To hate "perfect attendance" awards

[EllieRosesMammy]

Surely after going through a pandemic perfect attendance awards should be scrapped? I refuse to believe any child can go an entire year without being ill atleast once, so essentially schools are rewarding the ones who have been sent in to school to spread their germs around.

And then articles like this:
lm.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hulldailymail.co.uk%2Fnews%2Feducation%2Fhull-boy-not-missed-day-7300887&h=AT15pbp4zAEVNauE8SDiHV7nuGzjlB9PVwvxfhka2nSCw-fUJHOIxI50ErMwsi96rnXaVdNlk-5HQsPc1agljITptxr5RX-ZjnYAfri6FdNPKn8NIxmThMtnLPlpKaQ1u7hR_L29GLjDoZuRVqbvtw

7 years and he hasn't been ill once? Give over 🙄

When mine were in primary they used to get a pencil with 100% attendance on it, I considered that my pencil 🤣

Our school had this! Both effort AND achievement awards, so it wasnt just children with the top grades receiving awards, but also those who had put in a good effort.

I just think attendance awards are a pointless thing 🤷‍♀️

@Florenz · Today 21:49

Surely the kids who had health conditions didn't stand a chance of winning at sports day either?

Oh do fuck off
There's absolutely no reason DS who doesn't run v fast and has a lung condition couldn't win an egg and spoon race, or be put in a streamed race with other slower kids and there'd plenty of disabilities or illnesses which won't affect a child's ability to run 200 yards down a field.

I’m actually not a parent that gets bothered by it but I do think it is unfair. I let my kids have time off sometimes when they’re not actually sick so we’ve never been in the running. 😂

Theres never been any actual prizes at my kids schools for anything except attendance. It’s ofsted bullshit that encourages it.

I think effort should be rewarded. Everyone can make effort and teachers can pick up on even the most small improvements which can be a huge thing for some children.

Exactly @EllieRosesMammy , every week there'd a reader of the week from every class, plus writer, good behaviour based on EFFORT not attainment. So the kids who really struggles to sit in class who tries hard on a school trip, the dyslexic child who makes an improvement for them, the child who hates writing who randomly produced a side of writing on wolves (yes DS, you). Every class down to reception plus the school council (made up of kids) give an award out too. Effort not attainment is what needs to be celebrated.

Our awards ramp up to a bike at the end of year. Only three across the school but you're only in the draw if you get 100%

Exactly. They are bloody stupid 'awards' and should be banned

This. @Florenz that was a fucking shitty comment. To say 'well the kids with health conditions and disabilities wouldn't do well at sport anyway!' Good God. Did you actually think it was acceptable to post that?!

A bike?? Flipping heck

Why?

I must ask my mother and grandmother about that one (my grandfather has passed away) as my mother suffered with asthma badly as a 'farm child' as did her father.

I’m a teacher and I dislike these rewards. I’ve seen five year olds sent to school really ill just so they can get 100% attendance reward. Both of my DC have had covid recently and so they won’t get it this year. It annoys me as I know some children who will get rewarded were sent in covid positive. So what is this rewarding in that case?

I hate all prizes and awards. I have one child who aces everything without having to put in any effort, academically able, sporty, healthy etc. they walk an easy path. My other child the polar opposite, crap health, crap at sport, struggling academically, everything is a challenge and life is so much harder.
I know the child which is far more deserving of the award, and it's not the one who gets all the awards.

The end of my post wasn't quoted, that there would be other awards that would pay to those kids strengths.

There's already been several posts saying that 100% attendance awards aren't fair on kids with health conditions and disabilities as they wouldn't be able to win.

If you take it to the logical extreme, there shouldn't be any awards in schools because not all kids can win. Which is obviously ridiculous. Achievement should be acknowledged, and there should be awards for effort and improvement too.

Arrr but Florenz which child gets the improvement award the one who goes from 68%-90% or the one who goes from 2%-3%.
Likewise with effort, the child who reads 100 books a term or the child who just manages to read 1? Okay I'm being a bit obtuse here, but 'effort' is much more ambiguous than an obvious win in a race or high marks.
And how often do we see on here parents moan about the 'good' behaviour awards, going to the 'naughtiest' child compared to their child who has been good and kind and well behaved?
I just don't think they are needed. If children didn't have them, they wouldn't miss them. What's wrong with a sticker and a well-done each time a child has done something to the best of their ability? Why make a loud sound and dance about achieving something which is unachievable for many?
Why reward something that comes naturally and is generally down to the luck of genetics and or parenting?
As I've already said my kids are polar opposite so I have no real bone to pick, one wins everything, one has never had so much as a sticker.
But I do see the effect it has on my struggling child and it's not okay.
Life will never ever be a level playing field and I accept that, by why not try and level it a bit, at least at primary school?

It absolutely can be discrimination.

Equality Act 2010: 'Schools must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled children and young people are not at a substantial disadvantage compared with their peers. This duty is anticipatory: adjustments must be planned and put in place in advance, to prevent that disadvantage.'

So unless absences relating to a medical condition which the school knows about are discounted when assessing absence, a school could very well be in breach of the Act. Adherence to which is a legal requirement.

There's already been several posts saying that 100% attendance awards aren't fair on kids with health conditions and disabilities as they wouldn't be able to win

@Florenz, I'm going to assume you just don't have much experience of childhood disabilities rather than trying to be offensive. But FYI there is a whole range of health conditions and disabilities which would mean you were considered disabled but wouldn't prevent you doing some physical activities, or which might mean you could occasionally do such activities but not all the time.

DS for example has a (physical) condition which means he is considered disabled, but he works as a sports coach and PT and his main hobby is doing cross-fit. His students wouldn't know about his disability because on the bad days, he doesn't do them.

My youngest son went through the whole of secondary school without missing a day. He was ill once but over Easter holidays. He was awarded a prize by local mayor as only child in town. He was given a football. My son loves most sports but hates football. He gave it away to a charity.

If they shamed low attendance I'd be in full agreement

😳🙄

Maybe but what kid actually cares about an attendance award? I used to hate standing at the front, hardly an honour. If they shamed low attendance I'd be in full agreement but fact is, only 100% attendees are getting a certificate, hardly discrimination.

Here is my full post @DashOfMilkNoSugar, I think you missed it. Odd thing to only post the last a sentence to wind yourself up.

Oh boohoo get over it.
That's like saying some kids can't win first prize in a running race because they're is a kid in a wheelchair in their Class

Let them win a prize. Yay for them. Who cares.

Not everyone can be chronically ill though, tackling poor attendance (especially now) is like fighting a tide of indifference towards education and the tools given are blunt. Maybe they should extend it to say if you have an illness or disability you should get a certificate for the attendance you manage as adversity is actually being faced there (in terms of getting to school) or would that seem patronising 🤔 Ultimately though in my experience is does tend to be the parents who care over the kids, unless you are giving out chocolate then that’s a different matter.

Our school is doing a trip where you only get to go if no detention, no lates to class or school and full attendance. It's ridiculous as yes they may need to take some responsibility but as teens they can't change the world around them so they can get to school on time and cannot help getting a stomach bug. Its also ridiculous as the 'naughty' kids also get to go regardless of behaviour and they have gone on multiple other trips but thats for another post!

Attendance reseda aren’t going to improve attendance.

to tackle attendance issues then schools, and where needed other agencies, need to work with children and families to get to the bottom of the issues leading to poor attendance.

That of course should start attendance awards.

We don't do them anymore, along with quite a few schools in the area because they've realised it's discriminatory towards students with SEND or whose parent dies, for example.

I think the HT may be on MN