Education Week - 0 views
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The outcome, as it's usually represented, is that the children who were able to wait for an extra treat scored better on measures of cognitive and social skills many years later and had higher SAT scores. Thus, if we teach kids to put off the payoff as long as possible, they'll be more successful.But that simplistic conclusion misrepresents, in several ways, what the research actually found.
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The outcome, as it's usually represented, is that the children who were able to wait for an extra treat scored better on measures of cognitive and social skills many years later and had higher SAT scores. Thus, if we teach kids to put off the payoff as long as possible, they'll be more successful.But that simplistic conclusion misrepresents, in several ways, what the research actually found.
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It's not that willpower makes certain kids successful; it's that the same loose cluster of mental proficiencies that helped them with distraction when they were young also helped them score well on a test of reasoning when they were older.
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Almost everyone who cites these experiments assumes that it's better to wait for two marshmallows—that is, to defer gratification. But is that always true?
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The inclination to wait depends on one's experiences. "For a child accustomed to stolen possessions and broken promises, the only guaranteed treats are the ones you have already swallowed," remarked a group of social scientists at the University of Rochester.
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Perhaps the broader message for educators is this: Focus less on "fixing the kids" and more on improving what and how they're taught.
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"The outcome, as it's usually represented, is that the children who were able to wait for an extra treat scored better on measures of cognitive and social skills many years later and had higher SAT scores. Thus, if we teach kids to put off the payoff as long as possible, they'll be more successful. But that simplistic conclusion misrepresents, in several ways, what the research actually found. "
