Extra credit for boxes of Kleenex? Points for Pens? What are the ethics of offering incentives for charitable acts?

(AP Language Exam - 2007)

A weekly feature of The New York Times Magazine is a column by Randy Cohen called “The Ethicist," in which people raise ethical questions to which Cohen provides answers. The question below is from the column that appeared on April 4, 2003.

At my high school, various clubs and organizations sponsor charity drives, asking students to bring in money, food, and clothing. Some teachers offer bonus points on tests and final averages as incentives to participate. Some parents believe that this sends a morally wrong message, undermining the value of charity as a selfless act. Is the exchange of donations for grades O.K. ?

The practice of offering incentives for charitable acts is widespread, from school projects to fund drives by organizations such as public television stations, to federal income tax deductions for contributions to charities.

In a well-written essay, develop a position on the ethics of offering incentives for charitable acts. Support your position with evidence from your reading, observation, and/or experience. 

What's wrong with girls?

In high school, girls out-perform boys academically.  As a result, young women are showing up in unprecedented numbers in higher education.  As a nation, however, "women are still under-represented in all areas of government" (WCF Foundation).

Socially, girls still appear to worry more about appearance and appropriateness rather than intellect or character.  Young women suffer from such tragically low self-esteem, it has given rise to organizations like Girls on the Run which work in elementary schools to reverse this trend, or media efforts like the Dove campaign for "normal" women. Despite these efforts, however, eating disorders, self-harming behaviors, and suicide rates remain outrageously high.

Add in a healthy dose of bitter, backstabbing girl bullying, and the outlook is bleak.  When she was 19, author Sara Shandler capitalized on her own sense of isolation, fear, and lack of confidence and put together a compilation of teenage girl's journals, essays, poems and stories revealing the universality of this suffering.  She also exposes rampant sexual abuse, abuse that is often tolerated or even encouraged by the media (check out the Miss Representation Project).

So, what is wrong with girls?  What insight can you gain from these sources?

Why, after so much success, does a girl still face this social construct?

What should we do about it?

What is it like for girls in our school, in our town, in this culture?