Participation Award Research Paper

Take yourself back to second grade. You may have participated in the spelling bee, or a little league team, or something having to do with competition. Do you remember everyone getting awards? Maybe. Now, do you still have that award? Probably not, because the award was pointless, which is why you more than likely can't remember what you received the award for. Now think back again, when you received this award, did you envy the first place winner? No, you were happy that you all got the same trophy. Yet sadly, this is not the way things are, and they never have been. Why are we rewarding children for doing nothing? The only thing children are actually receiving when they get a participation award is false hope. Children should not receive …show more content…
Acknowledging a kid’s effort and participation with an award is a good thing, but in reality that is not what happens. We do not reward kids for making it to all the practices and games. We do not reward them for making a great effort, or improving their skills. We reward them for having a parent capable of registering them for a sport.
Secondly, participation awards are a poor use of scarce funds. If given the choice between giving a child access to sports and educating coaches, or giving everyone a participation award, people’s choices are wrong. The money spent every year on awards could have put dozens of kids on the field, and/or dozens of coaches through some quality coaching education. Many organizations face budget crunches, and every kid on the field should have a great coach before a ribbon is put around his or her neck.
Also, the more trophies given out; the less each one means. If we are going to give out awards, then they should mean something. Winning the Heisman trophy is not about the medal itself; it’s representative of everything and everyone that went into the development of a great athlete over the years. A trophy or a medal should be a symbol for something earned, not a token of