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Valuing Others: Reflections on an Incident in a Kindergarten Classroom Family Articles | June 6 Colton Sissons Youth Jersey , 2008
A teacher in Florida asked her students to judge an autistic classmate. The news has mostly focused on the autistic child, but what about the class? What we teach our children about others, affects how they value themselves.


When we hear about things on the news, read them in the paper, or listen to the latest gossip from friends or colleagues Kyle Turris Youth Jersey , there is a tendency to jump to conclusions and make assumptions about the people involved.? I try to keep in mind that there are always two sides (at least) to every story.? What I may be hearing or reading about is one side of the story, but there is probably another perspective or interpretation of things that is not being told.? I have to admit that I am not always successful at withholding judgment until I understand the entire situation, but I try.? Sometimes, though, things that happen that are just plain wrong?and the other side of the story really doesn?t matter.? Such a situation occurred in a Florida classroom recently; and as I read the article describing the incident and the people involved Dan Hamhuis Youth Jersey , I must admit that I made a snap judgment.



For those of you who may not be aware of the situation to which I am referring, I?ll give you the short version:? A kindergarten teacher has had a 5 year old boy in her classroom all year, and there have been ongoing instances of disruptive behavior such as hummingsinging, pestering classmates, refusing to work Ryan Johansen Youth Jersey , etc.? This child has been in the process of being evaluated for special education services, and the professionals evaluating him believe he has an autism spectrum disorder.? One day recently, the boy was told to leave the classroom due to his disruptive behavior.? The teacher then decided to take a class vote to determine whether or not the child should return to the classroom.? She had this little 5 year old boy stand in front of all his classmates, while each one had their turn to state what they didn?t like about him and whether or not he should be allowed to return to the classroom.? He stood there and watched as all the kids said negative things about him, including a child he perceived to be his ?best friend.?? The vote was 14-2 in favor of not allowing him to return to the classroom.



I sat in stunned silence the first time I read the article describing this situation. ?There was a rush of emotion as I felt so angry and incredibly sad at the same time.? I was reminded that while we like to think that this kind of blatant discrimination and disregard for human worth are a part of our past Pekka Rinne Youth Jersey , the fact is that they are very much a part of our present.? These kinds of blatant actions don?t occur regularly, or at least not that we are aware of, the fact is that this kind of thinking still exists in our society.? This way of thinking places the worth of some individuals above that of others, makes me better than you, and proposes that the majority determines the value of the few.? The fact that this child potentially has a disability that can be labeled is not the point.? Nor is it that a teacher was ?mean? or discriminated against a child who may have autism.? The issue goes much deeper to how we perceive each other and ourselves Filip Forsberg Youth Jersey , and how our words and actions reflect those perceptions.? The actions this teacher took speak volumes about her beliefs about children, their strengths and obstacles, and their value.



When the initial surge of anger passed, I tried to consider what the ?other side of the story? might be in this situation.? Maybe the teacher had felt unsupported all year long in her attempt to teach this little boy.? Maybe she was having a really bad day.? Maybe she watched one too many episodes of American Idol, and decided that voting is a good way to make any decision in life.? There could be any number of ?other sides? to the story; but does it really matter what the other side is?? In a situation such as this P.K Subban Youth Jersey , where the minds and hearts of children are at stake, I don?t think the reasons why it happened are nearly as relevant as the fact that it happened.? Perhaps this teacher will relive this moment in her life over and over again in an attempt to rationalize her actions.? And yet, there really is no way to rationalize this type of behavior on the part of adults, let alone a teacher who is charged with the task of fostering the development and growth of 5 year olds.? What occurred will surely leave a lasting scar on this little boy and his classmates.