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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

100% Attendance Award

131 replies

NewYorkPleasecake · 04/07/2022 20:18

I have always been vehemently against attendance awards anyway as I have a very strong view that children should not be rewarded/praised for the luck of good health...and there are plenty of cases when parents have not kept their little darlings off school when they should have done (E.g. for 48 hours after D&V).

My DD just told me that her school (early secondary) is giving out 100% attendance awards and her friend has got one.

I am GOBSMACKED at this - in a year where isolation was mandatory for positive Covid cases?!?! The friend in question was 'lucky' that she got Covid over the summer holidays. My DD missed some school because she wasn't lucky enough to catch it in the school hols.

How the feck can this be allowed to still be a thing?!

OP posts:
Heckythump1 · 04/07/2022 21:01

They did this at christmas at our (primary) school, but it hasn't happened again since... was particularly unfair in my DD class as the teacher gave 20 of them covid :P

carefullycourageous · 04/07/2022 21:03

All you can do OP is a) complain loudly and annoyingly to all levels - escalate it to governors if the head is not listening and b) practise non-compliance - we refused all attendance awards and rewards, the kids never gave a shit about them anyway.

ldontWanna · 04/07/2022 21:04

@carefullycourageous so are all other awards that rely on the luck of being healthy,not having a disability/processing disorder etc. also inherently wrong?

ClinkeyMonkey · 04/07/2022 21:05

I think it's nonsensical. My 13yo got his first ever full attendance certificate this year, even though he was off with Covid in December. They didn't count Covid absence as absence! He said he felt like a fraud🤣🤣

Thatswhyimacat · 04/07/2022 21:07

I got loads of academic awards at school because I was lucky enough to be born clever. All those kids who weren't or didn't achieve due to health problems or didn't have parents who cared about education etc etc didn't get one.

Unless you give out awards to everyone then it's always unfair in some way. People seem to fall over themselves to say how ridiculous it is to be awarding everyone but then complain because their child didn't get an attendance award, which as someone has already said, was definitely the only award a lot of kids at my school ever did get.

Aroundtheworldin80moves · 04/07/2022 21:10

They are complete nonsense. Everyone knows they are really.

They just encourage people to go to school while ill and spread germs.

HappilyHadesBound · 04/07/2022 21:11

Try having a disabled child! My eldest has NEVER had an attendance award and won't be allowed to attend prom no matter how good her behaviour and attainment.

Way to go on making a student feel second class...

carefullycourageous · 04/07/2022 21:12

ldontWanna · 04/07/2022 21:04

@carefullycourageous so are all other awards that rely on the luck of being healthy,not having a disability/processing disorder etc. also inherently wrong?

I don't favour pure attainment (as opposed to effort) awards full stop but nothing is as directly related to health as attendance.

Presenteeism is driving a mental health crisis in the workplace, the culture of not respecting your physical health when sick is ridiculous, schools are wrong on this.

carefullycourageous · 04/07/2022 21:15

HappilyHadesBound · 04/07/2022 21:11

Try having a disabled child! My eldest has NEVER had an attendance award and won't be allowed to attend prom no matter how good her behaviour and attainment.

Way to go on making a student feel second class...

That is disgusting. I know it makes no fucking difference but I felt it was important for me to challenge this type of unfairness precisely because it was not my kid on the receiving end. I have actually had some success.

mummyh2016 · 04/07/2022 21:18

I get what people are saying but I do take offence at people on here insinuating that the only reason those children have 100% attendance awards is because parents have sent them to school when they shouldn't have. My DD is in reception, she has only missed 3 days of school this academic year which was due to chicken pox. And to be honest she wasn't unwell with the chicken pox, she obviously just couldn't go back until the spots had scabbed over. I'm probably jinxing it now but she just doesn't get ill very often plus she enjoys school so wants to go every day. Doesn't mean I'm sending her when she's not well enough to be there!!

ldontWanna · 04/07/2022 21:18

@carefullycourageous fair enough. I respect your stance and conviction on this.

Vernonia · 04/07/2022 21:21

My kids have probably had a couple of half-terms at most when they’ve had 100% attendance, partly because I’m happy to award the odd duvet day. So they have never got an award for this. They don’t mind other kids getting awards for attendance - and I’m impressed by anyone who never misses a day. Agree that all kids really need acknowledgement and this is a way of noticing some who might otherwise miss out.

Caminante · 04/07/2022 21:21

sparepantsandtoothbrush · 04/07/2022 20:27

Most attendance awards are a certificate which ends up screwed up in the bottom of a child's bag. I don't know why parents get so bloody wound up over it!

Well...my son won a bike once for 100% attendance. It was at high school and about 10 years ago.

But to be doing this during COVID times is just ridiculous!!

whatwhhat · 04/07/2022 21:24

There's a lot of pressure on schools about attendance and it's raised by ofsted if it's not high. The certificates are just one part of it, my school does wake up calls at quarter to 8 to certain parents, we have sent staff to collect students who's parents can't get them in, we have a parent liaison that works with certain families to solve attendance problems.

