As a teacher, what I find going on is a vast effort to “give” children esteem/positive self image. These can’t be given, they must be developed. They are not developed by repeating over and over that Johnny is a good boy (or displaying those “My child is a Terrific Kid” bumper stickers.) True esteem comes from the individual setting and achieving real/noble goals.
MarDay wrote: “These (esteem/positive self image) can’t be given, they must be developed.”
What would happen if you trained a dog by giving it a doggie treat no matter what it did? Bite the postman? Give it a treat. Pee on the carpet? Give it a treat. What kind of dog would it grow up to be?
I’m not implying children are dogs, of course, but there are similarities in how they both develop. Reinforce bad behavior by rewarding it, and you’ll only get more bad behavior.