Teacher lets Morningside students vote out classmate aged 5

[Dion]

Originally Posted by The Ditch

I wouldn't know because I am not a professional in that area, are you?

If you don't know, why make the accusations?

My sister is trained in that field.

[Locke]

More teachers should publicly ridicule their students. Its Darwinism at its finest, survival of the fittest. Weed out the weak.

If little Johnny cant hack it in Grade 1 then he simply ain't gonna make it, so cut him loose early on and use the system's resources on someone else.

[redforever]

This is not about the "possible" or "known" special need the child may or may not have.

This is not about a child who possibly has behavioural problems.

This is not about parents who might lack parenting skills and might have problems disciplining their children in an appropriate manner

This is about a teacher who as a "trained" and "educated" professional should have the skills to deal with inappropriate behaviour and who should know better than to single out and embarass children in front on the class, no matter what the age of the child and no matter what the child has done.

[The Ditch]

Originally Posted by Dion

If you don't know, why make the accusations?

My sister is trained in that field.

Your sister is a special ed teacher, she is not a professional psychiatrist who has the ability or authority to give a diagnosis to a kid. I'm sure she is aware of how they act and common symptoms though. If you look at what I said,

Originally Posted by The Ditch

not diagnosed yet and potentially doesn't have it.

So my statement doesn't say whether he has it or not, so I am not really accusing anything. If you're talking about accusing the parents, it was from some of the statements in the original article which seemed to me that they were not acting appropriately in letting him stay home because he didn't want to go to school.

For the post above me, I don't think ANYONE is going to argue that this teacher isn't an idiot.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by The Ditch

Your sister is a special ed teacher, she is not a professional psychiatrist who has the ability or authority to give a diagnosis to a kid. I'm sure she is aware of how they act and common symptoms though. If you look at what I said,

She is trained in the field of autism and aspergers and has the ability to make a diagnosis.

So my statement doesn't say whether he has it or not, so I am not really accusing anything.

You were making accusations he might have a similar mental illness.

[The Ditch]

Originally Posted by Dion

You were making accusations he might have a similar mental illness.

Yea.... he might, I'm not saying he does, I'm not saying he doesn't. I was simply pointing out it could be caused by something else, now if you are telling me that there is nothing else it could be, and that particular autism spectrum does not share any symptoms with any other mental illnesses than yes, I am wrong.

[Dion]

Originally Posted by The Ditch

Yea.... he might, I'm not saying he does, I'm not saying he doesn't. I was simply pointing out it could be caused by something else, now if you are telling me that there is nothing else it could be, and that particular autism spectrum does not share any symptoms with any other mental illnesses than yes, I am wrong.

From what my sister tells me autism is a developmental disability.

[metal_geek]

First of all.. Most doctors won't disagnose disorders like this untill the children are 6 or 7. In this case the child was 5 so it's likely the DR's and parents were still going though the stages.

The kid has a disorder which makes him different from the other kids, and doesn't function well in the round hole we try to peg the "Average" kid into, in the education system. Alot of parents deal with the situation were little Mary hits kids, speaks out of turn... talks non stop, or can't sit still long enough to listen to what her teacher says.

These kids are special.. and not in a "short bus" kinda way most people put them in. These kids can do extraordianry things, brilliant thinkers, astonishing perception, exceptional understanding.. unfortuanly these things are overlooked because sitting in a class with 26 other children, with different skills, they stick out and are often singled out by students and teachers..

These children develop really low self esteem, not because they are "disabled" but because everyone in thier life treats them like that. Little Mary doesn't know why during a spelling test the teacher calls on little mikey, who gets praised when he spells bat corretly, and why she gets yelled at when she interject that BAT and CAT are spelled just like each other but C comes after B.... "Its not your turn, Mary, that's 3 times since we started, you'll have to go sit in the back till you can participate correctly"...

All the parents who have to deal with thier child being the "one", feel like they are doing something wrong, they are left out of playground parent circles, told by the education system they don't know how to raise a child, and are often told what is wrong with thier children by education professionals who "know more" then the parents and have seen this many times before. They often seek labels, so they can have support from communities who deal with the same issues. Even the education system provides funding based on diagnosis. Your kid gets an asbergers diagnosis, the school gets funding for an additional support teacher. Without that diagnosis they get nothing, dispite the same reality. It's a label for sure, but not for an excuse, it's for support.

If your child is being hit by another child in school, you don't care about what's wrong with that child get them the heck away from yours... I bet there are 20 sets of parents from that class who are glad the teacher "voted" him out. It's just more people that one little 5 year old has to overcome to reach the potential they have..

We all laugh at the 1 person vs 100 5 year olds... but in the case of children like these, its 1 Five year old vs 100 people... And people wonder whats wrong with them......
________
CREAMPIE HAIRY

[Ironhorse]

Originally Posted by metal_geek

Metal_geek's post above.

Thank you for stating what I couldn't express. Someone give this man a red square!

[Dion]

Excellent post Metal geek!

[FanIn80]

Very well stated, Metal Geek!

[Dion]

I don’t disrespect teachers. Quite the opposite. It’s what I do, what I’ve been doing for decades, and while I’m lucky enough, at the college and law school level, to be paid better than kindergarten teachers are, it is because I realize just how important what we do is that I have no patience at all for those who abuse the privilege of teaching.

Teaching is a sacred responsibility. Public school teachers (the good ones, and most of them are) don’t get paid enough, and they don’t get enough respect, but one thing you do get, whether you want it or not, is power. You have the power to make a difference in the lives of those who are stuck listening to you, whether they want to or not, for hours on end. You have the power to influence how they think about themselves and each other. You have the power to lead, for good and for ill.

Those who use that power well garner enormous rewards, if not in dollar terms, in the personal satisfaction that comes from doing something important, changing people’s lives, forming relationships that last and make life worth living.

Those who abuse that power deserve to be fired. Thumbs down. Over and out. WE who are teachers have our fingers on the buttons, not of weapons but of lives. We make mistakes, all of us, but some mistakes are inexcusable, and some wrongs cannot be forgiven.

If what is being said today about Wendy Portillo is true then there are no explanations, no justifications, no second acts for her. She does not have what it takes to be a teacher. She does not deserve the power, or the respect. Let her go work for a game show. Kindergarten is real life.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,359503,00.html

[Dion]

"Portillo said she did this as she felt that if (Alex) heard from his classmates how his behavior affected them that it would make a bigger difference to him, rather than just hearing it from adults," according to a report released Thursday morning from the Port St. Lucie Police Department.

"She said she then asked him to listen to what the children didn't like about the things he did, and she asked him how it made him feel," the report said. "She said at this time, 'We polled the class' to see how his peers felt about his return at that time."

Alex was voted out, 14 to 2.

Portillo told the officer after he left with Alex that day, she talked with the other children.

"Portillo said she explained to them that the students in class were all her priority and she would protect them like a 'bear defending her cubs,'" the report said.

Portillo and children in the class said Alex was pushing a table up with his feet while he was under the table. She got the school resource officer to remove Alex from the classroom. It was the second discipline referral for Alex that day, the report said.

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2008/may/...ncident-which/