To hate (with a passion) 100% attendance awards?

[SteadyEddie]

DD's school have an award ceremony where everyone who has had 100% attendance for that academic year gets a certificate, and then get to go and watch a film as a 'reward'.

I know they want to encourage 100% attendance, but AIBU to hate this idea? DD has an eye condition which means attending hospital appointments every 6 weeks, which are run in the daytime, so she has had 5 afternoon sessions missed this year, and another tomorrow, so she wont be allowed to the special event.

I know that we have to teach our children that life isn't fair, but really, at 5, especially when its through no fault of her own? She already hated her eye condition as it is.

YANBU, some of my students were sad when I last gave some out, for similar reasons, so I told them that I wouldn't get one and people can't help getting ill sometimes especially when their toddler passes on every bug going It's the government's fault really for making such a big deal, but I think special films etc are over the top when it's not within the student's control to be well all the time.

I think they are totally unfair too, especially when they go bowling or have some other expensive treat.

YANBU, it's a ridiculous idea to reward a child for pure good luck. DD1's school does class attendance awards and it ends up going to the same classes everytime just because they have the good fortune to have children in perfect health. DD's classmate has an ongoing health issue which inevitably means time off. It's really unfair on everyone, especially the child who has to go into hospital every couple of months. So many of us have complained about the award but get no where.

I hate them as well. DD is off school today with bad diarrhea. Perhaps I should send her in and let her have an "accident" in the head teacher's office.

I love them when my DD gets them but it's not something she's in control of so why reward it and in doing so somehow blame those who don't have 100% attendance.

Group together with other parents and complain!
We did at out school and got it stopped

It ridiculously unfair to miss out on a treat for being sick. Our school has the 48 hour rule so that's more missed day.

Medical appointments that you inform the school about shouldnt affect the 100% attendance.

I fought with the school over this when my dd was having regular hospital appointments.

It's discriminating against children with a medical condition which isn't allowed.

YANBU
DD got a sarcastic "good attendance is important for your child's education" before Easter and a posh 100% attendance certificate the week after (re. Autumn and Winter terms respectively).

They were running out of supply teachers in the Autumn term due to an evil virus and a DV bug, heaven knows how much money they wasted on letters when they knew pupils definitely were ill

Yanbu. DD will have had 100% attendance for the first time this year, but it is no more an achievement than it was a failure when she had time off sick last year.

And I doubt that they'd have wanted her in with the norovirus in any case!

Yanbu. Bad enough when it just involves a certificate but dreadful when it means exclusion from rewards through no fault of the child. Surely if a child has a recognised condition which makes it impossible to achieve 100% attendance then it's a form of discrimination to set a target they can't reach.

I really understand op. Ds1 has missed out through doctors appointments for this before too.
However, ds has special needs and missess out on many certificates .he is unlikely to ever get a gcse certificate or sporting award.
He is so proud when he does get that term's certificate. He puts it on jis wall and rings his grandparents about it.
so I would like them to stay, sorry!

When I've gone to the awards assemblies I've often thought I bet a lot of those kids have been dragged to school poorly because their parents can't get any childcare.

same thing happens at dh's work. He had 4 years straight attendance so got his pen and letter ever year, it was only when he had to take a few days off bereavement that he saw what happens if you don't qualify for a congratulatory letter and pen - a letter outlining your attendance and why you are not getting a pen. Hahaha

Very mean, particularly for five year olds who really can't be expected to understand at all (and are far to young to 'bunk off' like I did a couple of times at 14!) I would complain.

Too young..

Yanbu!!

Good health is luck pure and simple.

It's up there with the "I ate all my lunch" stickers

YANBU. The school may as well hand out certificates with "congratulations on being lucky" printed on them.

I agree it's crap.

I am in a minority, but I tell my kids from day one that school awards are often crap (not in so many words, but by not being very interested in them).

I think that certificates, awards, grades, and test scores don't have much to do with the real rewards of learning and doing your best. These certificates are often given out unfairly, and sometimes just serve to devalue something special, (as some kids are led to believe they learned to play a beautiful piece on the piano so they could pass a music exam, which is bullshit of course).

Yep. We got one of those '100% attendance is important to fulfill your child's potential, your child's attendance is too low' letters for DD2. She is one of only 3 kids from her school who got into the superselective grammar in our county. The reasons she doesn't have 100% attendance are (1) the 11+ exam days (not categorized as educated off site) (2) several music and ballet exams this academic year (3) participating in music events aimed at secondary school pupils (as an individual not with the school, because of ensembles primarily made up of much older kids that she is also a part of - the music at her primary school is crap). (4) participating in drama performances. You know what? I think the only reason she is currently maybe fulfilling her potential is that her school has been happy to authorize these absences (she doesn't have any unauthorized time off). At the same time, this year her form teacher has been off more than 30% of the time and she has had a stream if mainly useless supply teachers who have singularly failed to address differentiation in the class. Has her teacher had a sarky letter at the behest of the inspectors? I suspect not.

AFAIC a 100% attendance award is more a sign of a kid that does nothing than a sign of virtue. The 100% attendance kids at her school don't do music drama or dance. They sat through a lot of supply teacher lessons though.

In contrast, DD1 has even lower attendance, partly because of music and drama but also because of ongoing hospital treatment which has necessitated one day off school every 4 weeks since last September plus associated time off for side effects. Her school has not sent a sarky letter, and when I queried whether there was an issue (in connection with her accepting a place on a residential music course in the last week of the summer term - I didn't want to make a problem for her or the school so I was very concerned to make them think properly about it (their immediate instinctual response was 'of course! This is great!')) they confirmed that they are delighted she is doing so well. They don't offer 100% attendance awards, they are much happier with kids that do stuff extra. Their only thing is getting authorization beforehand (which if course is more than reasonable).

My DS2 was not good at sport and not very academic and the only "award" he ever got was 100% attendance. The certificates he had helped to improve his self esteem and give him a reason to go to school when he absolutely hated it.

I am grateful for his good physical health and appreciate that he has been lucky to not catch any illnesses, explain to your own children that it is not a big deal to you but it might be to others.

I completely agree with you for primary school. all it is saying I'd this term you didn't I get a sore throat or upset tummy, you're patents didn't take you out for a sneaky couple of days to keep your holiday costs down and you have no ongoing medical conditions.

Utterly pointless and rewarding (or castigaring) them for things that are completely outside of their control.

Secondary school I can see the point more but do the kids care by then?

Absolutely ridiculous. Write to the ht and point out why this is unfair.

"Here you go, here's a prize for having the good fortune of being born healthy."

DD2 will miss the induction day for her new school because she is performing in a matinee of a big show she is in that week (the matinee having been added to the schedule as a special performance for local schools. The kids in the show will get an authorized (but not educated off site) code in their attendance records, the kids watching will get an approved school activity mark which will not affect their attendance). I had a word with the head at a parents evening for DD1 a couple of weeks ago, to apologise and to tell him we were thinking of cutting back a bit on Dd2's extra curricular because we had been concerned about the letter from her school. He told me not to be so silly, that he was delighted that she was coming to the school and that at least he'd be able to say interesting things about her in her PS when the time comes, as he will be doing for DD1. This cheered me up a bit. And put things in perspective.