Give credit where credit is due

WHEN I AM speaking to groups of parents, the challenge of getting my message across in an easily digestible way is ever present. Trying to convince them of the usefulness of star charts is no exception.

I am usually at pains to explain that there is more to a successful incentive scheme than putting stickers on a page. Indeed, parents have told me about incentive schemes operated by teachers which left much to be desired.

One parent described how her child's class get 15 credits each at the start of the week. If a child misbehaves, the teacher notes this and a credit is lost. The child with the most credits at the end of the week earns a small prize.

The irony is that the child who behaves best all week gets the least attention. And, as we know, attention is what children value most.

There is a simple but effective "star chart" system that many adults are already participating in. One of the major supermarket chains operates a club whereby customers earn points for purchasing products. The principles involved are no different from those used in giving a child stars for brushing his teeth.

At the supermarket, when so many points are gathered, the customer wins a prize. Presumably, when a child gathers sufficient stars he will also win a prize. Think about the adult scheme as you go about designing one for children.

The supermarket goes a step further in managing adult behaviour. In order to encourage people to shop on less busy days, what do they do? Double Points! And if they have a surplus of a particular product, what do they do? You've got it. They even have their customers doing quality control: they get points if they notice that a product is faulty or has run out.

I have doubts about other public incentive schemes. What about the one on some radio stations, where the DJ announces a number at the top of every hour and makes a random phone call later in the hour to check if the person who answers the call knows the number?

A correct guess wins a cash prize. However, only about one in every 100 calls is successful. This means that, on the basis of this random survey, only one in every 100 people is listening to them. This is hardly a statistic to be proud of, let alone to announce to everyone listening.

There are many more adult versions of good and bad incentive schemes. You will notice them if you take some time to think of the various ways our behaviour is manipulated each day - advertisements are the most obvious means.

What follows are the basics required for putting together a successful incentive scheme for your children. They can be applied at any age. All you require is that the operation of the chart suits the age of the child.

. Ensure all materials are available (eg stars, stickers, charts).

. Have a chat with your child about the chart. Encourage him to contribute in its design.

. Establish rules for earning stars - younger children will require relatively short, easy tasks, particularly in the early stages.

. Decide on what the back up reward will be. Take a tip from the supermarket chain and offer a range of possible prizes.

. Ensure the child understands the rules of the system and explain what will happen if the rules are broken (i.e. no credits are earned).

. When operating a star chart for the first time, be lenient and ensure the child is successful. Otherwise the child will lose interest.

. Praise the child enthusiastically when a credit/star is earned.

. When the required amount of stars is earned, provide the reward immediately.

. If the chart does not work out to your satisfaction, don't give up. Try and evaluate what went wrong and start again.

Parents often say they are uncomfortable being involved in what they call "bribery". It is important to point out that bribery is paying someone off to do something wrong or bad. Rewarding someone for doing something well is no sin.

There are few of us who dislike being recognised for something that we do well.

Finally, it is important to be forewarned of possible pitfalls when operating the incentive schemes.

Star charts can fail if the number of stars to be earned is too great. I recently discovered that I would have to buy £7,000 worth of petrol to have enough tokens for a personal stereo! That was sufficient to dampen my interest. Children are no different.

Similarly, if it is too easy for the child to earn a reward, interest will also be lost. With the exception of the first time you operate the chart, a reasonable amount of effort should be required of the child.

Another problem relates to the nature of the reward. If, for example, the child is working towards earning some favoured item, it is important that he does not receive this from another source. For example, if a relative arrives and provides something similar to what the child is working towards, the child will be less motivated to cooperate with the star chart. So make sure your incentive scheme is not unwittingly sabotaged by others.

And finally, it is important that the child is working towards something he really wants. This is particularly so for older children.