 |
| "I tell you, Mamma, the blood keeps going to my head." |
 |
| "I don't care what you say — I'm cold!" |
(From The Complete Cartoons of the New Yorker.)
Showing posts with label learning differences. Show all posts
Showing posts with label learning differences. Show all posts
Thursday, December 2, 2010
They're Just Different
(From The Complete Cartoons of the New Yorker.)
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Hyperdubious Disorder
My younger daughter has an interesting habit of needing to verify ideas with different people and in different situations.
For instance, she investigated whether the prohibition on nudity in kindergarten also extends to her best friend's house (yes) and to her mother's artwork (confusingly, no.)
When she was about 5, she asked me out of the blue, "where is God?" I explained that God is mysteriously everywhere. I told my husband about our conversation later and he said, "Good, I told her the same thing when she asked me yesterday." She often asks my husband and me the same question at different times, as if to check that our stories line up.
In her case, I think her sudden adoption from an orphanage to our family at the age of sixteen months left her feeling that the world is a random and arbitrary place, and she's always trying to figure out what truths are universal.
I wasn't adopted, but I had a similar approach as a child. In my case, I lived inside my own head a lot, and I thought that the rest of the world did the same. I assumed that most things were fictions that others had dreamed up.
For instance, I was astonished, when, on a trip to Washington, D.C., I discovered that the White House was an actual building, and that it looked just like those backdrops I had seen behind the anchor on the evening news. I had supposed that it was just a symbol.
Later, I had a social studies teacher who was always gassing on about the caste system in India. Naturally, I figured that he had just made the whole thing up. I was astonished to discover later that the caste system was real.
In general, it never occurred to me that the things teachers said at school had any utility, or even any parallel, outside.
For instance, she investigated whether the prohibition on nudity in kindergarten also extends to her best friend's house (yes) and to her mother's artwork (confusingly, no.)
When she was about 5, she asked me out of the blue, "where is God?" I explained that God is mysteriously everywhere. I told my husband about our conversation later and he said, "Good, I told her the same thing when she asked me yesterday." She often asks my husband and me the same question at different times, as if to check that our stories line up.
In her case, I think her sudden adoption from an orphanage to our family at the age of sixteen months left her feeling that the world is a random and arbitrary place, and she's always trying to figure out what truths are universal.
I wasn't adopted, but I had a similar approach as a child. In my case, I lived inside my own head a lot, and I thought that the rest of the world did the same. I assumed that most things were fictions that others had dreamed up.
For instance, I was astonished, when, on a trip to Washington, D.C., I discovered that the White House was an actual building, and that it looked just like those backdrops I had seen behind the anchor on the evening news. I had supposed that it was just a symbol.
Later, I had a social studies teacher who was always gassing on about the caste system in India. Naturally, I figured that he had just made the whole thing up. I was astonished to discover later that the caste system was real.
In general, it never occurred to me that the things teachers said at school had any utility, or even any parallel, outside.
Pathologizing Childhood
From Peter Gray's blog, here are the official diagnostic criteria for ADHD:
Inattention
1. Often does not give close attention to details or makes careless mistakes in schoolwork, work, or other activities.
2. Often has trouble keeping attention on tasks or play activities.
3. Often does not seem to listen when spoken to directly.
4. Often does not follow instructions and fails to finish schoolwork, chores, or duties in the workplace (not due to oppositional behavior or failure to understand instructions).
5. Often has trouble organizing activities.
6. Often avoids, dislikes, or doesn't want to do things that take a lot of mental effort for a long period of time (such as schoolwork or homework).
7. Often loses things needed for tasks and activities (e.g. toys, school assignments, pencils, books, or tools).
8. Is often easily distracted.
9. Is often forgetful in daily activities.
Hyperactivity & Impulsivity
1. Often fidgets with hands or feet or squirms in seat.
2. Often gets up from seat when remaining in seat is expected.
3. Often runs about or climbs when and where it is not appropriate (adolescents or adults may feel very restless).
4. Often has trouble playing or enjoying leisure activities quietly.
5. Is often "on the go" or often reacts as if "driven by a motor".
6. Often talks excessively.
7. Often blurts out answers before questions have been finished.
8. Often has trouble waiting one's turn.
9. Often interrupts or intrudes on others (e.g., butts into conversations or games).
Peter Gray asks "who is surprised that so many boys have been diagnosed as having ADHD?"
