Participation trophies, are they a good or bad thing in competitions?

[dreamer17555]

You are trying to discredit top place earners by saying they must have more privilege. Working hard doesn’t equal results. Results is what matters in the adult world. Someone’s best isn’t always good enough and the sooner they realize that what they’re doing isn’t working then the sooner they can move on to something that they can excel at.

I am saying for children- what matters should be working hard. You don’t always excel at something the first time you try it. But if you stay dedicated enough you can become amazing at it! My daughter was a terrible dancer for years and became an amazing amazing ballet dancer. Children are supposed to pick activities because they love them or they feel passionate about them not just because they’re winning at them.

 

[amylevan]

As a mom, I hate them. What the heck am I supposed to do with all these trophies?!?! If we have to give participation awards, what’s wrong with a ribbon or certificate? Not plastic junk.

As a coach, I also dislike them. They’re impersonal, they say nothing about individuals. They waste funds. Play the game or learn the dance routine and let that be the thing you are proud of. Why do you need an award on top of that?

 

[sam_gordon]

You are trying to discredit top place earners by saying they must have more privilege. Working hard doesn’t equal results. Results is what matters in the adult world. Someone’s best isn’t always good enough and the sooner they realize that what they’re doing isn’t working then the sooner they can move on to something that they can excel at.

So the kids who only get the "participation trophy" should give up because "what they're doing isn't working and the sooner they can move on to something they can excel at"? Around here, at least at the younger ages, no score is kept for individual games. You better believe the kids know who won and lost the games though. Do you think a kid who lost most if not every game looks at that participation trophy at the end of the year and says "I'm just as good as the players on the first place team!"? If they think that, it's because the ADULTS around them are telling them that. They're not getting that message from a participation trophy.

 

[fly girl]

Here’s the problem you can’t tell who is Neuro typical and who is not on any given team. You don’t know anyone’s individual struggles- what some of those kids are going through at home or in their families or at school. You don’t know how hard some of those kids have worked to just earn that participation trophy. So maybe just let them have it it’s not hurting anyone.

You are absolutely correct, you cannot always tell. So in those circumstances, IMHO, it is up to the parents to do their job. A trophy is great, but you can instill a sense of accomplishment and pride in other ways. You can disagree, I get it. I just don't care for the trophies for everyone to cater to some. I know, it sounds harsh, and I admit I am old fashioned with this mindset that most kids need to learn how to lose/fail. It is a valuable life skill I think a lot of parents are forgetting. Parents are too overprotective in shielding their kid from everything negative, so much so that when their child is grown and functioning in the real world they can't cope with life hiccups and failures. I have seen it! Most kids need this preparation. Sure they can get it in other ways, but sports is such a valuable tool in learning how to handle winning and losing.

We are at an impasse, and that is ok. I understand where you are coming from, I respect your thoughts and feel for the situation you have. Hopefully you can respectfully do the same for me.

 

[slo]

I think a lot of adults like those participation medals they get for finishing certain marathons

I agree - As a past runner I love my 1/2 marathon medals.

I‘m not a fan of participation trophies, but I am about participation medals for certain programs and ages.

IMO….it depends on what we’re talking about.
***For rec/town programs…at the end of the season, the winning team gets a bigger trophy, the runner up team gets a smaller trophy, and the other teams get a medal.
***For travel/elite programs…at tournaments, the only teams getting a trophy are the ones in the championship game. The other teams involved have a chance again at another tournament next weekend. Then, until the next tournament, players and their parents, need to work hard to help the team get to that championship game - it’s not just up the coaches. You don’t learn how to play the piano beautifully by just going to lessons - you individually practice practice practice and the same goes to sports, but with sports, players need help from their parents or someone else. A player can’t play catch with themself, they can’t block a soccer ball going into a net themself and etc. So, if you want your child to get a trophy, then get outside in the cold, in the heat, in the rain and help them be the best they can be to help their team win games.
***For individual travel teams…if they want to give their players a participation medal at the end of the season that’s fun, but I rarely hear of that happening.

