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3 responses to “Senior Awards: Community Perspectives”

1. 

   kchan13

   May 24, 2012

   I think that there is no problem with people winning more than one award. If a student has earned recognition for his or her achievements across more than one field, why strip them of the acknowledgement that they rightly deserve? I know of a school where people were limited to winning only one award like Georgia suggested. The problem with this system was that an overwhelming percent of the student population won an award. I always like to quote Syndrome from the “Incredibles”: “When everybody is super, nobody is super.” Too many awards devalues each individual award. I feel, however, that too few awards will make each award meaningless. Newark Academy is a community in which people excel in very different fields. Comparing students across academic disciplines for one award is like trying to compare apples to oranges, making the final decision on who wins an award very subjective and even more puzzling to students who had hoped for recognition. I believe that a balance between the number of awards given out currently and four needs to be found- one that allows for the recognition of a particularly talented student in whatever field or fields in which they have truly excelled, without devaluing each award.

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   1. 

      tpan14

      October 9, 2012

      Kevin, I completely agree with you when you say there’s a very thin line on what determines who gets an award. Perhaps there should be a student input into the awards; maybe the teachers shouldn’t be the sole judges. There are many qualities students recognize in each other that teachers don’t.

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      1. 

         sacquadro

         December 2, 2012

         There actually will be student input for the new awards. Details to follow soon.

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