SCHOOLS ARE WEAKENING OUR KIDS
SCHOOLS ARE WEAKENING OUR KIDS
By Domenick J. Maglio Ph.D., Traditional Realist
Modern children are supposed to be shielded from not only
physical pain but also psychological pain. Stress and anxiety are not supposed
to enter the lives of our children. Modern children are not being allowed or
challenged to become strong. We are raising a future generation of weak adults.
There was banning of physical games during recess. Dodge ball,
was targeted as a harmful game as it might sting a child hit by a ball. It supposedly
makes a child feel inferior because he does not possess the skills of throwing
or catching a ball. This type of thinking has gone so far as banning the game
of tag due to some child becoming upset when he gets tagged.
There is no score kept in many games as it results in some
children being losers. Everyone has to be rotated sharing a certain time limit
while playing all positions. This is done regardless of talent, motivation or
skill of the students. Our schools have
been obliged to create equal mediocrity, not strive for excellence. They should
not go through the experience of playing because it might hurt them physically
or emotionally. Children need to toughen up by getting up after scraping a
knee. Protection overrides the benefits of increasing fine and gross motor
skills, developing stamina and perseverance through physical activities.
Even limited homework is under attack. A recent study from
Stanford University stated that homework could not go beyond two hours for high
school students and 30 minutes for elementary students. They stated it would
have harmful effects such as anxiety, lack of sleep and depression. The recommendation by this organization has
disregarded the students who are more than willing to sacrifice their time and
effort to excel in school.
Not to lower the self-esteem of students many school
districts have resorted to giving 40 points to every student so no one would
receive a zero. Grades earned could no
longer be posted so a child would not feel badly that someone received a better
grade. Teachers no longer are allowed to
give red marks on children’s papers because it would devastate the child to be
criticized even though he was wrong. Many school districts have stopped
correcting homework and tests because the process was too stressful for parents
and students.
Zero bully policies are often based on the premise that
there is not a difference between people in a squabble. They do not want to
call anyone a victim because if they defend themselves, the other person would
have to be called the perpetrator. This would be offensive to the bullying
child. Each child has to be treated equally so as not to make a value judgment
of right and wrong behavior. A value judgment about the child’s inappropriate and
intimidating behavior might affect the child’s self-esteem. Besides it is too
time consuming to make a thorough investigation to determine the facts.
Students in school, as in other arenas in life, should
compete with their peers. It is a
natural part of life. They should not be pampered as fragile beings who are too
delicate to handle any type of pressure. This lack of faith by administrators,
teachers and parents in the resiliency of youngsters is a major element of this
wimpification.
The hypersensitivity of school administrators and parents to
a child’s natural everyday stress is misguided. These “stressful” incidents
which are supposed to be avoided can range from taking notes, studying, playing
physical games, testing, defending oneself from verbal put downs from peers and
honest evaluations from teachers and others. These avoidance strategies are
detrimental to the child’s development of competitive abilities in the real
world.
Students should be encouraged to deal with all reality. Failure is a great motivator that encourages a
person to improve. A certain amount of stress is vital for optimal function. The
child should not be put in a bubble to appease over protective parents because
it would make running a school less difficult. The student should have the
opportunity to gain strength in social and emotional areas to become a well-rounded,
courageous and healthy individual.
Totally isolating a person from any stress would be
impossible for every activity has a certain amount of it. We can reduce stress
at a cost. Usually the more a person is able to control and overcome it, the
better he will be able to perform in difficult assignments that exist in
everyday life. Learning to handle stress is essential in most endeavors that
pay positive dividends. Children have always had to conquer anxiety in
confronting reality to be successful. They did it in the past and they can do
it now.
Labels: schools weakening kids