69传媒

In most schools, if you鈥檙e looking for a book to read, you go to the library. Now, students in search of new titles may also be headed to a vending machine.

Some schools have brought in these vending machines, which let students select a book of their choice with a token. Generally, teachers hand out these tokens as a reward for positive behavior, or for taking on academic or personal challenges. Kids can then take the books home to keep.

The goal, educators say, is twofold: to give students an incentive to make good choices and to foster a love of reading.

Deborah Weatherford, the principal at J.B. Watkins Elementary School in Midlothian, Va., made the vending machine part of her school鈥檚 system of positive behavioral interventions and supports, or PBIS.

鈥淚t鈥檚 built a lot of classroom camaraderie,鈥� said Rebecca Ozbalik, a special education teacher at J.B. Watkins. 69传媒 get excited for their classmates when one of them earns a token, she said.

The school also has a library that all students have access to. But having the vending machine makes getting a new book feel like 鈥渁 special treat,鈥� Weatherford said. Kids have told her that they鈥檝e spent time reading at home with their prizes鈥攁 big win, Weatherford thinks, when there are so many other types of entertainment vying for students鈥� attention these days.

There鈥檚 research that shows having to work for something can increase its perceived value, said Stephanie Wormington, a researcher at the Center for Creative Leadership who studies developmental and educational psychology.

鈥淚f I have to earn this token to be able to get a book, then that indicates to me that this is something that I should want and that I should be going after,鈥� she said.

Still, putting books behind glass and restricting student access could have other consequences, too. 69传媒 should be conscious of how they鈥檙e framing any reward system with books at the center, so that they don鈥檛 inadvertently discourage students who are already reluctant readers, Wormington said.

One way that teachers could talk about the purpose of the vending machines, she said, goes like this: Teachers are excited about these books and they care about reading鈥攖hey want students to be able to read these books. They鈥檙e going to help students do what they need to do to become better readers and get these books in their hands.

Another way: If you want to read these books, you have to earn it鈥攔eading them is a privilege, and not a right.

鈥淭hose are two very different messages that you could send to students,鈥� Wormington said.

Ensuring Access?

At Cox Intermediate School in Spring, Texas, administrators were giving out free books to students before they put in a vending machine this year, said Principal Deborah Spoon. 69传媒 could earn one by giving a 鈥渂ook talk,鈥� about another story they had read, in front of the school.

But the vending machine offers teachers the opportunity to shine a spotlight on a broader range of achievements, Spoon said. 69传媒 can earn a token for the machine for making honor roll or hitting academic goals, but also for showing kindness, character, or good citizenship.

Cox Intermediate is planning to give out 50-75 books a week, stocking the machine through donations and hunting for deals in school book catalogs.

69传媒 have long given out rewards to students to incentivize good behavior, or in attempts to motivate attendance or higher performance. Research on these incentives is mixed, but in general, rewards are more likely to work when they鈥檙e tied to things that students feel like they can control.

And there鈥檚 a better chance that this system would foster a love of reading if students feel the tokens are within their reach, Wormington said.

鈥淎re there some messages that are being sent, potentially, about who are the students that are being able to get access to these books? Is it because adults like them more?鈥� Wormington asked. 69传媒 need to be aware of creating a 鈥渋n-group, out-group鈥� situation, where some students never get to pick out a book from the machine, she said.

At J.B. Watkins, teachers are looking to make distribution more equitable. The goal is for every child to earn at least one book this semester, Weatherford said.

For these vending machines to foster a love of reading, schools need to first examine their culture more broadly, Wormington said. 69传媒 need to trust that their teachers want them to access knowledge, and that teachers aren鈥檛 going to withhold books as a punishment, she said.

Of course, vending machines aren鈥檛 the only places in these schools where students can access books. So how do libraries fit into this equation?

At Cox Intermediate, the librarian has helped pick out the book selection for the new device. And at J.B. Watkins, educators have used the machine to get kids hooked on collections. They鈥檒l put one book out of a series in the machine, and let students know that the rest are in the library.

鈥淎 lot of the books in the vending machine are new titles,鈥� said Ozbalik, the special education teacher. 鈥淭he kids who see their peers get books, they get interested in the titles they鈥檙e seeing.鈥�

Sparking kids鈥� interest in a series is a smart strategy to build engagement, said Wormington. 69传媒 could also try tucking in recommendations from staff members into the backs of the vending machine books, she said鈥攁 way to 鈥渉arness the relationships that students have with their teachers.鈥