Question

What are your feelings or concerns about the use of praise in early childhood classrooms?

Answer 1

Ans) Feelings or concerns about the use of praise in early childhood classrooms:

• manipulates children – praise is a way of getting children to comply with adults' wishes. This works in the short term because young children want adults' approval. But Kohn argues that we should not take advantage of children's dependence.
• creates praise "junkies" – the more praise children receive, the more they rely on adult evaluations instead of forming their own judgments.

• steals a child's pleasure – children deserve to delight in their accomplishments instead of being judged. Most people don't think a statement like "Good job!" is a judgment, but Kohn argues that it's as much an evaluation as "Bad job".
• decreases interest – research has shown that people tend to lose interest in activities for which they have been praised. Instead of motivating a child to engage in an activity, praise motivates a child to get more praise.

• reduces achievement – children who are praised for creative tasks tend to stumble at the next task. This may be because of the pressure created to continue to keep up the good work, and because the child has lost interest. In addition, children who are praised are less likely to take risks, as they may fear they won't receive positive feedback. It's also been found that students who receive positive reinforcement do not persist in the face of difficulties.