I don't really know about boys, but I can see that each of my daughters fits these criteria perfectly. My older daughter is a textbook case of "Inattention", and my younger daughter is a textbook case of "Hyperactivity & Impulsivity". Actually, I'm amazed that, at least so far, nobody's tried to label either of my kids "ADHD". Perhaps school personnel can predict my likely response?
And here's the Onion's take on it: More US Children Being Diagnosed with Youthful Tendency Disorder.
Inattention
1. Often does not give close attention to details or makes careless mistakes in schoolwork, work, or other activities.
2. Often has trouble keeping attention on tasks or play activities.
3. Often does not seem to listen when spoken to directly.
4. Often does not follow instructions and fails to finish schoolwork, chores, or duties in the workplace (not due to oppositional behavior or failure to understand instructions).
5. Often has trouble organizing activities.
6. Often avoids, dislikes, or doesn't want to do things that take a lot of mental effort for a long period of time (such as schoolwork or homework).
7. Often loses things needed for tasks and activities (e.g. toys, school assignments, pencils, books, or tools).
8. Is often easily distracted.
9. Is often forgetful in daily activities.
Hyperactivity & Impulsivity
1. Often fidgets with hands or feet or squirms in seat.
2. Often gets up from seat when remaining in seat is expected.
3. Often runs about or climbs when and where it is not appropriate (adolescents or adults may feel very restless).
4. Often has trouble playing or enjoying leisure activities quietly.
5. Is often "on the go" or often reacts as if "driven by a motor".
6. Often talks excessively.
7. Often blurts out answers before questions have been finished.
8. Often has trouble waiting one's turn.
9. Often interrupts or intrudes on others (e.g., butts into conversations or games).
Peter Gray asks "who is surprised that so many boys have been diagnosed as having ADHD?"
I don't really know about boys, but I can see that each of my daughters fits these criteria perfectly. My older daughter is a textbook case of "Inattention", and my younger daughter is a textbook case of "Hyperactivity & Impulsivity". Actually, I'm amazed that, at least so far, nobody's tried to label either of my kids "ADHD". Perhaps school personnel can predict my likely response?
And here's the Onion's take on it: More US Children Being Diagnosed with Youthful Tendency Disorder.
Friday, November 12, 2010
My Thought Balloons
Apparently my family can't go six weeks without a school problem. I'm just back from yet another fun meeting, this time with the Head of School and my younger dd's first grade teacher. Now, younger dd can be genuinely impossible, and there are real problems that need to be addressed. But, as always, I come away feeling that I'm not really on the same planet as the people who work in schools. I'm so glad they couldn't read the thought balloons that kept popping up over my head.
Teacher: Sometimes she's upside down in her chair!
My thought balloon: Wow, she's even more athletic than I realized.
Head of School: She doesn't respect authority.
My thought balloon: I'm so proud! *sniff*
One strange development was that it turned out they hadn't even told us about all the behavior problems that were going on. I had to specifically request that they tell us about the problems as they happen, so we could talk to our daughter about it. Instead of telling me about the problems, the teacher's strategy was to pressure me to take the kid to a psychologist. Is that the usual process these days, to bypass the parents and go right to the army of psychologists and "experts"? Is it a private-school thing? What?
Teacher: Sometimes she's upside down in her chair!
My thought balloon: Wow, she's even more athletic than I realized.
Head of School: She doesn't respect authority.
My thought balloon: I'm so proud! *sniff*
One strange development was that it turned out they hadn't even told us about all the behavior problems that were going on. I had to specifically request that they tell us about the problems as they happen, so we could talk to our daughter about it. Instead of telling me about the problems, the teacher's strategy was to pressure me to take the kid to a psychologist. Is that the usual process these days, to bypass the parents and go right to the army of psychologists and "experts"? Is it a private-school thing? What?
