Rewards can help children learn — and they can hurt. The most cited study of the question combined 128 experiments and found that expected tangible rewards lower children’s motivation, while verbal praise raises it. This guide explains what the research says, and how to use rewards well at home.
What does the research say about rewards and learning?
The most cited review of this question, by Deci, Koestner and Ryan, combined 128 experiments on how rewards affect motivation. Expected tangible rewards reduced intrinsic motivation — most strongly in children (effect size −0.40) — while verbal praise increased it (+0.33). Rewards matter; how they are given matters more.
Do rewards ever help children learn?
Yes — the research is more balanced than the headlines. A later meta-analysis by Cameron, Banko and Pierce found rewards for low-interest tasks enhanced free-choice motivation, and verbal rewards helped on interesting tasks too. The negative effects appeared only for tangible, expected rewards loosely tied to performance.
What about praise and feedback?
Feedback is one of the strongest forces in education research: John Hattie’s synthesis of more than 1,400 meta-analyses puts it far above the 0.4 hinge point of visible impact. But generic praise scores low — the power is in specific feedback about the effort and the next step.
How does play fit into learning?
Play is how children learn best, and rewards can protect that. UNICEF and the Lego Foundation describe playful learning as joyful, meaningful, actively engaging and socially interactive. The Lego Foundation’s verdict is quoted on edvocard’s own site: “The evidence keeps mounting that play is the best way for children to learn – and thrive.”
What does this mean for parents in practice?
For parents, the research lands on five practical rules: praise the effort and name it; keep tangible rewards small, occasional and unexpected; tie rewards to effort, not outcomes; use rewards for the boring tasks; and keep learning playful. Each rule follows directly from the studies above.
- Praise the effort, specifically — specific feedback about what your child did well beats generic praise.
- Keep tangible rewards small, occasional and unexpected — expected tangible rewards are the problem.
- Tie rewards to effort and process, not fixed outcomes — effort children control beats results they do not.
- Use rewards for tasks children find boring — rewards genuinely help low-interest tasks.
- Keep learning playful — the joy, meaning and agency of play protect motivation.
How do points fit in?
A points-based card system such as edvocard®‘s puts the research into practice: knowledge rides on every card, and points arrive with every card, so children work towards a growing deck of their own. Effort, choice and a little anticipation: the three ingredients the studies keep finding.