GMAT Essays (AWA)

This is my second issue essay I've written. I tried to add length and attempt to make it a stronger essay, but I'm thinking I'm better at argument essays than issue essays. Possibly due to the fact that it's easier for me to pick apart an argument than come up with my own. I would appreciate any suggestions you have to help me improve this.

Topic:
The best ways to teach is to praise positive actions and ignore negative ones.

Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the recommendation and explain your reasoning for the position you take. In developing and supporting your position, describe specific circumstances in which adopting the recommendation would or would not be advantageous and explain how these examples shape your position.

Response:
While many think praising only positive actions while foster more effort, it could have quite the opposite effect down the road. It is critical to integrate addressing negative actions as well, during the educational process. Therefore, the best way to teach is not to only praise positive actions, but to address negative actions as well.

A common statement that many live by is to learn from your mistakes. For example, if a child's elders and teachers only praised positive actions during his or her educational career, many opportunities to learn would be missed. From this the child would most likely end up with a hindered educational background, with no apparent knowledge until reaching the real world.

This kind of teaching method to ignore negative actions and only praising positive ones could reinforce bad behavior or make someone falsely believe he or she is the best. Taking from the example from above, if a child's negative behavior is never addressed this could create a positive reinforcement for this kind of behavior. In addition, the child could develop this false belief that he or she is the best in every aspect of life, when in reality it is probably the opposite.

When a child of this nature reaches adulthood, he or she won't have a true idea of how their work is truly valued or how to properly interact with others. Much in the same way some only children have difficulty integrating with others later in life, a person that is never discouraged from certain behavior will never learn proper skills to work with others. While some believe that certain children may become too discouraged or lash out if punished for negative actions, this is a necessary evil. Not teaching an underdeveloped mind the proper rules of human interaction and work ethic would result in an individual who is not prepared for working with the general population.

In conclusion, while some may think only praising positive actions will better a child's mind, this is only setting him or her up for failure later in life. Addressing negative actions will avoid the reinforcement of negative behaviors or habits. In addition, addressing these negative actions early on is an important part of the teaching process, since it prepares children for the real working world.