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 Labels placed on students 
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This is sort of an old topic that we have already discussed, but I have been thinking about it lately because of an incident that I encountered in the classroom. The labels that are placed on students, I think, should be kept and used in a confidential manner. When teachers use terms such as LD, Special Ed, and even worse, "retard" they have to realize that students are always listening and passing judgement. A few weeks ago, I was in a 9th grade English class that was reading "Of Mice and Men." They had a sub that day and the sub made some comments about the book saying that the main character was a 'retard.' It absolutely stunned me! In my eyes she had ruined the book because now the students were laughing and cracking jokes. They were completely mislead. I personally took offense to this because my mom works with severely disabled students, and when I work with these students the word 'retard' is the last word that comes to my mind. These students are bright in their own way and are often times just as smart as other students, but cannot verbalize their knowledge. That sub was completely disrespectful and her comment was out of line. I was just curious if anyone else has had any experiences with labels that have been placed on students and the impacts that it has on those students and students around them.

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Marty Heise


Mon Feb 27, 2006 9:13 pm
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I agree with what Marty said with putting labels on our students. I think that it is definately going to be a challenge as a teacher to be cautious of what we say and on how we precieve the children.
It's easy to listen to what previous teachers say about students but it's important that we start the year out on level ground. Each student deserves a chance to prove himself to us and his/her peers. In having pre-assumptions on a student and their behavior you're not only cutting the child short from succeeding to their fullest potential, but you're also cutting yourself as an educator short because you aren't challenging the student to their fullest ability.
It is easy to almost "judge" someone based on what others have said. I definately believe that this is going to be one of the hardest challenges as a teacher!!!

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Jenna Holland


Mon Feb 27, 2006 9:48 pm
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I totally agree with what is being said here. I have heard about the teachers who want to look at your role before the school year begins and label each kid. I strongly believe in discouraging a teacher from telling you all the good and bad things about a child in your class before you even have had the chance to meet them. I think it is important, like Jenna said, to make sure that we do not base our perceptions of children in our class on what their teachers in previous years have to say about them.
As far as the "retard" label, I am offended by that term and I think that it was way out of line for the sub to say that. Very good friends of my family have a Down syndrome son who I have grown up with. I have heard his mom tell stories of times she has heard people refer to her son as a retard and I have seen how hurtful it is to her and her son- who does know the difference between someone being kind and someone making fun of him. It is a label that makes us cringe and really gives us the impression that that person is not capable of much. However, I have seen the capabilities of people who have any kind of disability and I do not think it is fair to pass judgment on them and rule them out simple because of a condition they were born with or is a result of something that happened to them during their life. What is so perfect about us that we should pass judgment and ridicule them? They are special in their own way and it amazes me how they can be used to touch other people’s lives.

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Macie Elizabeth Baswell


Tue Feb 28, 2006 9:59 am
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I agree as well. We need to figure out and study our students on our own. We shouldn't take the word of another teacher's label that they have placed on students. Labeling can be very discouraging not only for students but also for teachers. If we label our students, even just once, that label is stuck forever and it would be hard to rid your mind of that label. Also, eventually a student will hear what they have been labeled and it too will discourage them. I work with preschool children 3 days a week and although some would label my kids ADD or trouble makers, I know that they just need a little extra attention. Even though it is hard to keep from placing labels, we need to see the importance in why we shouldn't.

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Margie Jackson


Tue Feb 28, 2006 2:23 pm
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I agree with what everyone has said. I think that we all know that stereotyping and labeling can be very detrimental to students, yet we all do it at one point or another. There is no way to say that labeling helps a student. I agree with what Margie said. Labeling not only hurts students but teachers also. If a teacher accepts a label of a child before they get to know the child on their own then the teacher really never gets to see the child for who they truly are and even if the child breaks through the label, it takes the teacher much longer to realize this.

