Praise the young and they will blossom
When I was in primary school, I could do almost anything to be praised. Even if it meant cheating (which I never did by the way) to get that praise. Getting praise from my parents, teachers, friends and classmates was what I lived for, but ask me what I would like as a present for my hard work in school, Praise?, no way. I wanted things I could touch.
Today, students are very different as Mprep found out during a survey we did. One of the questions we asked the students at M.M Chandaria, one of the partner schools we are working with, was what incentives worked best for them. Can you believe they chose “praise” over “money”? I am sure if this survey was done during my time money would come first, followed closely by sweets.
But, if you think about it, what would really work best for these students. In my opinion, I think these students are on the right track. Personally if my deskmate receives praise for a good job, guess what, I would do almost anything to steal the limelight from him/her. We are all suckers for attention, I mean; most fights in a relationship are because the man did not notice the partner had done something new with themselves. Ladies, if you do your toe nails and wear closed shoes, how am I to notice that……Anyway that’s a story for another day, back to the students…
When a student is taking a quiz on the phone and they score 100%, the first thing I noticed they did at M M Chandaria was to turn to their class mates and show off their results. That alone shows how much they want not only to be rewarded, but to be recognized. Clearly in this case the sweetest sound of all is that of praise.
No wonder they say the young are so pure and holly, I mean, they, just like Jesus, would want to be praised despite having so many options.
All in all, wonderful feedback from them just before they went for their holiday break. I am looking forward to next term.
Chris Asego