I'm just SO mad about my inability to stand my ground on this trophy issue....Instead of walking away, I should have stood there and voiced my concerns. The heck with how the other parents felt (no one likes me anyway:). Participation trophies diminish the value of trophies given for merit. They are of no value whatsoever. When my son started swimming for the local swim club (around 2nd grade) he was given his first, in a long line of, 'Excellent Eel' trophies. He was excited about getting a trophy, but in the following years, after filling his shelves with 'participation trophies', he figured it out (we started calling them the, 'we're glad you didn't drown' trophy). The very last year that he swam for this club (7th grade) he went home after the awards ceremony and threw the trophy in the trash. How sad.
One year in particular, I can remember a very young (and quite tiny) swimmer walking by us carrying a trophy (this was an actual merit trophy - probably most valuable). This monsterous trophy was almost as tall as she was. The gentleman standing with us commented, "What does she have to look forward to now?". When you give a trophy WITHOUT merit, you have to make sure the trophies that actually MEAN something are gigantic (or at least much bigger than the worthless ones). That's how you tell the difference, size. And again, the kids get it! We're not FOOLING them; they know a meaningless gesture when they see it.
A gold medal is...what?...maybe 3inches in diameter. The value of the medal comes in the accomplishment, the effort behind the award....not the physical medal.
Whew!.....I'm done.
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5 comments:
I totally agree with this whole issue. I see this concept in many aareas with kids. They don't try because they know they will be congratulated no matter what they do. Or, like your son, the trophy goes in the test. It's almost like the boy who cried wolf. Or state testing. You do something too often and it loses its merit. (or getting a compliment from Simon Cowell vs Paula Abdul- which is more meaninful?)
OH - BTW, I've linked to you in my blog.
Thanks for the support Nancy, and how do I link to you in my blog? And BTW, what does that mean?
(dunce alert!)
Linking to your blog means that when someone sees my blog they will see a little reference to your blog. When they click on that reference, it will "link" or send them to your blog. You do it by going to the top of the page and clicking on"customize" Then you can add "page elements" Look at my blog on the side. You will see what I mean. I will show you how to do it when you come over on Thursday.
Cool!
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