Students were honored for their achievements across Rapides Parish this week, that end-of-the-year ceremony where success is honored with certificate, trophies, and much applause. 

 

I attended the Awards Ceremony at Oak Hill Elementary, unsure of what to expect. I’d taught in schools where principals had given a limited number of awards to hand out, rewarding only a select few. I’d also taught in schools where every child received an award, creativity coming into play for the faculty. 

 

Like many young educators, I once rode the fence between the two. Pragmatically understanding the mindset of trophies designed to reward excellence, I also saw accomplishment in all student growth. 

 

I’d once driven home from an awards ceremony where my oldest child was laden with ribbons and trophies while her siblings clutched their participation certificates. 

 

I’m sure I committed the age-old parental faux pas of encouraging them to be more like their sister the following year as they looked at her awards with envy. 

 

As I got older, I began to see success differently, both in my students and my own children. I saw potential; I praised growth. I started to understand the value of building children up and the harm in comparing them to each other. I wished I’d had that foresight when I was younger. 

 

Fortunately the teachers at Oak Hill did. 

 

Not only was each child recognized, but the parents and grandparents were acknowledged as well. It takes a village to raise a child and the entire village was celebrated at Oak Hill’s Award Ceremony. 

 

Spread throughout the day as grade level award ceremonies and kindergarten graduation, each child was called to the podium as their teacher presented the highlights of their academic success for the year. Students were honored with their personal achievements of growth rather than how they measured against other students.

 

It’s a concept every school across America should follow. 

 

This central focus of whole-child development at Oak Hill’s K-12 school is widely supported by the community as evidenced by packed auditoriums for each grade level ceremony. Great job, Oak Hill!