Positive comments from significant adults provide important guideposts for children’s behavior. Positive comments will, in the long run, be much more helpful to children than negative ones. Children need to be in supportive, friendly environments. There are some new insights into how to make statements of praise more effective and consistent with the goals most early childhood specialist have for children; that is, positive self-concept, autonomy, self-reliance and motivation for learning.
Common, much-used expressions of praise, such as “I like the way Margaret is listening,” or “Good job, Jose,” or “Marc, what a nice shirt,” may be at odds with intended early childhood environments by cooperation, encouragement and positive relationships. In the light of current research findings and theoretical considerations, both research and theory point to the reality that there are effective and ineffective ways to praise.
Why do we praise children? 1. To help them feel good about themselves, 2. to reinforce or encourage learning and 3. as a strategy to promote (motivate) appropriate behavior
Does praise foster a positive self-image? If a child is praised for walking the balance beam (“Good Job, Emily!”), does the praise help the child feel successful when she has been walking the beam for two years?
Does the praise extend or enrich the child? (“What a beautiful painting, John!”) Does the praise set the child up for failure? No child can be good, nice or smart all the time, so the child may not take chances or try difficult tasks for fear they may not be praised or may be negatively evaluated.
Does praise motivate young children? Studies have found that praise cause children to focus on external rewards rather than the task at hand and the intrinsic rewards that come from “a job well done!” The reward seems to become an end in itself, thus weakening self-motivation.
Does praise contribute to effective behavior management? “I like the way Jason is cleaning up his toys” is aimed not only at approving Jason’s behavior but at nudging those around him to conform. Use of praise in this manner can lead to anger and resentment.
Encouragement vs. Praise Does this mean we should never praise our children? Not at all! It just means that the research suggests there are effective and ineffective ways to praise. Effective Praise = Encouragement
* Praise is to express approval or admiration- when a task is well-done, completed
* To encourage is a positive response that focuses on a child’s efforts and a specific attribute of the work completed. It doesn’t place judgement on the work or give information regarding its value.
* Encouragement is specific (“I noticed you used a lot of blue paint!” “You spent a lot of time on that painting.”)
* Encouragement is adult initiated and usually takes place in private
* Encouragement focuses on improvement or process rather than the end product (replace “Good Job” with “You did that all by yourself!” or “I noticed that you have been working here all morning!”)
* Encouragement does not set children up for failure (“Lisa, I noticed you shared the blocks with Jason today!”)
* Encouragement helps children develop an appreciation of their own behaviors and achievements (“You must feel proud..” or “You looked excited when you…”)
* Encouragement avoids comparisons and competition (“You read by yourself for 15 minutes- longer than yesterday!” “Ginny, I noticed you cleaned up the block area by putting the blocks on their shelf.” “You walked quietly, your feet made no sound!” “How does that make you fee?”)
The Long Term Effects on Children
Children will thrive in environments where they do not fear being judged or evaluated, where they can make mistakes and learn from them, and where they do not need to always strive to meet someone else’s standard of excellence. Encouragement fosters autonomy, positive self-esteem, a willingness to explore and an acceptance of self and others.
(Some material adapted from the article “Praise or Encouragement? New Insights into Praise” by Randy Hitz and Amy Driscoll)