It’s Walk To School Day and I call bullshit on the whole thing.
I know walking to school is ideal. It’s better for the environment. It’s good exercise for the kids (and parents). And it helps alleviate vehicular congestion around the school. I already know that. And guess what? So does everybody else.
It’s probably why the walking rates for those that live within easy walking distance of our school are already close to perfect. Unfortunately, a large proportion of the student body does not live within easy walking distance. It’s one of only five Catholic schools in all of Toronto to offer French Immersion that starts in kindergarten. So many families are willing to travel quite a bit.
In fact, even the official catchment area for the school is big enough that they offer bussing. We happen to be just outside that catchment area, though, and make the five to ten minute walk to and from the nearest school bus stop several times a day. Otherwise, it’s a 20 minute walk for me and a 35 minute walk for little legs to get to the school. Consider the round trip and consider that I have one kid in half day kindergarten and one kid in full day Grade 1. Do the math! Walking would be ridiculous.
So it’s Walk To School Day and my little junior kindergarten Irene comes home all excited about it. There’s a slip of paper in her backpack for me to fill out and a letter explaining that everyone who walks will get entered into a draw for a prize. “We have to walk to school tomorrow, Mommy,” she says, “Or I won’t be able to get a prize.” And again, every 15 minutes all night long. “Maybe,” I tell her. “If we wake up early enough.” She’s beside herself with worry about this prize.
So they did walk to school today. Ed took them because, pfft, no way was I making that happen. Mary’s babysitter is only a block away from home and my time is too precious, sorry kids. Ed walked them to school but they didn’t make it in time to meet up with all the other kids and get Halloween stickers and decorations. They didn’t even make it in time for school. I just hope that Irene get something for her effort.
But, really, I’m just sick of the school dangling prizes in front of my children. Bribing them, essentially, to walk to school or sell more magazine subscriptions or whatever it is. Rewards can be good motivators for older children, but for kids under ten or so it just seems cruel. So the kids who don’t walk to school, who can’t walk to school, don’t get a prize? Only the kids whose families can afford to live in the fairly affluent area nearest to the school get to participate? The poorer kids who get bussed in or whose parents drive them or who take public transportation get nothing?
And for what? So all the school administrators and families that already freaking walk can pat themselves on the back and feel good about spreading awareness to those lazy families who can’t be bothered to walk.
It all just seems horribly misguided to me.
Tell me what I’m missing, people.
19 replies on “Calling Bullshit on Walk To School Day”
That is ridiculous, for serious. Yes, walking to school is good. Yes, we should encourage it. But was there ever any discussion with the kids about the benefit to their body or the environment? I hate, hate, hate the prize as motivation tactics that the schools use.
FTR, we live 10 minutes from the school (if the kids are in the wagon. 15 if they walk). We drive them every morning, because I have time management issues. I try to walk to get them in the afternoon, but that doesn’t always happen either.
I hate the reward dangling, too! Everything the kids get asked to do seems to have a disposable, plastic trinket attached to it. It is cruel for young kids, especially.
Our kids are in French Immersion and the catchment area is huge. It would probably take us at least half an hour to walk to school, and I suspect some kids would be over an hour’s walk away.
I am drowning in trinkets!
I’ll walk to get the kids after school, if the weather is ok. It takes me 20 minutes to get there, 30 to get home with both kids. It’s often too rushed in the mornings to walk there. I cheat on walk to school day. I’ll drive and park a few blocks from school and we’ll walk the rest of the way. Please don’t tattle on me.
And yes, crappy prizes for everything is bullshit. Kids should learn that sometimes it’s worth doing something for the sake of doing it.
Tattle on you? I’m totally doing that next year!
The real issue isn’t walking or driving to school, the real issue is exactly what you said..bribing our children at school. I agree I am so tired of prizes for performance at school. Whether it’s counting marbles to earn a pizza party or those crazy magazine subscriptions. Schools need to take look at how they are teaching our kids – find other ways to motivate children…please.
