So the 100% attendance prize this term was an ipod shuffle!!!

[RaisinBoys]

Aside from my thinking that a prize for 100% attendance is questionable, what is wrong with the humble book token?

Yes, I am really old!

And no, It's not just because my DC did not "win"

threads like these make me so glad that dd is in an sn school

In an Ofsted term we'd give iPod shuffles are 100% attendance (FE college though) to bribe students to come to college and be on time.

They give certificates at the end of the academic year at our school, which I think is more than enough reward. I still disagree with it though. The same kids win each year and I know of parents who force their kids into school when they really need to be at home. Sometimes they just need to rest up a bit. It just seems to encourage the whole 'illness is weakness' mentality.

I hate this awarding attendance business too. Yesterday DS1 was one of a handful not to get a 100% attendance certificate- oh naughty him, next term he must try not to get a coughing virus through his own will and intent. I am going to challenge this with the governors, I think it is so pointless especially as they are all Reception-Y2 and hardly responsible for deciding whether they go to school or not!

Challenge away - the governors have no choice as they will have been set this as a target by Ofsted, who are not in the least bit interested whether the attendance figures contain data re coughing viruses, hospital appointments, etc.

Ofsted targets don't need to be publicly acknowledged to 4 year olds who had temperatures though? I would be surprised if they were obliged by law to do this.

Rewarding 100% attendance is punishing the poor kids who get ill through no fault of their own - usually because another child has gone in to school with something infectious because they want the prize for attendance.

I have contacted the chair of governors about this- suggest everyone else does the same rather than grumble in silence

Don't get me started on this. We wrote a letter of complaint about it the other year. At the end of the year, there was a big assembly for parents. Two children had 100% attendance for the whole year (quite a small school). They both had 2 full time working parents....not sure if there's a link.

What are we rewarding them for? Having a fantastic immune system or parents who possibly send them to school the day after they've had a stomach bug and not waiting 48 hours?

I hate this too. My DC generally get their certificates, and there's no way I'd send them into school ill just so that they could get a certificate, but I just feel really sorry for the kids who are properly poorly and stand no chance of ever getting 100% attendence.
There are no prizes for music or sport in our school, so all the focus falls on these stupid attendence certificates.

I would also add that these were brought in by our new headmaster, before him we didn't have them, so obviously they are not essential and if you/we complain about them to the school governors then something can be done about them.

Back in the days of the ark, before Ofsted my high school gave a certificate for 100% attendance, and if you managed the full 5 years you also got a crappy gold coloured plastic trophy.

OK I have stopped rambling, bet we got attendance marks, non attendance and 'treatment' marks. To get a treatment mark you had to have a hospital / Dr / dentist appointment.

SSurely something like this could be addapted so it was 100% of possible attendances, so if your child is off every Monday for treatment then that Monday is counted in your child's attendance. I know Ofsted wouldn't use this for attendance but it must be better for children.

It's bollocks. My dd didn't get a certificate this term - because she was sent home 'poorly' from school with a rash that disappeared within half an hour of being home

But attendance is the only reason the achool doesn't have an outstanding grade so I understand why they have to play ball with the idiocy.

Well really the certificates and prizes should be given to the parents. After all, it's not the 5 year old who decides whether he is too ill for school, it's his mum. So if you've put your child into school every day, even when they should have stayed home because they're ill, then I think you should get the prize.

And I would like to donate the first prize to the mother who sent her vomiting child into class who then vomited in my daughters lunchbox. Please find a gift wrapped box of vomit. Enjoy.

A high value gift for good attendance normally means that the school has a truancy problem.

Hmm, i can see everyone's points but the fact remains that in the world of work, sickness record has a bearing on who gets put on the list for redundancies etc - so rightly or wrongly, I guess they are preparing kids for our society that rewards the get up and carry on regardless society.
I am not saying I agree with it, just playing devils advocate.

Ethos not society!

I think it's ridiculous. Ds has done really well this term, after a lot of ilness last year, and he was expecting a certificate, as he thought he'd got 100%.

I had forgotten though, that I had picked him up at 11 one day, because he had a migraine. That afternoon off, meant he didn't get 100%.

A 100% attendance prize for the teachers wouldn't cost the schools much!!!

runs and hides

My DD is rarely ill and didn't miss a day of school for 3 years. She received certificates, had special lunches with the head teacher and was entered into the draws to win an iPod touch.

This year she had an accident, requiring an ambulance, on the first day of term and subsequently missed the next 3 days of school.

Imagine my surprise to hear that she had to have an interview about her poor attendance 4 weeks into the school year. They actually pulled her out of a lesson to discuss the importance of regular attendance.

I received DD's report on Friday and her predicted grades for GCSEs are all As. Surely the bigger picture should be looked at and not just the attendance level.

Oops, just noticed this is Primary Education. Sorry, saw it on Active Threads.
My primary school aged children get certificates, but no prizes, thankfully.

NotLong - similar story for my ds1 in year 9. He didn't miss a day in years 8 & 9, but had awful cold/cough at beginning of October. He had 3 days off - went back still feeling extremely tired and works out, but he was worried about missing any more school.

Just before half term we got a letter expressing concern about his attendance levels! I know the computer just spits them out, but it really annoyed me!

They presumably have a massive attendance problem at the school and want to get their rates up so they don't get pulled up for it when OFSTED come in?

It's the like the SIMs points that they give out, the lower sets get them handed out like smarties but the kids in the top sets rarely get them. At the parent's evening recently DD's tutor commented that she had less SIMs points than she'd expect and DD was told that when she did good work she should ask for SIMs points but she'd no sooner do that than fly to the moon. Rewards in high schools are nearly always aimed at the lower ability kids and those who are less likely to turn up at school. In the last newsletter child X was mentioned for getting all his spellings right whereas DD and her friends who had had letters sent home for outstanding achievement and effort didn't warrant a "mention in despatches"

It's the way the system is, unfairly IMO.

Sorry, I just saw it was primary as well.
Certificates for 100% attendance round here at all levels. There are prizes for the most points at high school but the primary has a house point system and the house with the most points has the trophy for the next half term. I much prefer that than individual prizes.