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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To disagree with 100% attendance awards

120 replies

user1498912461 · 20/01/2018 10:34

I completely disagree with 100% attendance awards. They reward the kids who are lucky enough not to get sick and punish the ones that are unfortunate enough to get ill. This year DS has had a nasty bout of flu, a vomiting bug and he banged his head very badly on the concrete in school so we had to keep him off. None of this is his fault but he will never get one of these certificates. What about kids who have to go to hospital or have a condition? It just seems unfair. I have also overhead many mums talking in the yard about how their child was crying all night with a ear infection or was up with D and V and they still send them in! So aibu to hate the things?

OP posts:
RainbowGlitterFairy · 20/01/2018 18:04

Attendance awards are not the answer to making sure everybody gets an award of some sort. School's give out awards for behaviour, improvement, effort, sports, helpfulness, art, music, drama, reaching their personal best academically etc, every child has something that they are good at and a good school should be recognising this. 100% attendance is not something any child has control over, no one chooses to be ill!

And yes I realise less able children don't choose to be less able and children with SN don't choose to have SN, but they do have the choice to try their hardest and do their personal best and they will all have something they are good at or deserve an award for getting better at or trying hard at.

JassyRadlett · 20/01/2018 18:05

I maintain that they are no less discriminatory than other awards. Do we stop our pupils competing at cross-country, because we have a child who has a heart-condition and can’t compete? Do we stop having spelling tests with prizes because we have a number of dyslexic children?

Do you give no awards for effort or determination or social contribution or anything that is not linked to gifts, but is still not linked to luck? That’s quite poor.

My DS1 is fortunate to be (so far) naturally very bright, but if something didn’t come easily to him he got frustrated and gave up because he was so used to things just ‘clicking’. We discussed with his teacher and we all worked hard at it with him. He got an award for perseverance last term, which was a damn sight more meaningful in terms of achievement and motivation for him than a maths award would have been. And certainly more meaningful than ‘congratulations, you didn’t get chicken pox last term!’ awards.

Sirzy · 20/01/2018 18:07

I don’t mind a certificate in an assembly that is rewarding lots of other things (although I do find the idea of rewarding being healthy odd)

I object massively to the schools that do trips or special days for them and actually they are illegal as they discriminate against those who are disabled or have chronic illness

Skarossinkplunger · 20/01/2018 18:08

For our pupils (it’s not a mainstream school) it’s not about ‘congratulations you didn’t get chicken pox’ it’s more like ‘well done for making an effort to turn up when I know things are a bit difficult at the moment’. As I say for us it works and the pupils like it.

MiaowTheCat · 20/01/2018 18:08

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Skarossinkplunger · 20/01/2018 18:08

I think the issue is here that on MN most kids would only be absent if they are truly ill. That ‘s not the case for a lot of kids.

Awwlookatmybabyspider · 20/01/2018 18:13

YANBU. Theyre disablist against children with chronic conditions. Not only that but a lot of the powers that be tend to forget children can be school phobic. It's not even hatered of the place. Just that they panic.
School isn't for every child.

TurquoiseDress · 20/01/2018 18:13

YANBU

My child is not even in school yet but I have already formed an opinion about these awards!

There are lots of factors that can affect school attendance- what about a child with a chronic illness or one that misses school through no fault of their own e.g. having a chaotic home life.

Surely it would be preferable to reward good behaviour, for effort at school, for creativity, for kindness/helping others.

Maybe I'm being too optimistic about school?!

JassyRadlett · 20/01/2018 18:16

For our pupils (it’s not a mainstream school) it’s not about ‘congratulations you didn’t get chicken pox’ it’s more like ‘well done for making an effort to turn up when I know things are a bit difficult at the moment’. As I say for us it works and the pupils like it.

And the kids who also made the effort but also got chicken pox miss out?

I’m glad the pupils like it. It still seems like an extremely fucked up and illogical system.

Sirzy · 20/01/2018 18:21

Pupils resilience can still be awarded without linking it to attendance. Actually some of the most resilient pupils are probably those who have less than perfect attendance

my2bundles · 20/01/2018 18:24

Skarossinkplunger. My son is hard working, helps everyone in class is kind. But had to have operations and tests for cancer so missed out n the attendence picnic. But in your eyes he could gave made the effort to go t school even tho things where abit difficult (your words) live a while in be real world will you 😡

RainbowGlitterFairy · 20/01/2018 18:27

Skarossinkplunger Do you not think pointing out you were not in mainstream was fairly relevant earlier on in the thread? I mean it is a massively different environment to most posters will be talking about.

I was in a PRU for a while as a teen and we got weekly attendance treats there because frankly half of us probably only managed 1 full week a term, and mostly not because we were ill. We also got a sweet every morning that we were on time, and every afternoon if we actually came back from lunch. It improved attendance. Doesn't mean I think its a good idea to introduce that in your average mainstream school.

HidingFromTheWorld · 20/01/2018 18:31

We regularly shake our heads in despair at the attendance awards.

