School Daze
I admit to a certain skepticism that's guaranteed to outrage a lot of people, but I believe ADD doesn't really exist, it's just another way for the pharmaceutical people to push expensive drugs. As an acting teacher and high school lacrosse coach I've known a lot of kids who've been diagnosed with the so-called condition, and in my experience they're just brighter than other students and so they get bored faster. The smarter they are the "worse" they are. It's amazing how well they can focus if you just find the thing that interests them. It's why they make terrific actors. If ADD had been around when I was a youngster I'm convinced they'd have pinned it on me. In fact, if they pinned it on adults I could claim a bad case of it still, which would be far more socially acceptable than having my brothers think of me as a crazy, irresponsible artist.
posted by John M Crowther @ 7:27 AM
8 Comments:
Have to say that I am in complete agreement with you on ADD. Too many parents and teachers looking for easy way out, Dope the little darlings up so that they are quiet and do not make problems. Poor tykes.
Good cartoon, John C. and since I agree with your commentary, it is, of course, brilliant. (grin)
Good cartoon John. There may be such a condition but I wonder who had before there was adrug for it. roger
Yes... great cartoon John!
Anyone who's ever had one would no doubt agree how singularly HARD it is to raise a child with ADD. Whether it exists or not is still a mystery to me and I've been well and truly through it. The lack of support for parents is astonishing.
I agree with you John that if an enduring interest can be found that incredible intellect can harnessed and redirected into something not only useful and productive... but often downright brilliant.
I'm fortunate that my parents didn't write me off when I was flunking out of public school. They took me around to visit private schools and let me pick the one I liked. I went on to finish in the top 5% of my class. So I experienced first hand the difference between a learning factory and a real educational institution where the individual mattered. From there I went to Princeton (another learning factory IMO, as in soak up the professors' genius and parrot it back on exams).
I was partially lucky. In my day students were skipped. When I went to a one room school in Northern Illinois my wonderful teacher kept me busy teaching reading to the 5 year old and doing 4th grade in the morning and 5th in the afternoon. The down side was that I started highschool at 12 and college at 16. As a result I never learned how to interact with people my own age until I was 25 or so. Some folks would say until I was in my 70's. lol roger
Actually, Roger, school is the only time in our lives that we're forced together with those of our own age, which I believe is a terrible mistake. It's why so few people have the ability to interact with all ages, younger and older. The old one-room schoolhouse was the right answer, with the older helping to teach the younger. I heard recently that somewhere the model is being revived. Good for them!
Couldn't agree more. Like they say "the best way to learn is to teach" It goes to follow then that if kids are given the responsibility of teaching others... good things are bound to come of it.
Both you John... and Roger were very fortunate to have come through the system with such a positive outcome. Many many kids (especially these days now there's a label for it - and an excuse as well) slip through the cracks badly and never recover from the experience.
My young man is now doing well... very well in fact... he still marches to the beat of a very different drummer... but then anyone who's worth their salt and making a difference is doing that!
My kid was the opposite of ADD, he was diagnosed with the hypO active type; slow moving, quiet and introspective. Now they're mostly calling that Asbergers syndrome and its what most 'geeks' have at one level or another. Considering the food additives, pollution and vaccines they pump kids full of these days its a wonder they develop at all. - Sharon
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