A question about certificates, all may answer but would like a teacher's view too please

[PiggeryJokery]

Do you think they are a good or a bad thing?

I am getting more and more pissed off about certificates, in our case presented for good work once a week in assembly. Sure they are a good way of recognising good work publically, but when it's your child getting increasingly despondent that they haven't yet had one this term, when other classmates may have 2 or even 3, they don't work do they? But if you give one to half the class every week then they become devalued. Or do they? If you're in Yr1 any bit of praise and acknowledgement is brilliant, and motivating. Poor ds has to sit and clap everyone else, sometimes more than once, this term but has had nothing himself. He's a nice child, bright, works hard, not above a bit of silliness I know. But if he wasn't getting a certificate because of poor behaviour if expect to be told about that direct, not have to fathom it out from a lack of public praise.

If you were a teacher and a parent raised this with you nicely, would you think they were annoying and pushy, that the child just had to wait his turn, no matter how long it took, or that you had a fair point?

Hulababy - i guess it depends on how often you give them. i have found that mine have had them nearly every day especially when they were littler so don't really mean much.
if you only gave them out for truly impressive achievements then yes they would mean more... but then you would get parents wondering why their child hasn't had a sticker yet, guess you cant win.

I don't think you can run a system where 90% get a certificate and a small number are overlooked. Ether everyone gets one, at least once, during a term / year or no-one gets them, or they are rarer than hens' teeth for truly incredibly work, improvement, acts of selflessness and daring bravery etc. if most children get them, the ones that don't feel sad, demotivated and wonder why they other if their efforts are never celebrated whilst every other bugger's are.

bother not other.

I give them out for effort rather than attainment.
No, not every day - a few a week.

I think the attainment certificates are different though - they are a chance to celebrate individual children's achievements. Each one can mean something different. And imo all children have something to celebrate - so see no reason not to allow every child their 30 seconds a year of celebration in assembly.

We celebrate children every single day just not with certificates

Well we do that too. I see that as part of the job.
But the certificates are a school thing and not optional here. So if that is the case - then yes, we make sure every child is celebrated over the year.

I agree mrz

I also think only children who deserve certificates should get them. The idea that 'everyone should get one' decreases their value.

Some children at our school may receive certificates in assembly 2 or 3 times a year, as the purpose of the certificates is to reward good role models. We don't want to publicly reward children who don't deserve them, as that would send a very mixed message.

However, the children not receiving certificates in assembly will receive plenty of individual praise and encouragement in the classroom/year group/visits to HT to show work, etc.

I can see the argument for not giving them at all. I can see the argument for giving out a few a term, if if this is how it works.

I cannot see that it is acceptable to give out 29 in a year and leave one child out.

It is not hard to find something to celebrate about every child.

I find it really irritating when parents complain about the one little sod child in a class who has a specially designed behaviour system ie a sticker chart. Parents are on teachers' backs instantly if they decide discipline within the classroom is not top notch, and yet when a teacher has a method of controlling / modifying difficult behaviour, then suddenly it 'isn't fair' because the kids aren't all treated the same. Well duh. Why should all the kids be treated the same? If I have children who are struggling with reading, they have daily input from me/ my TA. Each child does not need the same level of support. For some it might be in academic situations; for others it will be behaviour.

It seems that, with star of the week etc, we're damned if we do and damned if we don't. I had a parent complain to the head last year because pfb was only chosen once. In 39 weeks, that's not THAT unusual. One child was chosen 3 times, but because the supply covering my post-surgery sickness leave chose her. Not my choice. And I do have a tick list- more for my own sake than anything else.

If certificates are given for (e.g.) 'keeping the school rules', then children who behave appropriately, week after week after week, should be justly rewarded and used as role models for the other children.

These are the 'forgotten children' - often mentioned on mn forums as children who are overlooked in favour of the attention seekers. Surely these children deserve recognition for keeping rules and towing the line?

If children see a badly behaved class-mate receive the same award, surely that would would make it less aspirational and make the role model idea meaningless?

If the badly behaved child never receives a carrot, and only ever has the stick, badly behaved child will continue to be badly behaved child.

alcofrolic - in my school the certificate is given for different reasons every week.

And yes, I agree - the "forgotten" child are often the children who really deserve the certificate and who in the past were always ignored and well, forgotten. I was one such child. Quiet, worked well, never in trouble, a bit shy, not top of the class, but not needing support either = all that meant was that I was never really noticed at all. As a result I always look out for these children in class. (It;s also why sometimes the tick sheet comes in handy)

coming back to this -mrz I don't opt out because I'm an NQT on a temp contract, and I'm choosing my battles! (believe me there are many)

I think they should be worked for. So you are giving a child an individual target and whan they reach it they can get a sticker or certificate or whatever.

I'm in FE, one college we had a system of sending post cards home, one a week bot over bout 50 students. Staff recomended students to recieve them.

At the end of term we had a 'prize giving', college certificates for high marks (Edexcel can take weeks to produce the official one) but also some fun ones such as 'the orange award' - for the most consistant tan over 2 years.

They seem to work ok in the dds' school...everyone gets them eventually, but there are only one or two per week. For all sorts of different things, not just good work.

For work specifically, what works brilliantly is a system of individual learning targets - from Y1 upwards. Each child knows exactly what he or she is working towards in reading, writing and maths: ask any of them, they can tell you. They are very motivated in reaching them, because when they do they get to go to one of the SLT for a small certificate and a secret ceremony

The real benefit is that they all know what they need to learn, and sort of take responsibility for that iyswim.

I agree with cilldara I find the whole certificates and stars and house points thing ridiculous. Most teachers have them imposed on them though, so not much they can do, but the least they could do is make sure everyone gets one at least once, and not reward the children who misbehave by giving them certificates when they act as they should all the time.

I'm much more of a fan of private praise.

The point of a checklist is not to give every child a certificate no matter what. It is to make sure the quiet children don't get overlooked. And make sure your reasons are consistent and also appear so. I'd mention that you are concerned about your child's confidence, not specifically about the certificates, just generally.

gentle 'The point of a checklist is not to give every child a certificate no matter what. It is to make sure the quiet children don't get overlooked.'

I agree.

I would be very worried that a school/teacher needed a check list to make sure quite children aren't overlooked ...sorry

quiet

mrz really? If you are in a chaotic classroom (there are 9 children with SEN in the class I work in, and at least 3 more who probably should be on the register) it is very easy to overlook quiet children. While I am not a teacher, I can see how it would easily happen that all the focus is just on trying to keep some semblance of order on a day to day basis.

Yes really FromEsme and I am a teacher (and I wish I only had 9 SEN )

Sorry-I don't know what the philosophy behind 'all shall have prizes' I
I should as I was a teacher
I do remember being at primary school in the 70s and it being an utterly anti-awards environment. No reports even. It was a very stress free and happy place.

Oh sorry mrz you are obviously well superior with your superfluity of "SEN" ("children with SEN" surely being the more polite way of putting it).

Every teacher has their challenges. At least people are trying - if a checklist helps them to make sure every child has a shot, so be it.

Come May or so, there are some children who I assume I must have already given the star to, because there's no reason why I wouldn't have done. I then check my list and think 'blimey! Little Tarquin has never had one!' so my check list does work. Maybe I should choose Tarquin every week, but little Brutas didn't kick anyone in the head for a whole day, so he deserves the recognition for his efforts too.