My teenage DD was initially refused permission to attend her school winter formal event last year because she’d missed 5 sessions over 3 months.

Each session missed was due to one of her long term health conditions relapsing under the stress of year 11 mock preparation. The school is fully aware of everything health related and we have measures in place to support her during the school day.

I appealed the decision to exclude her from the event, but they took so long to overturn their decision that she felt too upset to attend.

I am literally counting down the days, weeks and months until she leaves.

Namelesswonder · 20/01/2018 18:34

Our school doesn't do them - primary - nor do they have any issues with attendance levels. Weird that!

duckdarlington · 20/01/2018 18:43

Do your kids really care if they get an attendance certificate?
My kids love getting an exuse for a day off, they'd rather a day watching tv than a peice of paper saying 100% attentance and having to sit at school ill.
Schools give out hundreds of certificates, most of which are pointless and just an exuse to not leave anyone out, just a waste of paper.

Seniorcitizen1 · 20/01/2018 18:45

I guessed your child didn’t get one. Nothing wring with them - you win some you lose some

seafooodplatter · 20/01/2018 18:46

I disagree with them. They are pointless and meaningless. You were lucky enough not to be ill, that's all. It's not an achievement.

I do agree with monitoring attendance as schools do, but not awards relating to it.

Skarossinkplunger · 20/01/2018 18:50

No I don’t think that saying it wasn’t a mainstream school until later was a drop feed. I assume everyone on here is educated enough to know that there are educational establishments outside of the mainstream.

We do also give rewards for good behaviour and the like.

My2bundles that’s not what I said at all. I’m sorry for your son.

HawkeyeInConfusion · 20/01/2018 19:03

Yanbu.

At the DC's school there are certificates for lots of things (being a good friend, trying hard, being brave, etc) so any child has an opportunity to earn one.

They also have attendance certificates. DD got one last year as she wasn't off once. The last few weeks of term she was so stressed, worrying about being ill. This year she won't get one as she went down with a d&v bug one Monday morning. She is gutted. I have consoled her the best I can by pointing out its just a 'congratulations on being lucky enough not to be ill on a school day' certificate.

I wish they'd get rid of them.

tethersend · 20/01/2018 19:17

YANBU.

Primary children are not in control of their attendance, parents are. Rewarding the child for the actions of their parents is ridiculous.

Since parental income appears to have a much greater impact on educational outcomes, why not just go the whole hog and reward children whose parents earn over £40,000?

LittleLionMansMummy · 20/01/2018 19:28

I understand what you mean op, but as an aunt to an adopted nephew who had an absolutely torrid time at school last year, I'm mostly in the 'some kids aren't going to achieve anything else' camp. He's been bullied, has behavioural/ development issues as a result of the neglect and abuse he suffered in his formative years, has been unsupported and consistently criticised by an awful teacher and a clueless school and has a severe lack of confidence. His attendance reward was the only thing he had to feel proud about last year, otherwise he'd have felt like a total failure as he knows full well he compares less favourably to his classmates. He's a good kid, a lovely boy who just needs a chance, some one to one support and a good teacher to believe in him. But academic achievement is currently not going to happen and he's a long way behind his classmates. His attendance award gave him something to smile about - regardless of how little control he or other kids have over their wellness.

Dahlietta · 20/01/2018 19:37

They are absolutely ridiculous. They encourage parents to send in their sick children, once resulting in a boy throwing up onto one of my colleagues. Turns out he'd been sick the night before too, but didn't want to miss out on his perfect attendance. Said colleague was unamused. The crowning moment, however, was a boy who didn't get one because he had missed one day in the year to attend his mother's funeral. He was 12.

LadyPenelope68 · 20/01/2018 19:39

I totally hate 100% attendance awards and I’m a teacher. I have a child in my class with diabetes, who’s not well controlled with his medication, so is off quite regularly. We have a class attendance award, so my class never get the award so Miss our in the chance if a party every single half term (this is the second year I’ve taught them). I think it’s so unfair.

Somerville · 20/01/2018 20:19

I maintain that they are no less discriminatory than other awards. Do we stop our pupils competing at cross-country, because we have a child who has a heart-condition and can’t compete? Do we stop having spelling tests with prizes because we have a number of dyslexic children?

Well my children's primary school doesn't give rewards for spelling tests, and doesn't have competitive cross country. In fact they have very little in terms of competitions that directly, and publically, compare children, and reward only the perfect. Apart from with attendance, where those with 100% get appauded in final assembly and a treat event afterwards. It's deeply unfair to do so because so many children cannot control their attendance. A child with a medical condition that means hospital appointments, or a child, like mine, who is grief stricken or has a funeral to attend.
Children's attendance should be assessed just like any other area, which means in the context of their wider situation. Attendance awards are like only praising children who have reached the top bookband, when it's often the children towards the bottom who are working hardest at their reading.

Alpacaandgo · 20/01/2018 20:21

YANBU. Children should be rewarded over things they actually have control over.