Although I agree attendance could be down to luck with health or could be down to the parents (especially in primary where a child can't just get ready and head off to school), low attendance does greatly affect children's education. If the certificates work for some children and raises their attendance and therefore their attainment then I think it's a simple/cheap measure that's made a difference to some key children. Obviously they won't make a difference to everyone

In fairness I've never seen a child upset they didn't receive one (although I've heard some schools give out prizes, ours just does certificates). It does seem to get the parents more worked up. Lastly as a teacher I don't think any of my own children got a certificate past the first term 🫢so like I say they don't work for everyone!

Dailywalk · 04/07/2022 21:24

My dd has been lucky not to be ill this year. So she gets a free breakfast on Fri and I’ll be delighted for her as it’ll be the first award she’s got in her whole school life (y9)! It’s a free croissant ffs but it’s acknowledging that she’s made it in when many of her friends have taken days off throughout the year for shopping trips or because they were tired or just fancied a duvet day. Just like not all kids can win a running race, not all kids can win a prize for 100% attendance but I disagree it should be scrapped.

Tangled123 · 04/07/2022 21:25

I got attendance awards at school and they were the only awards I ever got. I didn’t get the same sports ability my brother got, there were always people smarter than me in class, and I never had the opportunity to learn any musical instruments. The one thing going for me was that I was/am mostly healthy. I don’t think it’s fair to deny other kids the same recognition just because some kids are sick.

Attendance awards do require some sacrifice too. For example, I missed my aunt’s wedding because I wanted to achieve the full attendance award.

SherbertLemonDrop · 04/07/2022 21:26

My son had to have surgery. Think he'd prefer to have been in school!

PoshSpice2 · 04/07/2022 21:27

I’m confused at the issue here?
Common knowledge is that there’s always been certain families and certain children that like to bunk off school. The attendance awards are to discourage that. Its not the schools fault that your child has fallen ill.
If this is your attitude then I hope your dc never participate in competitive sports

carefullycourageous · 04/07/2022 21:32

PoshSpice2 · 04/07/2022 21:27

I’m confused at the issue here?
Common knowledge is that there’s always been certain families and certain children that like to bunk off school. The attendance awards are to discourage that. Its not the schools fault that your child has fallen ill.
If this is your attitude then I hope your dc never participate in competitive sports

What has genuine illness got to do with 'bunking off' school?

Your post simply demonstrates exactly why these awards are total bullshit - you are justifying them with illogicality.

I'm not upset by them for my kids - almost every year pre-COVID they had 100% attendance. I'm annoyed because the awards are illogical nonsense and it demeans the school to give an award that is not meaningful.

Meatshake · 04/07/2022 21:32

@whatwhhat is that for real? Your school does wake up calls for some parents?!! That is absolutely bonkers. Like, it's great that the school is looking out for these kids but how the fuck do these people function on a day to day basis if they need their kids school to wake them up? Thats just blown my mind. Is that a normal thing that schools do these days?

Original poster
NewYorkPleasecake · 04/07/2022 21:34

Tangled123 · 04/07/2022 21:25

I got attendance awards at school and they were the only awards I ever got. I didn’t get the same sports ability my brother got, there were always people smarter than me in class, and I never had the opportunity to learn any musical instruments. The one thing going for me was that I was/am mostly healthy. I don’t think it’s fair to deny other kids the same recognition just because some kids are sick.

Attendance awards do require some sacrifice too. For example, I missed my aunt’s wedding because I wanted to achieve the full attendance award.

You missed a family wedding to get an attendance award?

That's just completely batshit in my opinion.

OP posts:
Sirzy · 04/07/2022 21:35

Ds has got one attendance award while at school (now in year to 7) he was given the prize after half term as he was in hospital the last day!

he has multiple disabilities, at its worst his attendance was in the 70s% but he is in y every day its physically possible for him to be there

carefullycourageous · 04/07/2022 21:38

Meatshake · 04/07/2022 21:32

@whatwhhat is that for real? Your school does wake up calls for some parents?!! That is absolutely bonkers. Like, it's great that the school is looking out for these kids but how the fuck do these people function on a day to day basis if they need their kids school to wake them up? Thats just blown my mind. Is that a normal thing that schools do these days?

IMO this is a good thing to do - a child with a disordered parent is getting good help from a wake up call. It is an action the school can take that has potentially life-changing impact for the child.

A school is there to help the pupils access education. Sometimes that means being realistic where the parent is a barrier.

BigRedDuck · 04/07/2022 21:43

Blimey, my son would never get an award. He has multiple hospital appts a month for various different problems. I can't make the NHS give them to me after school. Our school thankfully doesn't do this.

OperaStation · 04/07/2022 21:45

ldontWanna · 04/07/2022 20:31

You know how at sports day it's the only chance some kids have to shine? For some children, attendance awards are the only ones they will get(at least with any regularity), and a lot of them are quite vulnerable as well in various ways.

Really? What’s your evidence for this?

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