Mohamad Jebara loves mathematics — but he’s concerned that too many students grow up thinking that this beautiful, rewarding subject is difficult and boring. His company is experimenting with a bold idea: paying students for completing weekly math homework. He explores the ethics of this model and how it’s helping students — and why learning math is crucial.

In the workplace, this idea speaks to the concept and ethics of unexpected incentives.

This video is shared under a Creative Commons license (BY-NC-ND 4.0). Please visit Ted.com. This talk was presented at a TED Institute event given in partnership with Westpac, and was posted in December 2017.