The children of today will be the leaders of tomorrow, but the problems children have
today could be affecting their leadership skills tomorrow. In many sports, children in middle
school are being given awards and trophies just for showing up. There is no winner, just those
who try, which makes everyone a winner. First, second, and third place are receiving no
recognition. Each child is given the same trophy no matter how well they did. Trying is
important and winning is fun, but learning to lose is an invaluable life lesson that many children
are missing in their lives. This may not sound like a problem, but research is showing these types
of trophies are effecting how children behave once they grow up. Participation trophies do not
cause little children (under the age of ten) issues. Participation trophies are unnecessary and
potentially harmful for children the age of ten and older. Sports organizations, like Quincy
Ultimate Alliance in Illinois (QUAIL), should stop handing out participation trophies at the end
of the sports season. QUAIL should discontinue this practice because participation trophies are
potentially harmful for children.
A study done by Lee Heffernan, an elementary school teacher, and Mitzi Lewison, a
professor, showed that most children do not see participation awards as a good thing or even
necessary (Heffernan). One sixth grader named Aaron said, “Kids should learn to accept a loss as
a child or they won’t be able to handle competition very well when they grow up. People are
going to lose a lot in their lives, and participation awards don’t really help that…” (Heffernan
24). Many of the students in his class took a stance on defending the same view that sports
should have specific winners (Heffernan 24). Sixth graders understand the value of learning to
lose and can point out that participation awards may cause unrealistic expectations. Losing is
something everyone has to learn at some point because people will not always get the grade they
want, the college they want, or the job they want. The first time many children learn what it
means to lose is in the organized sports they play.
Participation trophies are not only something that children do not seem to care for; they
can also lead to children growing up with unrealistic expectations of the work force.
Participation trophies and giving children inflated praise are very similar because both are given
when a child does not earn it. They each are giving children an unrealistic view of what their
future jobs will be like. In the book The Trophy Kids Grow Up: How the Millennial Generation
Is Shaking Up the Workplace, employers describe the ‘trophy kids’ in the workplace. The
children who grew up with inflated praise and participation trophies are described as very
demanding, in that they need constant recognition and praise for what they have accomplished
(Alsop 7). The children who grew up receiving participation trophies are continuing to expect an