Everything feels like a marketing pitch. You’re right.
Amen! We are fostering a generation that will expect to get a sticker every time they poop. I struggle with this as a parent and don’t want my kids to feel the pressure from school too. I’m not a professional parent but hopefully those at the school are professionals and should be able to devise other ways to fundraise and promote exercise without relying on bribery.
Yes, kids need to learn that some things are worthwhile in and of themselves.
I am against bribery of any kind, but especially at school. I teach at a school where the population drawn from mostly low income renters with a small percentage of high income owners. The parent council is made up of mostly the latter. They introduced the QSP fundraiser last year and the principal went for it. Most of us hated the idea (even more when we were forced to take our students to the ridiculous assembly) but had no say. And we’re doing it again this year too! Augh. The only fun thing will be to watch the looks of resignation and veiled disgust on the adults faces, as the promoters wave dodads and sparkly bits as incentives, while encouraging the children to compete for the 1 iPad available to win in a large area determined by the company.
Sigh. And the kids don’t understand that their odds of winning it are next to none.
It would take us about 30-40 minutes to walk to my daughter’s school. But, given the ridiculous fact that there isn’t playground supervision until 8:40 and I need to be at work across the city for 9 am, I drop the kid at a babysitter’s in the morning, who then walks her to school. So, I suppose that every day is Walk To School Day, really…
If incentives are being handed out to kids, let’s give them for something useful, like cleaning their rooms, or doing the laundry.
YES. If anyone is going to be bribing my children it had bloody well be me.
OK, well, I agree that the whole Walk to School thing is misguided. I teach 1st grade in a French first language school, so we serve a huge area. We only have a handful of families who could walk. So we don’t bother even mentioning it.
As for the use of rewards in school, I think there is certainly a place for incentives. There is only one reason why teachers use them : they work. To be honest, there aren’t that many ways to build a happy, positive classroom atmosphere. When you have a few turbulent kids, you have to do something to help them keep things together in class. I resort to an incentives system that uses a treasure box because it helps me get results without resorting to threats or getting upset.
In regards to bribery, I’m assuming that some of the comments above weren’t referring to behaviour management in the classroom. I have the same reaction than most about the QSP, and other fundraising activities. At our school, we tend to downplay the prizes. No assembly, no discussion in the classroom, no pressure. Just info for parents, who can then do whatever they want with it.
I think rewards for good behaviour in the classroom are completely fine. And, yes, the schools should all follow suit and say no to the assembly. Crap. I’m going to have to attend another Parent Council meeting, aren’t I?
Here, Here.
@Sylvie – I like the way your school handles the QSP. I wonder if that has an impact on sales?
I do use reward techniques in class, especially in my core French class, as I’m sure you can appreciate. :) We have class rewards, such as playing a game (learning in disguise…tee hee!) or making a class trip to the library. I don’t find the treasure box works so much on grade 5s, but they like the colour coded stickers I use on their work.
As to bribery, I’m referring to things like QSP, Girl Guide cookies and the like. Some kids are so entranced by winning a prize that they (and their parents, who often sell for them) loose sight of what they are really doing, and what’s reasonable to expect of people to support their cause.
I’m sure we’re not QSP’s #1 sellers… I think we tend to make more money with fundraising events (movie nights, bingos, fairs, gala events). And those are fun and not too expensive for families.
Actually, I’m finding charitable fundraising campaigns in our school put a lot more pressure on the kids. (Heart and Stroke Foundation, Cancer Society, etc). Of course, they’re good causes, but the bribery is a little heavy there…
Our Walking Program uses incentive as well but the winning class donated their prize to a needy school…perhaps the problem is not the incentive but what the incentive is? Additionally our walk to school, acknowledges that some families live further way but they are asked to walk the last couple of blocks….perhaps people need to volunteer for the PAC to advocate for some changes.