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Jennifer Lawson


Tue Feb 28, 2006 3:04 pm
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I too have encountered instances like this many times in the classroom with both teachers labeling as well as students. I think that these labels come from places other than the classroom. For example, students learn stereotypes that perpetuate these negative labels from media and family. The teacher is therefore a great advocate for students who are being labeled and can work toward breaking down stereotypes.
I have heard many times from teachers who work with special needs students or those with some form of disability in general, "I was so surprised at how well he or she performed." This is an underhanded comment. It assumes that the student was expected not to succeed or that he or she should be held to a different standard. I believe labeling students automatically gives us an assumption of their performance or behavior. It is good to be aware of how students might be classified, but to view each student as a capable individual. It should not be a shock when a student with a disability is student body president or aces his or her final, it should be just as possible for that particular student as any "regular" student.

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Hayley Wieber

"That's what a class is, a swarm. And you're a warrior teacher...ready to face the swarm"
- Frank McCourt


Wed Mar 01, 2006 10:33 am
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Placing labels is easy to do and very
harmful. Everyone at some point has had a label placed on them. Many
labels placed by teachers, but everyone has had labels placed by their
fellow classmates. Labels like teachers pet, retard, stupid, fat, ugly,
brat, etc... it is a never ending list. The thing that concerns me is
how do we avoid such things. We won't always be around to hear
everything our students say, and we will have students that act out and
no matter what we try, stopping the behavior will be a fight. I work
with mentally retarded adults that also have other mental issues, and I
find myself often thinking of how I should call them when people ask me
what my job is though the state deems them MR (mental retardation). I
just wonder what the best way to avoid these issues.

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Misty Anderson


Thu Mar 02, 2006 9:58 am
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I agree with what everyone else has said, but unfortunately I think I can do it sometimes too. I do not mean to, but sometimes you see someone and they just look like trouble because of what they look like or where they are at. I would never deliberately do this, but I think it is easy to do.

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ANGELA OVERFIELD


Tue Mar 07, 2006 9:55 am
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I agree that labels can be harmful. I think that students that have a "label" shouldn't even be told to the teacher. Unfortunatly, that can never happen because of IEP reports. Although, I think sometimes knowing a student's "disabillity" can help you to accomidate lessons. For example, even though he does not have a "mental disability," I tutor a boy with Tourette's and I think that it was helpful to know that so I knew how I can make it so he could be moving around more, but still be constructive. At first, I thought he just didn't want to pay attention. If I give him something to do with his hands he can be one of the best kids I work with (actually most of them are pretty good). Knowing that I student has Down Syndrome (I know this one may be obvious, but anyway) it can be helpful to know, so you can accomidate the lesson accordingly. However, the "label" should never be used to talk about the student. We all have some kind of disability. I can't see very well without contacts.... To me a disability is anything that you have to change in your environment so that you can perform to the best of your abillity. Most people may not agree with me, but I think that we all have some sort of disability.

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Samantha Lawrence


Tue Mar 07, 2006 10:21 am
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Talking about labels, I think the worse thing I have seen is a "EC" section in my middle school yearbook. I transfered to a different school when I was entering the 6th grade, and at even the age of 10, I realized how wrong it was to have that section in our yearbook. I made a promise to myself then that I would join the yearbook staff just so that I could change that section. Only 8th graders could be on the yearbook staff, and as soon as I got to 8th grade, signing up for the staff was my top priority. I had to battle with several teachers about chaging that section of the yearbook. It was challenging, but I, a 13 year old at the time, convinced a 40 year old teacher that labeling students as "EC" was wrong. Needless to say, my middle school no longer has an "EC" section in the yearbook. Instead, that page page is called "Ms. So-in-so's (depending on who the teacher is) class."

I later learned through my Teacher Cadet class that teachers are not allowed to label their students. If a student has a learning disability, that fact is suppose to remain private. Exposing those students can result in legal actions.

So, I guess it is kind of against policy for an "EC" section to even exist now, but I am glad that I was able to convince teachers at my middle school that it was wrong even before it even became against policy.

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Kourtney Huffman


Tue Mar 07, 2006 2:14 pm
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Kourtney, sorry I have never heard of "EC". What does that label stand for?

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Lauren Leslie


Wed Mar 22, 2006 6:24 am
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Just to break the mold, I am going to have to say that in some cases (very few). Labeling the students can be a good thing. If you know the student prior background from other teachers, this gives you some what of a heads up on what you should expect or not expect. So with this in mind you are able to build your lesson plans up so that you are motivating that student.

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Clint Davis


Sun Mar 26, 2006 12:32 pm
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