Carmel College A Catholic Academy Merit System
Awarding Merits
Merits are to be awarded in line with both departmental practice and with the pupil behaviour and discipline policy. The behaviour policy outlines the benefits of rewarding good behaviour and encourages the frequent and consistent use of the merit system as a tool to promote desirable behaviour in the classroom. All staff should aim to award 3 merits per week to each teaching group in addition to those awarded for academic success and effort.
Curriculum Leaders should include recognising excellent performance as an item for departmental meetings. Departments should identify one pupil per year group, per half term for a letter of commendation, a copy of which goes to the Learning Pastoral Manager and the Senior Leadership Team.
Recording Merits
Merits are to be recorded in the back of the students’ diary with the date, subject, reason and staff signature.
Form Merit Chart
At the end of the week it is the responsibility of the form tutor to check authenticity and tally the merits before crossing them out in the diary. The pupil will then enter the number awarded onto the form merit chart and the tutor will initial that weeks’ total. (A value needs to be entered for every pupil, every week, no blank spaces).
Merit Awards
Any pupil who receives five merits in a week is to be commended to Pastoral Learning Manager and a letter will be send home for those receiving 10 or more in a week. As in the past, top merit earners will be awarded on a monthly basis with two weeks lunch pass for both the top individual and top form in the College. Prizes of a Carmel College pen will be awarded for those reaching 20 merits and every multiple of twenty, through a range of Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum awards.
End of Year Mass
At the end of the academic year the top earner in each year group will win the merit trophy. These individual trophies will be awarded by the Principal at the end of year Mass, along with the form shield to the form earning the most merits.
