Let them shine on

I came across some figures today that said that more than 20% of children between the ages of 9 - 17 have some form of mental health issue and that nearly 11% have a mental health issue severe enough to effect their lives at home, school, and other situations where they interact with people. Can you believe that?

When I was growing up, we didn't have ADD or ADHD. Any difficulties we had paying attention in class or at home were usually remedied with a knock up the side the head or a smack to the lower quadrant. Problem solved.

Don't misunderstand me. I am not implying I believe that these new multi-lettered ailments don't exist, I just wonder at how quickly they're assigned to our children. My son had, and still does have, a difficult time adjusting to school. He began school in New Zealand where he was bounced from kindergarten straight in to first grade because he could read. (He's actually been able to read since he taught himself at 3 years old.)

It didn't take long for his teacher to contact me about behavioral problems. Eventually, a specialist was called in and after giving my son a series of tests, pronounced him a "Visual Spatial Learner" as opposed to a "Linear Learner." What this means is he thinks in pictures instead of words. Fortunately, New Zealand is one of the leading countries to provide educational options for VSL children, along with Australia. In the United States, it seems only Colorado is openly supportive of VSL specific education.

Most VSL children are exceptionally bright and the reason they tend to have problems in school is because they are bored. Also, most classes are taught in a linear fashion, with a lot of repetition, writing, and lengthy verbal instruction. Research shows this is the worst approach for teaching a Visually Spatial child.

Eventually, we returned to Guam, where again I was contacted by my son's school for behavioral problems. I met with teachers, counsellors, and representatives of the Special Education division where I explained about Visual Spatial Learners, as to my shock none of them had ever heard of the phrase, despite one of the world's largest centers studying VSLs is located in the United States.

After several meetings, I was told that what they felt my son had was actually ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder) and went on to say that they also believed that New Zealand used the phrase Visual Spatial Learner to refer to ADHD. (For the record, this is not true. You can look it up yourself online.)

To get a definitive diagnosis, I took my son to the psychiatrist they recommended, who tested my son and said, yep: ADHD. The doctor recommended that I put my son on Ritalin. Personally, I had a big problem with that. Parents spend a great deal of time telling kids to stay off drugs, but let someone say Ritalin and suddenly, its game on. Not for me. I didn't put my boy on the drug and he continued to have trouble at school.

While he has been very fortunate to have had a few truly great teachers, who were receptive to the concept of VSL and even did their own research, most were not. One item of interest you will find when researching VSLs is that the worst way to try and teach these students is by using Direct Instruction, or the infamous DI that Guam's education system loves so much.

What made matters worse is that as my son continued to flounder in a system not designed for his needs, many teachers became apathetic towards him. Some bordered on hostile. It was terrible, for both my son and I. My son for the obvious reasons and needless to say, he hates school at this point. Me, because it is still illegal to beat the crap out of people so I couldn't give any of these lackadaisical teachers the beat down they so richly deserved. Plus, I felt completely helpless and unable to provide any kind of help for my son.

So I caved. I let them put him on Ritalin, even though in my heart of hearts I did not believe that my boy had ADHD. He was on it for a month. They warned me that the effects could potentially make him fall asleep in class but he'd get used to it in a week or so and we'd see dramatic improvements in his concentration and academic performance. What a load....!!! Know what we saw? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. The drug had no affect on him whatsoever and his pediatrician at the time refused to raise the dosage... because she didn't think he had ADHD either. Like me, she thought he was bored silly.

Here we are two years later and my son has missed nearly half the quarter because of illnesses that end up lasting about as long as it takes for me to say he doesn't have to go to school. They're mostly tummy aches and he's now had every test known to man so that his doctor could let me know what she and I had already suspected. He has a raging case of Ihateschoolitus.

He's currently being re-evaluated by a neurologist, who also doesn't see ADHD... now ADD or possibly seizures... that's a whole another story. AND will be a whole 'nother bag of cash to determine definitively, of course.

Why is it easier to think there must be something wrong with a child, rather than something right? Why is being bright not worthy of consideration, but throwing drugs at children in order to force them to fit their square peg selves in to the round hole is considered okay?

My son does not have seizures. He does not have Attention Deficit Disorder. What he does have is boredom. Bored with being taught in a way that he doesn't easily process, bored with being made to feel there is something wrong with him, bored with teachers reprimanding him for something that isn't his fault, and undoubtedly bored with being ostracized by other children for being different.

Do you really believe that over 20% of our children, a full fifth of all our children, have mental problems? Or are they perhaps simply too smart and tired of dealing with the same BS over and over? And what about the parents? We are left to feel as if we're failing our children by being unable to force anyone in the "system" to recognize that what these children need is "out of the box" thinking, a more creative approach to teaching them.

Our children are not dumb, but they are in danger of becoming dull as standard schooling continues to strip away their ability to shine by depriving them of an education suited to their style of learning.

And if you're going to throw drugs at anyone, throw it at the parents! We are definitely being driven crazy by this situation!