Paying People to Parent?

[Samson]

So if you're asking if I think they manipulated all of that data (to produce results that just happen to agree with evaluations of similar programs implemented in other countries, including the United States), my answer would be no, not unless there is a compelling reason to believe that.

Then, you are naive.

"IFPRI evaluation can only be characterized as extremely positive."

No. A "percentage increase of enrollment over 20 percent for girls and 10 percent for boys," is not "extremely positive," especially given that the actual number of females and males populating the control group and the test group are mysteriously missing from the description of the statistical basis.

For example, if the control group included 100 boys, and the test group included 100 boys, then if 100 boys in the test group remained enrolled compared to 90 in the control group, then there would be a 10% difference in enrollment.

If the next year, the 100 boys in the test group remained enrolled, and compared with 89 in the control group, then there would be a 10%= ((11-10)/10)X 100 increase in enrollment!! However, there really was practically no difference between one year and the next.


What would be much more interesting to see would be the following ratio:

Total program cost/(#boys in control group enrolled - #boys in test group enrolled)

 

[chanel]

More interesting to me would be an American study. In Uganda, enrollment goes up if you give the kid a pencil. Errrr!

 

[chanel]

Oh brother. Here's another one:

In the past week, two school districts have announced plans to start paying parents to attend school events such as parent-teacher conferences. A small-scale effort is planned in Delaware, while a $1.5 million program was announced in Houston. (The Houston plan includes the discredited idea of paying students for increased test scores. These comes four months after New York City admitted failure and ended a project that paid parents to, among other things, attend school events.

There is no question that schools should try hard to connect with parents. Studies have found that students are more successful academically when there is a strong parent/school connection. Research last year found that schools would need to increase spending by $1000 per student in order to gain the same increase in student achievement that comes from successful parent engagement. The methodology of that study, in fact, was even reviewed and validated by the Washington Post’s expert pollster, Jon Cohen.

Education Secretary Arne Duncan and the Obama administration can encourage schools to expand parent “engagement” efforts and recognize many different schools that have successful parent engagement models.

The Answer Sheet - Why paying parents to attend school events is wrong

Hey greenbeard - about that NYC thing....

 

[Samson]

More interesting to me would be an American study. In Uganda, enrollment goes up if you give the kid a pencil. Errrr!

Well, that's the next point.

In Uganda, or Mexico, the program $US cost/student would be much lower.

E.g. because of Title I free and reduced lunches are offered at public schools, has enrollment been rising, with millions of Hungry American children graduating to keep themselves from starving????



No, instead the incidence of obesity has gone up.