Some people think that a sense of competition in children should be encouraged. Others believe that children who are taught to cooperate rather than compete become more useful adults. Discuss both views and give your own opinion. Give reasons for your answer and include relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience

A quantum of people believe children should be taught to compete against one another, while other claim teaching them to work together would better their future. Children’s competition amongst themselves would promote self esteem in one and lower in another, whereas cooperation would teach teamwork but also create laziness in some. Starting with children who fight for position, it becomes a good practice when the child knows he has to work hard to achieve a goal. The child would develop a sense of responsibility on himself in order to what he is aiming at, and in the end makes him feel fulfilled. For instance, a lad who had trained since infancy in order to receive a scholarship in high school, would be very proud when he is chosen amongst the lot who competed. This not withstanding, may also cause those who couldn’t make it to a high point in the competition, begin feel ashamed. They may think society and family would see them as losers and eventually cause the to look on their abilities, affecting their adulthood. On the other side of this argument, the children being allowed to work together would understand the importance of teamwork. They would learn how to tolerate one another which would in turn make them work better with other people in the future. An example is when a teacher assign projects to be done in groups. They would have to work together, to bring out their best to score high marks. The unfortunate thing on the other hand, is that some of them develop redundancy, knowing the active ones would get the work done, but the whole group would receive equal reward. This may be transcended into their attitude towards work as adults. To conclude with my opinion, both practices are needed for a child to experience, to become a productive adult, as society would present situations where skills gained from one is required at a point in time.