Essay On Participation Awards For Showing Up At Work

“Sometimes you win, and sometimes you learn” - Robert T. Kiyosaki. Life is not always about winning, and as we grow up we teach ourselves that, and we learn that. But what if certain things in life are teaching kids otherwise? The articles “You Don’t Get Participation Awards For Showing Up At Work” by Don Yaeger and “Participation Trophies Aren’t What's Wrong With Kids These Days” by Bob Cook, argued whether or not the youth should be given trophies for participating in activities. Kids should not be given trophies for participation because showing up is not a trophy worthy action, the youth have to be taught that losing is adequate, and it may teach the youth that they don’t have to work hard to accomplish what they wish. To begin, the youth should not be given trophies for participation because showing up is not a trophy worthy action. If the youth are to be given an award everytime they show their face at something, they may learn that they will be rewarded “For everything”(Yaeger 4), that they do. Therefore, this will lead to selfishness, laziness and bad traits that …show more content…
Being able to “Handle both winning and losing” is crucial for a child “In order [for them] to have a realistic perspective on life”(Yaeger 10). the youth will not learn that losing teaches them a greater lesson than winning ever will if they are rewarding for the smallest things, such as participation. Additionally, sports and activities for children should be about the “Experience of the season” (Cook 9), not the trophy they win at the end of it all. Especially if a child’s sports team is not successful, a trophy will not teach them to reflect on what they did wrong or what they did not do at all. Overall, the youth should not be given trophies for participation because they need to learn that losing is adequate, and they need to learn from their