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Topic: Labels (01/05/04)
TITLE: Labels By Wanda Cramer 01/08/04 |
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Labels, we use them, assign them. We use them for good. We assign them to be warning to unsuspecting users. And, frequently they are used without intending to do harm, but great harm becomes the byproduct. For instance, while teaching school, I learned that more often than not, when a child becomes labeled ADHD or ADD or a troublemaker, teachers and school officials tend to pass that student off without making much effort to determine for themselves if the child is capable of more than the label determines.
I recall one child in particular who was not only labeled ADHD from Kindergarten, but was also attached the label, troublemaker. When I got Ethan (name changed) in the third grade, I knew of his labels. Every teacher before him made sure I knew. Even while we were dividing up kids among the four third grade classes for slow, average and excelled students for reading, language and math, it was the topic of conversation. Who would get Ethan? No one wanted him, except me. Ethan excelled in everything. It was only his behavior that held him back. No one was willing to deal with his behavior, take an interest in his home life, so they left behind one of the most gifted and talented young students. Ethan would have languished had someone not taken interest in the boy instead of the problem. He would never have made middle school and would likely have been killed or on the ten most wanted list before the age of sixteen.
I taught Ethan how to control his behavior when he his parents didn’t have the money to buy the medication that would make him acceptable or able to function properly in society. I engaged his classmates in helping him rather than making fun of him. It was a long year. But in the end, Ethan was a changed kid. No longer labeled troublemaker, no longer made fun of, he began to blossom before our very eyes. Ethan had a new label. Normal.
Labels. I use them less these days. In fact, I’ve determined that the only label I want attached to my name is: forgiven.