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Jamie Summerland

Ms. Mounts/Mrs. Ryan

Modern Literature 11

6 March 2018

Effective or Ineffective?

The article, What Gets Students Motivated, does an effective job of proving that

money isn’t everything in life. A perfect example of how the author, Matthew G.

Springer, uses credible sources. Another good reason is that he actually uses facts and

evidence that he can back up all throughout his article. However, the one thing he could

improve on is his study that he presents overall. Springer wrote an effective article by

using reliable and trusted sources and including facts despite the fact that the study that

goes along with the essay could be improved.

One of the biggest things that make Springers article efficient enough to prove

his point is that he is backed up with credible sources. The first thing a reader should

note about his credibility is the byline. This informs that he is an assistant professor of

education, which makes himself a credible author or this topic due to the fact that he

teaches. Something that stems from his title is the fact that in order to be in the work

position he is, he must have had to go through a lot of schooling. This gives him an

opportunity and the experience to learn from other teachers and know what a classroom

setting is like first hand. More proof of his credibility is given right in the introduction of

his article. Springer states, “...I was serving as director of the Nation Center on

Performance Incentives at Peabody College of Vanderbilt University” (Springer 1).

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These are only some of the many ways Springer is a trusted author to write about this

topic.

Using facts and evidence to back up a point is a key skill that Springer clearly

excelled in all throughout his writing. The first example of this is all the statistics he

encompassed into his article. For instance, when he said, “Alternatively, when students

received a certificate of recognition for attending tutoring sessions regularly, the

differences we dramatic” (Springer 3). This is a favorable example of a statistic because

it is one that can summarize what he is talking about, all while introducing a new point.

The next reason is that he gives facts about the actual purpose of his study. He said

early in his article, “We explored how incentives-monetary and nonmonetary- might

encourage behaviors that lead to increased student learning…” (Springer 2).

After this, he goes on to talk about the results if his study. He easily put that most kids in

his study prefer simple recognition over the monetary price. Even the ample amount of

examples of how he is a very efficient author, nobody can be perfect.

While Springer is credible with his writing, his study needs a slight improvement.

The biggest flaw is the number of students he included. He only chose 300 students

from the same school when it would have been better if there was a sufficient amount of

a variety of places. Another thing is that he only has a younger age group of children.

This could use improvement because money and recognition mean more or less to kids,

depending on the age group. Even with all of that being said, Springer may not have

had the best study, but the article is shown to be worthy.

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Matthew G. Springer is proven effective in presenting his argument due to his

credibility and factual evidence. Springer is a credible author in many ways which

makes you trust him as an author. If that isn’t enough to believe then his factual

evidence will make you interested in what he is writing about. Even though his study

could use some work, he is still able to make his points solid and credible. All in all,

Springer is a talented writer who can inspire greatness as well as making an impact on

modern education.