A flyer announcing a Michigan elementary school’s field day this year sternly warns parents that their children should not try to win any of the events.
The field day will occur at North Hill Elementary School in the bland Detroit suburb of Rochester Hills, reports EAGnews.org.
The flyer for the June 6 event is boldly entitled “COME JOIN THE FUN.” It reads:
The purpose of the day is for our school to get together for an enjoyable two hours of activities and provide an opportunity for students, teachers and parents to interact cooperatively. Since we believe that all of our children are winners, the need for athletic ability and the competitive “urge to win” will be kept to a minimum. The real reward will be the enjoyment and good feelings of participation.
The flyer also promises “a day of laughs and lots of fun, in a carnival like [sic] atmosphere” at the taxpayer-funded school. So “be sure to bring your video.”
Bennett Stapf, who says he is a North Hill Elementary parent, posted the competition-hating handout on Facebook, according to EAGnews. He remarked that he beamed with pride because his daughter pointed out “the ridiculousness of it.”
“I am speechless…the ‘urge to win’ will be kept at a minimum,” he wrote. “What are we teaching our children? Everyone isn’t a winner, there are winners and losers. The kids that win and get awards drive those that don’t to do better.”
Attempts to stifle any attempts at achievement among America’s public-school children appear to be an exciting educational trend this academic year.
Over the weekend, for example, the principal at Archie R. Cole Middle School in the affluent, suburban town of East Greenwich, R.I. sent a letter to parents explaining that a traditional honors night had been eliminated because rewarding students who do well is “exclusive.” (RELATED: School That Banned Honors Night For Being Too ‘Exclusive’ Decides Not To Be National Laughingstock)
“Members of the school community have long expressed concerns related to the exclusive nature of Honors Night,” the letter stated.
By Tuesday, in the face of embarrassing national ridicule, school officials had reinstituted the honors night.
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