From the 

Principal

Dear Parents / Carers,

Last week the Australian Federal Police Commissioner caused a nation-wide reaction when he quoted new research showing that young employees need praise three times a week from their superiors. 

Over the last two days I have listened to many discussions on the radio as I have been driving, around the theme that lavishing praise and rewards on children is detrimental to a child’s development. It has become almost second nature to reward children when they do something of which we approve. So, they may be rewarded when they are quiet or when they eat their vegetables or when they bring home a positive report from school. On the surface praise seems to work.

What the media reports have been highlighting is that constant rewards are leading to the development of a generation of children who have inflated self-esteem. It was even suggested in one conversation that I heard that these children are more likely to be the ring leaders who bully others.

Children who are constantly rewarded grow up expecting to receive praise whenever they achieve anything and can feel demoralized or crushed when praise is not forthcoming. This can impede a child’s perseverance. When children are addicted to getting a reward, they learn to do the minimum required in order to get the reward.

Constant rewards and praise lead to children becoming people who constantly seek to impress others rather than doing things that give internal satisfaction. They fish for flattery and reassurance from others. They can become dependent on approval and recognition and when this doesn’t occur, they can become deflated or unhappy.

At Rowville Primary School we have moved away from giving students praise such as “good work” to giving positive feedback where the teacher is explicit about what the student has done well. Our goal is for our students to understand what they have done well and feel proud of themselves as learners. Much of the teaching that happens in our school is designed to skill our students with the social skills that will help them to become good citizens not only at school but in life in general. We base our work on developing our students to operate around our values: responsibility, respect, perseverance and pride. We want them to develop into people who feel good when they operate in an ethical way not as a result of extrinsic rewards or praise. In our latest Friday Program, our student leaders share with us what it means to be a leader.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QH0thADO9bU

Last Friday we held our annual school disco. It was attended by 89% of our students. The night was possible because of the efforts of 34 parents and 24 teachers. I thank everyone for their gift of time as it enabled our students to have an enjoyable night. 

Last week the Rowville Primary School Council approved Monday 19 June and Monday 10 July (first day of term three) as school closure days to enable our teachers to have a Professional Practice Day and a Curriculum Day on the teaching of writing.

The School Council also approved the Beyond Boundaries Program which is due to occur between the 30 October and 3rd November. Deposits are now due for Years 3 to 6 on Compass Events. Many schools across the State have cancelled programs that have overnight stay components due to the costs associated with paying staff to attend. We are committed to the value of such programs and have budgeted to enable them to occur.

Today I had a new enrolment enquiry . . .

Kind regards,

Anne Babich

Principal