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Students at a NSW primary school were given free popcorn rewards if their parents paid their fees early, the decision has been slammed as “public shaming of children”.

The popcorn was handed out with canteen lunch orders on Monday to children at Bondi Public School whose parents had paid their fees.

Some students missed out because their parents had not paid, leaving at least one child in tears, reports SMH.

P&C Federation president Susie Boyd said the popcorn giveaway – described by Mr Jones as a “fun incentive” – humiliated students and embarrassed parents, who may not have paid for many different reasons.

“It’s public shaming of those children,” she said. “I spoke to a parent whose child, who did receive the popcorn, didn’t eat it, and felt really bad that they were put into that situation. It was dividing children as young as four-and-a-half.”

Parents’ views on the move were split, with some saying they were furious that the school excluded children because of their parents’ failure to pay voluntary fees, and others saying it would be an exercise in resilience.

Recently we shared one Mums rant about parents who refuse to pay ‘voluntary’ school fees, not everyone agreed. Read more here.

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  • So what they are saying is “If you cant pay the fees then we are going to make your child pay and they will now be treated as a second class citizen”…..Disgusting.

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  • That’s just terrible. It’s not the kids’ faults their parents haven’t paid yet, and so many can’t afford to pay the lump sum right away. Just disgusting, those poor kids who missed out. Concerning how many articles I’ve read on here lately about different schools doing different, sometimes outrageous, things.

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  • Wrong, wrong, wrong. It’s not the kids fault their parents havent paid.

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  • Don’t agree with this at all. It is a form of bullying to get the fees.

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  • This is really unfair. You’re punishing kids for something they can’t control.

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  • Oh that’s a bit too far! Everyone would know whether you paid or didn;t!!

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  • How ridiculous. My kids wouldn’t have a clue there are fees as I just pay them. Seems like they are punishing the kids whose parents don’t pay or pay late, seems like discrimination to me.

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  • School fees aren’t that expensive but I understand some families do struggle

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  • Really? That’s apalling. I could afford to pay my child’s school fees in full, but preferred to pay them on a monthly basis. I was never late and paid them in full by the end date. My son had no idea how the fees were paid, nor should he need to worry about such things.

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  • How fair is this to the child. It’s the parents who haven’t paid not the children, and it’s sometimes because they’d rather feed their families and make sure they have the school books which aren’t cheap either

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  • This is just crap. Let’s punish the kids because the parents have been either slack or are going through hard times. It’s just wrong!

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  • Whoever thought that up? What a stupid idea. No common sense from the education system.

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  • Thats a horrible thing to do to kids. Not to mention the parents who genuinely can’t afford to pay early.

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  • Strange to reward the kids for their parents actions.

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  • That doesn’t seem right. Why should the children be punished or rewarded for their parents actions?


    • Exactly, seems like it’s about shaming everyone…

    Reply

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