I agree that a monetary reward is a bad idea and that for a student to want to learn, her parents must instil that in her. But I also believe that our public school teachers need to better foster an appreciation for learning. They need to teach their subject material in a way that makes it relevant to the students' lives and experiences, whether it's math, science, english, or history. A student needs to feel some sort of real-life connection to what she's learning or else it's just a bunch of facts she must memorize to pass a test. For true learning to take place, relevance is key and that alone is plenty. A reward would not be necessary, as we know that rewards are simply incentives for a person to do what she wouldn't otherwise. All kids have an interest in their own life experiences, so why not draw on those to teach children?