Abstract Rewards

For many years, I have used "stickers" as a reward for my students.  They earn stickers by participating in class.  I put the stickers on index cards, one per student, and they earn the card after it has five stickers on it.  The card may then be used as a homework pass, or the students may save the card for points on the exam.  I have found that the students will compete for these stickers, even though they are a tangible reward.  I think that they are also a form of recognition and praise, in addition to being tangible rewards.
 
Dr. Marzano is a proponent of giving rewards in the form of recognition and praise instead of tangible rewards like candy or prizes.  Which kind of rewards, if any, do you use and find most effective? 

Effort and Achievement Tracking

Dr. Marzano suggests that you ask students to keep track of their effort and achievment.  Have you ever used this technique?  If so, how did you introduce it to the students and carry it out?  Did you consider this method worthwhile?

Effort and Achievement

Do you believe that teachers must teach students today the connection between effort and achievement? I think that the standardized testing has made students lazy and they exert little effort for the rewards of A's on exams or other extrinsic rewards. What is your philosophy on teaching this connection and on extrinsic rewards?

Taking notes

Dr. Marzano makes a strong case that teachers should teach students how to take notes and uses visuals such as Venn diagrams and informal outlines. I have noticed that many teachers in my high school provide handouts of the notes for the students, and I think that this is detrimental to their education, in that it does not prepare them for the rigorous expectations of college. Do you think that teachers should be providing these handouts, or do you think that the students should be trained how to take notes? If you believe the latter is the better choice, how do you train students to take notes?
I put notes on the overhead and have students copy them, particularly for grammar topics. When I am giving culture notes, I put important names or dates on the board. Later, when I check the notes, I am finding that the only thing that the students write is exactly what I wrote on the board. This leads me to believe that Marzano is correct in that students do not know how to summarize information, selectively choosing the salient details and recording them. I plan to work on helping my students to develop this skill.
What are your plans in your classroom?