100% Attendance prizes and sick/disabled children

[BitOfFun]

I've just read this thought-provoking article about attendance awards at school being discriminatory.

I have to say that I agree- what do you think?

I hate these ‘awards’ with a passion for all children. I agree completely that it is impossible for a sick/disabled child to get one, but even for a child without the extra hospital appointments that a child with extra needs would have, they are a ridiculous thing to be ‘achieving’.

They should be renamed ‘well done for:
*not being ill
*being sent to school While poorly because your parents needed you to go to school for whatever reason (and by the way, thanks for passing the germs on)
*not having to attend a funeral
*managing to make your hospital appointments in school holidays
*not having any mental health issues that can be helped by a day at home being cared for by people you love.
Obviously my list is not exhaustive and there are many more reasons these certificates are crap, but those are the ones that spring to mind.

The second one is the one that really bugs me. The parent crowing about how proud she is off little Freddie’s 100% attendance this term, when the poor child has been dosed up first thing on ibuprofen each day and then coughed, sneezed and spluttered over his peers all through the last three weeks of term. Meaning that the peers caught the bugs and their parents have to deal with poorly children too.

Yes I hate this too and it really bothers my that adults who work with children think this is okey!

My first primary school, in the 90's, did awards for 100% and then for those with only a few days off. I never got 100% because ophthalmology clinics don't run at weekends. It is harsh, it's not fair but as others have said, OFSTED is to blame.

Awards, and rewards, should be based on pure effort and achievement, not for being lucky enough to be fit and healthy, with parents who could get you in on time.

Bloody hell, I had no idea this nonsense started in reception! The way he's currently going (only at nursery but still), DS doesn't stand a snowball's chance in hell of ever getting one. I am a teacher, but even I would be tempted to keep him off for a (half) day to prove a point. I genuinely cannot understand why authorised absence is taken into consideration for attendance. Could there not be a system of self-certification for up to let's say three days a year? The parents who happily keep their kid of school for no reason would lie, but they do now too. Kids with illnesses or disabilities would not be discriminated against. I don't think my school does individual attendance prizes, but there is an award for the form with the highest attendance.

Attendance awards just reward kids who have been lucky enough not to be ill.

I work in HR and know that a) they don't improve attendance and b) they are discriminatory in many cases. Which is why no businesses EVER use them these days.

I handed DS's attendance award back and told the Head why. Ive had it put on his file that he's never to receive one.

Yes, it's bullshit. Not many parents keeping their kids of school for no reason.

They are discriminatory, my sibling has a serious disease and is mildly disabled on top, there was no way they could achieve 100%. There’s also an element of luck as to not getting bugs...etc.

However, we are becoming a society where the 95/100 are deprived of things/achievements out of empathy for the 5/100 with mitigating circumstances.

This generation (even my own- mid twenties) are far less resilient/motivated/courteous or productive than those before us and I do think it’s because we’ve been coddled and tied up in red tape. The ‘everyone’s a winner’ and ‘We can’t do X Incase it offends Y‘ mentality is not great.

At my dds school you can only go to Prom if your attendance is good, however they do have a prom committee and will allow people to go if they have good reasons for absence and have shown good behaviour etc.

All awards seem to be discriminatory. My boy is well behaved but the naughty kids and the special needs kids are often getting stars in jar for doing stuff my boy does all the time.

Do you actually know any children with SEN? Or severe anxiety? Or emotional difficulties? For some children just sitting still in class is a HUGE effort and they deserve to be rewarded for that. And a lot of 'naughty' children might have SEN (diagnosed or not), difficult family situations, attachment disorders, anxiety etc. Behaviour is communication after all. Just be grateful your child is able to behave well rather than feeling that he's being discriminated against for not getting stars.

Re attendance awards, it's because of Ofsted requirements- low attendance equals a poor rating, which lowers the number of people applying to the school, which lowers the school's income. Presumably they don't make a distinction between genuine sickness and holiday/couldn't be bothered/late as people will just lie.

People wanted a choice of schools, and wanted to know which were 'best' so we've ended up with league tables and Ofsted requirements. Then everyone complains about Ofsted and SATs pressures.

