Students rewarded with free food for paying attention in lessons

Two universities in the US are handing out rewards to students who pay attention in lessons as part of attempts to stop students ignoring their lecturers.

Penn State and the California State University are the first to adopt an app called Pocket Points that monitor how long a student spends looking at their smartphone while in lectures.

For every 20 minutes a student leaves their phone untouched, they are rewarded with one point. The app is geographically restricted so students can only accumulate points while on campus.

According to Penn State newspaper, 10 points will give students a 15 per cent discount on the university's branded merchandise and 15 points is enough for two free cookies at a local cafe.

Earn enough rewards and students can claim discounts at local establishments like Bradley’s Cheesesteaks and Hoagies, DP Dough and Dwelling Boutique.

As Time's Sarah Begley puts it: "Because if highly-trained PhDs can’t get kids to focus, surely the promise of hot cheese can."

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