"Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to the danger of controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of 'crackpot' than the stigma of conformity."
Thomas J. Watson, Sr--Chairman and CEO of IBM until 1956
Man is the only critter who feels the need to label things as flowers or weeds.
I have this friend. She is a USNA grad. A rower. A helicopter pilot. A triathlete. A wife. A mother of two. A Quilter. A volunteer EMT/Firefighter. A great baker.
Did you catch all that?
Oh, did I mention she just finished re-insulating the attic above her garage?
Here is what I love about her. You can attach all those 'labels' to her but they cannot define her. You cannot put her into some neat little box and say 'oh she's a _____". You can't. I've tried but it does not all fit in. Try as you might to pry and push and force you cannot get it all in there.
And why should you?
Society likes people to fit into neat litte packages and to stay in those neat little packages.
Because when everyone is in a neat little package they are unchanging. They can be put on a shelf or in a file and no longer thought about.
Don't buck the system, don't push the envelope, don't be a rebel rouser, don't rock the boat, why ask why....
Don't be an independent thinker aka a 'crackpot'.
Last night I attended a meeting for 5th grade Crofton Woods Elementary School parents. The principal from Crofton Middle School came to address the transition from Elementary School to Middle School. The resounding message was Rigor, Rigor, Rigor (more on this in another post). No longer children but mini adults preparing for college.
Therefore, the majority of the time was spent discussing Math and the different levels for Math. The county is introducing a new curriculum with only two levels for 6th and 7th grade. Basically a standard math and an advanced math for both grades. No longer are 6th or 7th graders permitted to take Algebra I in these grades and earn future High school credit. Gone is the option to earn the Honors label by being able to take Geometry by the 8th grade.
Per this principal, and I am paraphrasing, there is no 'M cubed' (basically gifted and talented math in elementary schools) or gifted and talented anything in Middle school.
While I can see the purpose and value of gifted and talented programs they should not be THE label of a child.
Standard and Advanced are the typical labels in middle school. However, Math will be changing to STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and math) and Common Core.
For some and for a myriad of reasons the labels of standard or common core are considered lesser than while advanced and STEM are considered superior. While that may be, it does not define the WHOLE child but rather one area of the child.
Americans, and I generalize here, have a tendency to negate the hard work of others in order to validate themselves or place themselves in a 'better than' category. This is not a healthy or productive state of mind and has created a whole host of hoops, juggling, and things we 'must' do that really are a waste of time, energy, and productivity. We have to measure things with numbers and scores in order to compare and categorize.
I suggest that when it comes to kids we step back from the broo-ha-ha. Yes, labeling, competition, and categorizing will continue. Perhaps the character of a child should be valued as well. Perhaps we should spend more time teaching our kids HOW to value people. ALL people. Perhaps we should look at kids (and all people) with love instead of judgement and speculation.
The entire 5th grade meeting was spent discussing the criteria for different courses, with most parents eyes on the Advanced and STEM courses as the goal. For me, I wanted to know about the special education child.
So, I asked. "How is a child with an IEP or special education student placed into courses? How do you determine which classes are Co-Taught? How do you determine which common core kids or standard kids are placed in the co-taught classes? (Oh, the horror right? It's bad enough my kid could be standard or common, but they could even be placed with special education kids?)" I digress---
Do you know what this woman had the nerve to say? "It's random and based on the course selections and needs of each student." "So, if a child with an IEP needs Advanced Language Arts then we have a section of CT Advanced Language Arts."
Excuse me, did you just say what I thought you said. There is potentially an Advance CT class?
Lady, you nailed that question!
So, here's the Rigor, Rigor, Rigor part for this staff. It would appear they wish to push students to their highest potential. ALL Students.
Now, this principal has been highly critcized in our community for implementing a system of heterogenous grouping. See article here:
When asked about this, the principal stated that the levels are mandated by the county and that what she did was take 20 basic math students and push them into the higher level math so that they could reduce class size for the 400 math students. Basically, pushing the 20 students towards the rigor, rigor, rigor, idea.
(this is what I heard from the mouth of the principal and I realize there are three sides to every story--yours, mine and the truth)
No biggie right? Well, not if your child was a GT M cubed student from the elementary school. They just lost their label. Now what do we do?
I'll let you draw your own conclusions and answers to that one.
While I believe everyone wants to meet their children's needs and has their child's best interest at heart, I think this may be part of the problem. Yes, we need to worry about our own families, however, this sometimes leads to the inability to see past our own noses.
In a public school setting the needs and interests of so many children of varying abilities leads to the necessity of making concessions and compromises.
One of the biggest lessons public school provides is one of how to function in society. Albeit a largely controlled environment it is the beginning of our children's education on how society works, how people, think, act, judge, and often persecute. The beginning of the rights and wrongs, the ins and the outs, the standards and the advanced.
Perhaps we should spend more time as parents educating our children of the social expectations in society instead of saying things like get over it, that's how life is, they don't know what they are talking about, we don't need to talk about this any more, he's just a jerk.
We are all different and it does take all kinds.
But, at the end of the day or the end of the journey we all want the same things.
Love and acceptance.
So, for now, I think I will start taking my bike rides with my friend because if I ever have an accident....
She can meet my current medical needs, whip out a quilt to cover me, row me to the nearest port or air lift me to the hospital and then bring me in some awesome cookies for my brusied ego.
She will live in the moment and meet my needs and continue until the job is done, reflect on what else she could have done and educate herself in how to do better next time.
Yes, she lives and thinks outside the box.
Wish I knew more people like this. Do you know anyone like this?
Introduce me!
