Should Everyone Get A Trophy

Nowadays, athletes have their room overflowing with trophies. And what’s more is that many of these trophies don’t come from their athletic ability. A lot of the trophies come from simply showing up to practices or simply participating in a sport. Some people think that rewarding kids with trophies are a good way of encouraging kids. However, on the other side of this debate, several people believe that trophies are a bad way of encouraging kids. Lauren Tarshis addresses this debate in the article “Should Everyone Get a Trophy?”, published by Scholastic Scope on November 2013. Lauren explains how several professionals, such as Karen Coffin, a coach who writes about youth sports, and Dr. Michelle Anthony, an author and psychologist who works with kids and schools, take different views on this topic. However, even with some good points coming

In real life, people do not get a pay raise for showing up on time or doing the bare minimum of what is required. Doing more than expected and putting that extra work should be the reason for these rewards. Only the hardest working or the top athletes should be rewarded.
While people argue that trophies motivate kids, trophies are not an effective way of encouragement and keeping kids coming back to a sport. Karen Coffin shares her point of view by saying, “Receiving a pat on the back, a thumbs-up from the coach… any show of appreciation is what keeps kids coming back.” There are several other ways to encourage kids, so why trophies if trophies send the wrong message and are not an effective way of encouragement?

To add on to all of this, trophies can easily lose their meaning if everyone gets them without needing to put hard work in. They lose their meaning, especially in the future when the kid understands the reward a bit more. The trophies should be reserved for the best, but this doesn’t mean that the rest won’t be