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Bright Kids in Public Schools
From Losing Our Minds: Gifted Children Left Behind, by Deborah L. Ruf:
In order to deal with the wide array of learners in a classroom, teachers generally teach to the top of the lowest one-third of their mixed-ability class. By doing this, they don't immediately lose those at the bottom, and yet they still manage to hold some attention from the average group in the middle ... When teachers refine their instruction to a lower, more repetitive level in order to increase the chances of a higher overall passing rate and higher composite scores for the class as a whole, the brightest students must sit through additional repeated instruction while gaining nothing from it. These children can frequently pass tests without having any instruction in the material, and they score high despite the lack of attention. Teachers think they don't have to worry about these children. The teachers' attention is entirely consumed by those whose failure would be noticed and by which they are judged. Who can blame them?
... Throughout the intellectual range, children face learning challenges; a variety of learning disabilities are recognized and accommodated in our schools. Parents who have two special-needs children -- one a learning-disabled child and one a gifted child -- are often amazed at how much easier it is to get help for their disabled child while their gifted child loses interest in school.
Children with learning disabilities are by law provided specialists to work with them on a regular basis ... By comparison, intellectually gifted children almost never receive such consideration and accommodation and are seldom given instruction at their own level and pace. In districts that do provide something for gifted children, the programs are minimal, usually part-time -- one hour a week in a class with other gifted children -- with a specialist teacher traveling between two or more schools.
... Unfortunately, while mainstreaming helps disabled children, this practice has negative consequences for gifted children. Although it can help to motivate slow learners, it discourages rapid learners by holding them back; they aren't allowed to learn as fast or as far as they might. Many times, gifted children are placed in cooperative learning groups with other children in which the gifted children do the majority of the work and help others in the group rather than learn at the level that would fit their intellect.
In order to deal with the wide array of learners in a classroom, teachers generally teach to the top of the lowest one-third of their mixed-ability class. By doing this, they don't immediately lose those at the bottom, and yet they still manage to hold some attention from the average group in the middle ... When teachers refine their instruction to a lower, more repetitive level in order to increase the chances of a higher overall passing rate and higher composite scores for the class as a whole, the brightest students must sit through additional repeated instruction while gaining nothing from it. These children can frequently pass tests without having any instruction in the material, and they score high despite the lack of attention. Teachers think they don't have to worry about these children. The teachers' attention is entirely consumed by those whose failure would be noticed and by which they are judged. Who can blame them?
... Throughout the intellectual range, children face learning challenges; a variety of learning disabilities are recognized and accommodated in our schools. Parents who have two special-needs children -- one a learning-disabled child and one a gifted child -- are often amazed at how much easier it is to get help for their disabled child while their gifted child loses interest in school.
Children with learning disabilities are by law provided specialists to work with them on a regular basis ... By comparison, intellectually gifted children almost never receive such consideration and accommodation and are seldom given instruction at their own level and pace. In districts that do provide something for gifted children, the programs are minimal, usually part-time -- one hour a week in a class with other gifted children -- with a specialist teacher traveling between two or more schools.
... Unfortunately, while mainstreaming helps disabled children, this practice has negative consequences for gifted children. Although it can help to motivate slow learners, it discourages rapid learners by holding them back; they aren't allowed to learn as fast or as far as they might. Many times, gifted children are placed in cooperative learning groups with other children in which the gifted children do the majority of the work and help others in the group rather than learn at the level that would fit their intellect.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Don't Lock Up Children with Disabilities
Mrs. C. commented on an important issue affecting children with disabilities. I excerpt her comments below:
We began homeschooling because they locked my SIX YEAR OLD autistic son in a closet on numerous occasions. I wish I were kidding (though it would be a sick joke). It is called a "safe room," and there is NOTHING parents can do about it here in Missouri. In my opinion, it's child abuse.
It's way cheaper to toss a kid in a closet than it is to do that "offer a free and appropriate education" thing. You might go to the national website that fights this practice and give them a good shout-out:
Families Against Restraint and Seclusion
There is NATIONAL LEGISLATION that has passed the house but not the senate that would give schoolchildren the same rights to be free from seclusion (locking into closets) and restraint (tied down to chairs, etc) that you'd get at a mental hospital. Shame that that has to be the standard, but it's a start.