My DD18 has been playing softball for 11 years (4 years playing rec/town ball & 7 years playing A level softball) and I’ve been one of her coaches for 10 years - if she got a participation trophy all the time we would be buried in trophies. She values the ones that her team won because they worked HARD to win those trophies. If everyone got a trophy all the time they wouldn’t be valued, they would just get tossed aside like yesterday’s news.

 

[Vatrahaki75]

I‘m not a fan of participation trophies, but I am about participation medals for certain programs and ages.

Good.

For all others, bad. Not everybody is a winner.

 

[GreatLakes]

Trophies are for winners. Little kids and big events can have some sort of marker of completion, think a marathon finisher's medal, but actual trophies are for winners.

 

[GreatLakes]

Also while I’m on the subject normally excelling at something tends to mean that you have more resources time says and assistance to devote to that subject or sport. Kids who are not as privileged do not always have the same resources as kids who have more resources like private coaching to get ahead

You know, I wondered why the big sports leagues were full of privileged people from wealthy backgrounds with every advantage thrown at them from childhood. I wonder what the NFL or NBA would be like if we let kids that grew up in underprivileged areas and went to public school and state colleges play.

Someone should get on that.

 

[declansdad]

I think people are getting caught up in the terminology. There really isn't any difference between a trophy, a medal or a certificate except for the amount of space they take up. As too the thought are the good, they are - up to a point. There is nothing wrong with this type of award at a younger level but once you get closer to the age of 10, they start losing their importance. Below that age level the focus should be about teaching the skills needed for the sport not winning.

It's a different culture now. A kid has to specialize in an activity, play year round, get private lessons, be picked for the right teams. It's not about just playing anymore. That's a shame in my opinion.

Kids that specialized at too young an age tend to give up the sport in their early teens because they are tired of it or they have developed too many injuries from the repetitiveness of doing the same thing over and over without a change. The best athletes are the athletes that are multisport athletes in their younger years.

 

[spiders]

So the kids who only get the "participation trophy" should give up because "what they're doing isn't working and the sooner they can move on to something they can excel at"? Around here, at least at the younger ages, no score is kept for individual games. You better believe the kids know who won and lost the games though. Do you think a kid who lost most if not every game looks at that participation trophy at the end of the year and says "I'm just as good as the players on the first place team!"? If they think that, it's because the ADULTS around them are telling them that. They're not getting that message from a participation trophy.

I think this is part of the reason why we keep seeing more articles saying how you should always try to give praise in the workplace — from bosses and peer to peer — because you should try to make someone feel great. I don’t believe in giving praise when praise isn’t due. It takes away from times when meaningful praise is deserved. If you want to do this for little kids then that’s fine — again, I’m all for showing them the importance of completion. But eventually it needs to stop otherwise you just end up with kids in adult bodies with hurt feelings because they did a mediocre job and are still looking for a pat on the back.

 

[robinb]

I think participation awards are a good thing.

My DD was a competitive swimmer and was good enough to earn her own ribbons and trophies. She swam at the multi state regional level and ended up with a box of ribbons and medals. My DD worked her butt off … 20 hours of practice per week … to swim at that level. She came home from nearly every swim meet with awards and they eventually didn’t mean a lot to her.

At every swim meet there are tons of kids who will never earn a single ribbon. They will never swim fast enough to get into the top 16. They would kill to have the ribbon my DD didn’t care about and they are *thrilled* to get a participation ribbon. I worked the awards table a few times and the little kids were so excited to get their participation ribbon.

I think that our society too often celebrates the elite “winners” and forgets about the kids who go out and try things despite not being very good at it. I think those kids deserve acknowledgment too.

 

[Boopuff]

Does it hurt to give a little kid a participation trophy? no. But once a child reaches middle school. Kids usually start to favor one sport. Sports often have tryouts at middle school level. At that point, I think it should be trophy by merit. As adults it's different. People train for things like marathons. For some, just making it across the finish line is a huge deal. If I were to walk (can't run bad knees) a 10k, I'd be thrilled. Would a medal make it better..... yeah... even if I was dead last....

