HIGH FALSE ESTEEM LEADS TO UNETHICAL PRACTICES

HIGH FALSE ESTEEM LEADS TO UNETHICAL PRACTICES

By Domenick J. Maglio PhD. Traditional Realist

The pressure for parents and teachers of the United States is to develop high self-esteem in children is based on a false concept. Higher self-esteem of a person is supposed to transform them into a more receptive emotional state for learning. This is supposed to result in more effortless retention of information and increased ability to present themselves confidently in many situations. Early successes supposedly strengthen self-esteem throughout one’s life.

This psychological effect may be productive when the child is young. As a person matures, they run into other learning factors. When children meet hard or uninteresting subject matter, many of them begin to turn off, refusing to persevere until they conquer the material. This side effect leads to personal disinterest in particular areas which cause deficiencies in their learning process. They are confident in subjects of interest and ignore and avoid areas of learning that are more challenging to them. Eventually these subjects of little interest increase in complexity further causing the student to be turned off by the subject matter.

Everyone is aware of the youngster’s brightness as these children seem to show off their knowledge as often as they can. This behavior at times hinges on obnoxiousness but the message is clear, “I am definitely very intelligent.” Their strongest supporters are their parents. The single child parents have limited knowledge in comparing their youngster to other children, but they are defenders of their child’s reluctance to focus on the task at hand. They are excuse makers for the youngster’s avoidance behavior by pointing out their advanced knowledge in other areas.

These high false esteem students have greatly proliferated in our nation with the practice of “no winners or losers and everyone receives a trophy” philosophy. In schools grade inflation has become the panacea for helping students from seeing themselves as failures. By public schools giving all children a minimum of 40 points before they answer a single test question lowers the academic bar. It preserves their false self-esteem. This is a useless crutch that leads to more dependency on others to bail them out of a lackluster performance.

The emphasis on higher grades has placed great pressure on teachers meeting these unrealistic expectations of students and parents. Teachers are put between a rock and a hard place. If the teacher graded accurately on homework and tests the students, parents and administration would be irate. Lowering the grading standards is the easiest way to survive in the public-school system. This encourages sloppy and incorrect procedures to be overlooked. The word gets around giving the teacher the reputation as an easy mark. Since the teachers have little backing from their administration, they capitulate their professional and personal integrity. The teacher embellishes their student’s evaluations upgrading every aspect of it.

Teachers have to placate everyone in the system to maintain good standing. These short-term solutions to everyday practices force teachers to lose their souls. This forces the teacher down a path of dishonesty. There is no personal gratification in a professional position that is not in the interest of the client/student. A teacher giving inflated grades becomes a mercenary not an inspirational role model to assist the student to be a well-prepared future success. High salaries and benefits with no personal gratification of witnessing students learning how to learn is not sufficient compensation for not doing what is right. It cheapens the teacher in the process.

By many teachers not giving their full effort to help students learn how to conquer their disinterest and retain necessary information they are hurting their academic success. Deep down teachers know that sloppy and shoddy work by the students does not deserve positive recognition with high grades. It only reinforces the students’ negative practices and produces inadequacy.

These inadequate and unethical practices to appease the bureaucratic school system is not limited to teaching. It is seen in all professions: law, medicine, business, government. Yet, it does not give teachers a valid justification to accept these derelictions of their duty for these students are our nation’s future.

There are conscientious teachers in public schools who do go against the grain of bureaucratic red tape. They are exceptions to the rule. They do deserve and receive their financial compensation but most importantly they regularly taste the personal gratification of knowing their mission of teaching youngsters is a success. Almost every day they witness the positive growth of their students.

The bureaucratic system feels the pay and benefits are enough, but the teachers do not without a meaningful, fulfilling and therefore rewarding career. Most public-school teachers no longer are allowed to positively change a youngster’s life because the bureaucratic system has crushed their ability and enthusiasm to be a good teacher. Teachers whose goal is to help children are often pushed out by the bureaucratic system.

Domenick Maglio, PhD. is a columnist carried by various newspapers, an author of several books and owner/director of Wider Horizons School, a college prep program. Dr. Maglio is an author of weekly newspaper articles, INVASION WITHIN  and a recent book entitled, IN CHARGE PARENTING In a PC World. You can see many of Dr. Maglio’s articles at www.drmaglioblogspot.com.