They’re also pointless, because as soon as you miss a session for whatever reason, the incentive is gone.

Whilst I certainly wouldn’t defend Ofsted, I’m not sure it’s entirely fair to blame them for 100% attendance awards specifically - there are schools with good attendance figures who don’t do such farcical things.

I don't mind them if it's just a certificate and a well done but if it were a bigger reward (like a theme park pp mentioned) I'd be really annoyed.

I have always detested these even though I am not directly affected by having a child with a chronic illness or disability.

What truly amazes me is that others can be so passively accepting of this whole weird discriminatory system - oh well my kid might get lucky one term and not have a fever or d&v which keeps him off school, so he might win it and therefore I am in favour of it.

Seriously? wtf?

Yup, bag of shite. Eldest son has one appointment a week at the moment and the youngest is late to school every day because the taxi picking up middle son (at a special school) is never on time.

I am fortunate in that I don't care

I am the hardest "get yourself to school" type parent imaginable but I really don't think there were many terms in primary school when my children were well enough to go in every day. Certainly not the winter terms.

@Autumnfresh

Are you seriously saying that you begrudge kids with SEN getting rewards for "doing stuff your boy does all the time" ?

What a cunty thing to say.

Haven't read through the thread but they are wrong on every level.

Essentially they should be called a " good health certificate "

Utter bollocks .

They are completely discriminatory

These are awful my daughter has cerebral palsy and is in mainstream school she's never had one of these awards. We even got a letter the other week saying her attendance was too low and could we improve it even thought they accept its due to appointments 🤷🏻‍♀️

I hate these too. My son has an impaired immune system due to an hereditary blood condition so never had full attendance until Year 11 although I always arranged hospital appointments for during school holidays to lessen the number of days he missed.

Of course, with Year 11 being GCSE year he left school when exams ended in June but school refused to give him a certificate as he wasn't there in July, even though he wasn't actually supposed to be.

I know it was arsey of me to ask but he'd gone through years of seeing his friends getting awards for full attendance when he had no chance and I thought sod it, he's finally managed it and deserves his award (even though he was 16 but he was chuffed that he hadn't had a day of illness that academic year).

In 2019 my daughter has had...

Dodgy tummy at school... 1 day off
Scarlet Fever... 2 days
D&V... 6 days
Impetigo... 3 days
Vomiting... 2 days

And she has no health problems!

I bloody hate it. Should actually be ‘congratulations on not being ill this term’ award.
My son is currently home with whooping cough, highly contagious, shall I send him in for the poxy certificate and spread it to every kid just before Christmas? Er, no.
If you have any kind of disability it’s highly unlikely this is achievable because of hospital appointments or specific illness reoccurrences so yes, I believe it is discriminatory.

My younger daughter went to a special school, which obviously didn't do these awards.

You're lucky, our son's SEN school introduced them three years ago. I pointed out to the school at the time that they were discriminatory, but to no avail (they had bigger problems at that time than one moaning parent). Fortunately for my son, he doesn't actually realise that these awards exist and the certificate means nothing to him other than a handy piece of laminated card to flap

Attendance awars are a ridiculous idea IMO. I'm glad my daughter's school (a special school) never had these as she would never have had a chance at one. Her first few years at school she managed about 50% attendance if she was lucky due to a chronic health condition plus consultant visits and hospital stays, Wasn't a big school so she probably brought the whole school average attendance down by half a percent or so all by herself.
Later she was on immune suppressants for a couple of years so was ending up having to have days off because of other parents sending their kids in sick. (who the hell sends a contagious kid in to a special school where loads of the children have got serious health issues ffs)

All awards seem to be discriminatory. My boy is well behaved but the naughty kids and the special needs kids are often getting stars in jar for doing stuff my boy does all the time.

Give me strength 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

10 years ago when I was at school, my attendance was 53% due to long term illness and being hospitalised. Because of the circumstances of reason for absence I was able to attend the award for attendance. Also you only had to get over 95% to go on the trip/ movie afternoon.