 

[nw6675]

I am not a helicopter mom - past or present. I am ok with only the "winners" getting a trophy. However, Mama Bear came out in full claw force years ago when some jackaxx father said during a distance track meet that "that kid should just quit". That kid was my stepson and he was struggling on a long distance run. A participation trophy would have been great for a kid giving his heart. Yep, still bitter almost 20 years later lol

 

[tcufrog]

The indoor soccer league DS11 was in when he was younger handled this really well. Each week was devoted to a different character trait that was discussed during practice. After the game, the player who best exemplified that trait during the game got an award and they explained why that child won it. Kids who weren't the best players were recognized and they were very proud of their awards. There were no participation trophies though. DS11 got awarded for Perseverance after one game and he was very proud of himself for getting back in the game after some setbacks.

DS11's school does the same thing in the school newsletter. Each week there's an Athlete of the Week profiled. Sometimes it's awarded for best player but often it's awarded for players who exhibited excellent teamwork for some other great quality.

 

[lanejudy]

I'm torn on this. I don't think a trophy in and of itself "hurts" necessarily, and most kids do learn that a "participation trophy" is nothing particularly spectacular, plus it may be the only time some kids (special needs or not) may "earn" that level of recognition. But here's my take...

DD is special needs and she loves the trophies and medals she received in the past; she looks at them and relives each season. However I also struggle with the message those trophies and medals gave her, even though we tried to temper it over the years by pointing out that everyone received the same so it simply meant "thanks for participating." Our message didn't sink in, the view of a trophy as an award stuck. Now that she's in high school there are very limited opportunities for her to participate in organized sports even though she loves playing. But because she was repeatedly "awarded" for participation, she thinks she's top-notch and wants to try out for varsity sports. I now dread each season when I will again have to kill her enthusiasm and remind her that she's really not good enough to make the team and that some coaches won't even accept her as manager (don't get me started on that). She doesn't have the same view of certificates or even ribbons, but those medals and trophies set an expectation that has been difficult to overcome. I would much preferred a scrapbook full of certificates and ribbons.

 

[TippyThomas]

I'd like to thank those of you who offered reasons for them that I hadn't considered. You've given me something to think about.

 

[RamblingMad]

Nobody received these growing up. I was an 80s kid. We kinda went with this line from Top Gun:

 

[kymom99]

I’ll throw in what I remember about my human growth and development classes. In the primary grades children respond to tangible rewards. Once they get to intermediate, around the age of 9, they are more internally motivated. I once had a parent of a 4th grader complain he never got stickers on his papers. I told her that by 4th grade the kids didn’t care as much about stickers, so I only gave them out occasionally. So for those saying trophies for little kids are ok, I think that fits the development of children and the reason why we give them out during that age range.

I also agree with the poster who said trophies, medals, etc are essentially the same thing, or can be. One year my son got a bobble head at the end of his knothole season. It’s just a token or a memento of his season.

 

[amylevan]

The indoor soccer league DS11 was in when he was younger handled this really well. Each week was devoted to a different character trait that was discussed during practice. After the game, the player who best exemplified that trait during the game got an award and they explained why that child won it. Kids who weren't the best players were recognized and they were very proud of their awards. There were no participation trophies though. DS11 got awarded for Perseverance after one game and he was very proud of himself for getting back in the game after some setbacks.

DS11's school does the same thing in the school newsletter. Each week there's an Athlete of the Week profiled. Sometimes it's awarded for best player but often it's awarded for players who exhibited excellent teamwork for some other great quality.

That is something I can get behind as a coach. Praise qualities that we are trying to instill in athletes. There are many reasons to get involved in sports or other activities that have nothing to do with winning, and helping to bring those qualities out and recognizing those that excel at things like perseverance, team spirit, good attitudes, sportsmanship are worthwhile.

 

[disykat]

Since they're really more a of souvenir than anything, to me a ribbon makes more sense. They can go on a bulletin board or the fridge or in a scrapbook and be a nice reminder of their participation. The trophies take up too much space! They cost money, cause waste in landfills, etc. It just seems like overkill when a ribbon is "special" enough.

A friend of mine was in a family of baton twirlers. Their whole house was full of trophies on almost every surface. Dusting must have been a nightmare. She was the only person I ever knew whose mother would be in the school office complaining the minute she felt her daughter didn't get the recognition she deserved for something. On the other hand, I knew plenty of people who had a bulletin board in their bedroom with some ribbons, medals, etc. on it from various activities - me included.