspire this quest for improvement in the system. You might like the following quick and simple remedy. This applies to tech students who want effective teaching because they need jobs to pay their student loans. Let them vote for the most useless instructor who will be fired at the end of each year. It would breath new life into the old school.
Fussass, Aug 23 2003
  

       Bad example. I believe that Bill Gates' school teachers had little to do with his success.   

       Nonetheless, I think good teachers are not paid what they're worth but I surely suffered through a lot of them that weren't worth what they were paid.
bristolz, Aug 23 2003
  

       I agree with you fully bristolz.
sartep, Aug 23 2003
  

       + for anything that gets teachers better compensation.
krelnik, Aug 23 2003
  

       Hmm. What about people who teach uncommercial subjects?
custardlove, Aug 23 2003
  

       How about a futures market in the students themselves? Would make an interesting form of student loan, especially for college.
BunsenHoneydew, Aug 24 2003
  

       //every teacher trying to make their kids into salesmen, doctor, lawyers, and leave us with no social workers, volunteers, artists, etc...//   

       Damn, you say it like artists are doomed to be financial losers. I think that menthality is what discourages those of us who would like to make art to make a living.
Pericles, Aug 24 2003
  

       Under your system, an amoral teacher should:   

       * Encourage trades such as bricklaying and interior decorating vs science, academia, arts and politics
* Encourage risk-taking and criminality in hope of a massive payoff
* Focus efforts entirely on the top 10% of the class.
* Fail poorly performing kids, ones with learning disabilities, or ones from a socially disadvantaged background
* Allow students with emotional problems to self-destruct to make way for money-earners
* Discourage higher education, especially doctorates, because the payback is much slower
* Punish students for non-academic extra-curricular activities
* Discourage social responsibility
* Discourage sport, because the probability payoff for athletes is low
FloridaManatee, Aug 25 2003
  

       Sorry [Bliss] that sounds to much 'Little house on the prairie' are you sure that's true? If so, shame on government funding.....next thing you know they'll be going back to chalk and small blackboards.
silverstormer, Aug 25 2003
  

       Heard on the radio the other day a woman who walks dogs for celebrities makes $150,000 a year. Teachers make $35,000 and have to buy their own supplies.   

       Puts it all into perspective.
ato_de, Aug 25 2003
  

       Yes it was done before under Public/Education reform/Teacher incentive program. It is still wrong.
Stocks, futures, money for nothing. The whole thing is the wrong model. Why waste the students’ time with dull old subjects when all that matters is more money? We should just be honest and teach them derivatives, how to set up well-disguised pyramid schemes, and all the great scams that there are no laws against yet, and then we will all be rich.
Fussass, Aug 26 2003
  

       In addition to Bristolz' point, Bill Gates is not as good an example as intended because his salary is modest compared with his reputation as the world's richest or second-richest person. With Bill, what you'd really want is a piece of his estate (though few, if any of his teachers will outlive him). Otherwise, you'd need a really questionable type of tax to get at his wealth.   

       As to a student futures market, I just read that the counselor at Condoleeza Rice's school deemed her "not college material." Then she (Rice) was accepted at Denver University at the age of 15, and later became assistant professor, full professor, and provost of Stanford University, becoming the youngest person to hold that position, as well as the first woman and the first non-white person.
beauxeault, Aug 26 2003
  
      
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