Month: April 2020

This article first appeared in the Teaching Professor on December 13, 2017. © Magna Publications. All rights reserved.

Teachers and students can give each other priceless gifts. “Professor Jones changed my life!” The comment is usually followed by the story of a teacher in love with content, students, and learning. How many times have I told the story of my advisor who was the first person to suggest I could be a college professor? We love to hear and tell these stories because they are remarkable and inspiring. A student and a teacher connect during one small segment of the student’s life, yet through that tiny window of time can blow a gust strong enough to change the direction of that life.

And students gift us with stories that bear witness to life-changing encounters with teachers. I recently read Fred Heppner’s description of the three teachers who changed his life.

The Marble Jar Reward System

This article will demonstrate the Marble Jar Reward system as a method of extrinsic motivation in your primary to elementary students. While you can use this reward system for every age group, by middle to high school, students should be more intrinsically motivated and may deem behavior reinforcers such as a reward system too juvenile.

The Marble Jar Reward System is a common classroom management tool to help reinforce desired behaviors. This positive reinforcement strategy is typically utilized as a whole class reward system but can also be modified for individual students. The most common use of the Marble Jar System is for the teacher to set up a glass jar in an easily viewable location, like the top of a shelf or her desk. Choose a jar size that is not too large; or, if you choose a large jar, add a tired system