Anyway... my son is not alone in his experiences. Not by a good long way. Children with disabilities are most affected by the lack of good safeguards, as many are not good advocates for themselves and/or they are unable to speak at all.
FedUpMom again: Our schools need to be safe places for all of our children. Many schools have anti-bullying programs, but they almost never confront the possibility that the teacher could be a bully.
I would also like to add that a school that treats one group of children badly is likely not doing very well with any group.
We began homeschooling because they locked my SIX YEAR OLD autistic son in a closet on numerous occasions. I wish I were kidding (though it would be a sick joke). It is called a "safe room," and there is NOTHING parents can do about it here in Missouri. In my opinion, it's child abuse.
It's way cheaper to toss a kid in a closet than it is to do that "offer a free and appropriate education" thing. You might go to the national website that fights this practice and give them a good shout-out:
Families Against Restraint and Seclusion
There is NATIONAL LEGISLATION that has passed the house but not the senate that would give schoolchildren the same rights to be free from seclusion (locking into closets) and restraint (tied down to chairs, etc) that you'd get at a mental hospital. Shame that that has to be the standard, but it's a start.
Anyway... my son is not alone in his experiences. Not by a good long way. Children with disabilities are most affected by the lack of good safeguards, as many are not good advocates for themselves and/or they are unable to speak at all.
FedUpMom again: Our schools need to be safe places for all of our children. Many schools have anti-bullying programs, but they almost never confront the possibility that the teacher could be a bully.
I would also like to add that a school that treats one group of children badly is likely not doing very well with any group.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Inclusion Isn't Working
Imagine you're a public school teacher. You've got a class of 25 kids. The class has been carefully "balanced", so you've got 3 gifted kids, 3 kids with diagnosed learning disabilities, and 2 kids with behavior problems, plus 17 others all over the wide range in between. How much attention do you think you'll give the quiet, introverted, gifted kid?
Now add to your sorrows that NCLB is putting tremendous pressure on all teachers to prove their students are "proficient" on a state standardized test. Your state has been quietly dumbing the test down in a (successful) attempt to boost scores. As a result, any child with above average abilities walks in the door on the first day of class able to score proficient, so they don't need any more preparation. But the below-average kids, with enough coaching, might eke out a few more points on the all-important test.
And this is why teaching in the public schools is consistently aimed at below-average kids. The test that was meant to be a floor has become a ceiling. Nobody bothers to teach beyond it.
Even during my own childhood, back in the late Jurassic, it was no fun to be a bright, eccentric kid in the public schools. I was bored to the point of almost hallucinatory daydreaming. I could not bear to do the work I was given because it seemed like such an insult, so I was written off as lazy and defiant. Teachers said, "You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink!" Looking back, I say, "what water?"
Now add to your sorrows that NCLB is putting tremendous pressure on all teachers to prove their students are "proficient" on a state standardized test. Your state has been quietly dumbing the test down in a (successful) attempt to boost scores. As a result, any child with above average abilities walks in the door on the first day of class able to score proficient, so they don't need any more preparation. But the below-average kids, with enough coaching, might eke out a few more points on the all-important test.
And this is why teaching in the public schools is consistently aimed at below-average kids. The test that was meant to be a floor has become a ceiling. Nobody bothers to teach beyond it.
Even during my own childhood, back in the late Jurassic, it was no fun to be a bright, eccentric kid in the public schools. I was bored to the point of almost hallucinatory daydreaming. I could not bear to do the work I was given because it seemed like such an insult, so I was written off as lazy and defiant. Teachers said, "You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink!" Looking back, I say, "what water?"
Friday, July 2, 2010
Maybe the kid isn't the problem
"It is not very productive to drive a child to anger or depression, and then blame him for being angry or depressed. But that is what schools do. Bad teachers do this, and then principals back them up." -- Guy Strickland, Bad Teachers
Suppose you have a 1st-grade child who has trouble sitting still, being quiet, and doing what she's told. Does the child have a problem which needs to be treated with drugs or behavior management? Or does the school have unreasonable expectations of very young children?
