How do you get a 15-year-old boy to actually do some work when he doesn't care about grades/punishments?

Question

He's in my group at school and we have to do a play, but he won't rehearse or anything. The teacher can't make him do it, he won't listen and doesn't seem to care about any punishments.

We can't throw him out of the group because we have to be in groups of at least 10 and its a test thing, less than 10 people = fail but we get marked as a group, so his performance will bring our score down.

He's also getting the other 4 boys in the group to act like him, but they work hard when he's not there.

Answer 1

Eww. You're running into one of life's most frustrating parts. How do you get someone to do what YOU want them to. Tough one. Actually, you can't make anyone DO anything. Your best bet is to get HIM to want to do it. Now how do you do that... psychology? Bribery? Threats? Carrot and stick approach? probably wouldn't work.

Since you are on a limited timeframe, becoming close friends withhim so you can unerstand him and address his specific circumstances probably isn't feasible. The best you could hope for would be to sit down with him and have a face-to-face, heart-to-heart talk. Unfortunately, the guy you are describing doesn't sound like he'd be someone to let you get close. He's jaded, hard, and stubborn, lazy and apathetic. So, you've got no leverage.

So, how can you do what you need to do WITHOUT him? You say your group must have 10 people. Fine, he can be one of the 10, but minimize his role. Have him sit in a chair the whole time... perhaps playing the negative side of whatever your play is. If your play is about apathetic losers undermining the efforts of a group of committed individuals, he might be a Godsend!

Answer 2

It is a male thing - you can solve it by thinking like male but not having done this before I don't think you would manage it in the timeframe.

You are 5 girls and 5 boys, but the boys think it is beneath them to do girl stuff. (Brainwave!!) Is there any chance you girls could go see a film and come back and talk about nothing but the glorious male hunks? I'm serious - if the boys could see how much u like guys who can act, maybe they will make the effort. You'll probably get some prancing around and foolishness, but once that wears off... maybe. Aren't all the big stars moody and unco-operative?

I have to say that sitting him down for a nice talk is not going to work. Offering him a nude scene might.

Answer 3

Ask him what his problem is -why he doesn't want to engage and if he did it what would he do. I would praise all the others and positively exclude him on the premise that if he is not going to put any input and engage in the project he cannot have any say later on. He is welcome to join at any point but are not going to bend over backwards to accommodate him. He will be the reason that the group fails and at least they are trying to pass it rather than expecting that they are going to fail in the first instance! (I think this boy has no self esteem or confidence and hence thinks that he is going to fail and that it is his only option -he has to understand that it is ok to make mistakes and failure is not the only option and if it doesn't work at least he has tried and it can always be rectified.

Answer 4

I would offer some sort of reward for taking part but I would also sit the whole group down, with him present, and explain calmly that his behaviour is affecting their performance and their grade. If he does not want to have a part, and some people hate acting, maybe you could offer him a job as a props person or director?

Answer 5

Ask his parents to take away his iPod, computer, DVD player, mobile phone and threaten to send him to school in short trousers and kiss him outside the school gates. If all else fails, throw him out of the group and ignore him. He is doing it for effect and attention. Don't give him any and tell your teachers that you are now a group of nine for grade purposes. Teachers can be very reasonable when approached with good arguments for a course of action.

Answer 6

It must be my son Damien you are talking about. he is in England studying (I use the word humerously) for his GCSE's. Granted he has a problem of comming to England with one year to go and 2 years GCSE work to fit into it but does that make him try harder, or even at all? No way.

He is bi linguial so I pay about 200 pounds for him to sit an external exam in his second language and arrange transport and hotel 100 miles away for him and someone to take him, to get one certificate in hand, does he study, no way.

I ask him just to read some books, anything, cartoons, ghost stories, adventure, anything in either Thai or English, just to raise his standard of written language, will he read. no. Playstation, yes, TV yes, daydream yes yes yes.

Must be something about being 15 and of the male gender.

Answer 7

just let him do what he wants and get the rest of the group to carry on regardless, he'll soon realise that he's the one that ends up looking like a right t*t in the end. Plus in a couple of years time when the rest of you have qualifications and jobs and he's getting toss all on the Social you'll be the ones laughing!

Answer 8

You can't.

Don't go out of your way to include him. He can be a tree on performance day. Or be creative and put him down as a referred-to-deceased relative.

If the remaining nine of you do the best you can, the teacher will applaud your efforts and creativity.

Let 'lazy-boy' do what he wants.

Answer 9

Offer incentives instead of punishment - this might work. There could be some sort of mystery prize for the best group or something like that.

Answer 10

I suggest you all get together and beat him up that will do the trick because ive done it and it worked lol

or i suggest you talk to your teacher about this.