The Toronto District School Board is considering paying poor students to stay in school and get good grades. The idea was floated Sunday by education director Chris Spence on the social networking site Twitter.

Spence wrote: "Should we pay kids in our more disadvantaged communities to do well in school? Perhaps, as a part of a poverty reduction scheme?"

It's one of the possibilities that the board's new anti-poverty task force will examine, said Lloyd McKell, head of the nine-member group. The task force intends to consult with parents and the public but feedback has been positive so far, he said.

"This is not about bribing. This is helping students who have no resources, or very limited resources, to focus on learning," said McKell.

The Toronto District School Board oversees more than 250,000 students in nearly 600 schools. It has identified about 110 schools that need special help due to poverty. The board already provides bus tickets, free meals and jobs to some of its neediest students.

The Toronto District School Board wants to know what the public thinks of paying poor students in return for getting good grades. (CBC) On Wednesday, Ontario Opposition leader Tim Hudak said school resources should be used for more student testing and additional help in the classroom.

"I think good marks, being successful in school is its own reward, which opens up more job opportunities down the road."

Education Minister Leona Dombrowsky refused to step into the debate Wednesday, saying it's up to the board to decide.

"What I am looking forward to is the debate that will ensue when this proposal is brought forward," said Dombrowsky, a former Catholic school trustee. "I expect that parents are going to have a lot to say about whether or not this is appropriate, and I expect the trustees that have been elected locally here in Toronto are going to pay very close attention to what the parents are saying."

Grade 12 student Derek Neilson says money wouldn't have kept him in class.

"I like having my job, having my own place," he said. "I don't like being in school. People want to get bribed, go ahead. It's your morals, not mine."

Annie Kidder with the group People for Education also worries about a cash-for-grades program.

"There are solutions, but they're not necessarily simple and they have to be integrated solutions."

Some schools in the United States have tried paying students. In New York's South Bronx, students get $10 US if they complete a standardized test and more money for every correct answer.

A recent study conducted by the Education Innovation Laboratory at Harvard University looked at thousands of students who were paid in Chicago, Dallas, New York City and Washington, D.C. The results were mixed. Incentives worked for some kids but not for others.

With files from Canadian Press