Suppose you have a 7th-grade child who doesn't always turn in his homework consistently or on time. Does the child have a problem which needs to be treated with drugs or behavior management? Or does the school have unreasonable expectations of young adolescents?
"Shifting the blame onto a child's shoulders is the work of a bully. It is, perhaps consequently, a technique more commonly used than parents may think." -- Guy Strickland, op. cit.
It is distressing to me to see how often parents just accept whatever the school demands. Schools are not infallible, and they are not beyond question. They are social constructs that change with the times. We all know that schools are different (in my opinion, even worse) than they were in our own childhoods. The curriculum has been pushed younger and younger (kindergarten is the new first grade) and the pressure to perform has been increased.
Parents, please, before you accept that your child has the diagnosis du jour (attention deficit disorder, executive function deficit) question the school. Does the school have reasonable expectations of children at their various ages and stages? Is the work the school assigns useful for your child? Are the rules and regulations actually necessary, or are they the product of control freaks and petty tyrants?
Teachers and administrators want to live in a world where the school does what it does, and it's up to kids (and their mothers) to fall into line. But there's no reason we have to accept that. Maybe your kid has a problem, and maybe the problem is a bad school.
Suppose you have a 1st-grade child who has trouble sitting still, being quiet, and doing what she's told. Does the child have a problem which needs to be treated with drugs or behavior management? Or does the school have unreasonable expectations of very young children?
Suppose you have a 7th-grade child who doesn't always turn in his homework consistently or on time. Does the child have a problem which needs to be treated with drugs or behavior management? Or does the school have unreasonable expectations of young adolescents?
"Shifting the blame onto a child's shoulders is the work of a bully. It is, perhaps consequently, a technique more commonly used than parents may think." -- Guy Strickland, op. cit.
It is distressing to me to see how often parents just accept whatever the school demands. Schools are not infallible, and they are not beyond question. They are social constructs that change with the times. We all know that schools are different (in my opinion, even worse) than they were in our own childhoods. The curriculum has been pushed younger and younger (kindergarten is the new first grade) and the pressure to perform has been increased.
Parents, please, before you accept that your child has the diagnosis du jour (attention deficit disorder, executive function deficit) question the school. Does the school have reasonable expectations of children at their various ages and stages? Is the work the school assigns useful for your child? Are the rules and regulations actually necessary, or are they the product of control freaks and petty tyrants?
Teachers and administrators want to live in a world where the school does what it does, and it's up to kids (and their mothers) to fall into line. But there's no reason we have to accept that. Maybe your kid has a problem, and maybe the problem is a bad school.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Call me skeptical
I've been hearing a lot about "executive functioning disorder" lately. Here's part of a comment from a thread entitled "Executive Function" on the dc urban moms forum:
***
In the first quarter DS [7th grade] had gotten 4 A's and 2 B's, and this teacher said that DS was capable of better grades but was hurting his grades by forgetting to turn in homework that he had done meticulously and on time and that he had brought to school in his binder, or forgetting to write down homework assignments or extra-credit problems that were on the whiteboard every day, etc. His grades were suffering especially in a math class in which the teacher required homework to be placed in a bin as one crossed the threshold -- if one turns around after class had started, the homework is docked points for being late.
***
Now, when I read this I don't say to myself, "Wow, that kid needs to be tested for a mental disorder." I say to myself, "here's another kid, who is most likely normal or even gifted, being penalized for insufficiently organizing a huge load of pointless busywork."
The saga continues:
***
We took DS to two pediatricians, one recommended by the school. One (the one not recommended by the school) said that DS's grades were just fine and that she thought the school (and we as the parents?) was just trying to get DS medicated to improve his performance and make the school look good. The other recommended a battery of tests.
***
That's a nice racket. The school recommends pediatricians who will support the school's agenda.
The saga continues, with the school-affiliated pediatrician:
***
He recommended not medication but behavioral strategies for dealing with the all-important transitional points in DS's day, e.g., when he switches classes, or when he gets in our car to go home. We had to organize his binders with a special place where his homeworks would go. When he got in the car to go home, he had to open his backpack and visually check, with me, that he had the required items for homework on each subject. At the end of doing his homework, he had to check in with me and show me where he put each item of homework. I know it sounds exhausting, and it was and is. DS and I have been doing this "mindfulness" routine for almost two years now, but it has paid off. DS gets straight A's.
I thought what we were doing was extreme, but then I found by talking to other moms that just about everyone does the car routine, checking the backpack for items subject by subject.
***
So the "problem" is "solved" by Mom taking on the role of homework cop.
***
Probably DS will have these challenges for the rest of his life. We're told that there's a genetic component, and DH is definitely a lifer when it comes to problems with executive functioning! DH married an organized woman like his mother, and I fear that DS will have to do the same.
***
So it's a woman's job to organize all the petty crap in her son or husband's life that he can't be bothered with.
You'll notice that nowhere in this sorry tale is the issue of actual learning addressed. It's all about whether the kid can comply with the ridiculous control-freak demands of his school. If he can't, it's presumed to be his problem, to be solved either by putting him on meds or offloading the organizing job onto his mother.
If that's not depressing enough, here's a follow-up from the original poster:
***
i was wondering about academic performance which is really what we care about. i'm sure the before after test is interesting and helpful. But, to be crass, I'm wondering how much, if at all, grades improved after taking aderall or other stimulants.
***
Holy cow.
***
In the first quarter DS [7th grade] had gotten 4 A's and 2 B's, and this teacher said that DS was capable of better grades but was hurting his grades by forgetting to turn in homework that he had done meticulously and on time and that he had brought to school in his binder, or forgetting to write down homework assignments or extra-credit problems that were on the whiteboard every day, etc. His grades were suffering especially in a math class in which the teacher required homework to be placed in a bin as one crossed the threshold -- if one turns around after class had started, the homework is docked points for being late.
***
Now, when I read this I don't say to myself, "Wow, that kid needs to be tested for a mental disorder." I say to myself, "here's another kid, who is most likely normal or even gifted, being penalized for insufficiently organizing a huge load of pointless busywork."
The saga continues:
***
We took DS to two pediatricians, one recommended by the school. One (the one not recommended by the school) said that DS's grades were just fine and that she thought the school (and we as the parents?) was just trying to get DS medicated to improve his performance and make the school look good. The other recommended a battery of tests.
***
That's a nice racket. The school recommends pediatricians who will support the school's agenda.
The saga continues, with the school-affiliated pediatrician:
***
He recommended not medication but behavioral strategies for dealing with the all-important transitional points in DS's day, e.g., when he switches classes, or when he gets in our car to go home. We had to organize his binders with a special place where his homeworks would go. When he got in the car to go home, he had to open his backpack and visually check, with me, that he had the required items for homework on each subject. At the end of doing his homework, he had to check in with me and show me where he put each item of homework. I know it sounds exhausting, and it was and is. DS and I have been doing this "mindfulness" routine for almost two years now, but it has paid off. DS gets straight A's.
I thought what we were doing was extreme, but then I found by talking to other moms that just about everyone does the car routine, checking the backpack for items subject by subject.
***
So the "problem" is "solved" by Mom taking on the role of homework cop.
***
Probably DS will have these challenges for the rest of his life. We're told that there's a genetic component, and DH is definitely a lifer when it comes to problems with executive functioning! DH married an organized woman like his mother, and I fear that DS will have to do the same.
***
So it's a woman's job to organize all the petty crap in her son or husband's life that he can't be bothered with.
You'll notice that nowhere in this sorry tale is the issue of actual learning addressed. It's all about whether the kid can comply with the ridiculous control-freak demands of his school. If he can't, it's presumed to be his problem, to be solved either by putting him on meds or offloading the organizing job onto his mother.
If that's not depressing enough, here's a follow-up from the original poster:
***
i was wondering about academic performance which is really what we care about. i'm sure the before after test is interesting and helpful. But, to be crass, I'm wondering how much, if at all, grades improved after taking aderall or other stimulants.
***
Holy cow.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)