Another euphemism brought to you by the public schools “low confidence learners”

A math teacher in Oklahoma writes:
“At my professional development class for math teachers, I’m starting to hear the term “low confidence learners” as a euphemism for the d*mb kids.

“I think this is great! Having a euphemism for the single biggest reality that we teachers wrestle with everyday — some kids are smarter than others — means that at least the concept is officially thinkable. Before we had a euphemism, we had to pretend that everybody was equal in their math capabilities, which was hugely dysfunctional from a teaching standpoint in all sorts of ways, as you can easily imagine.


Maybe if the public schools accepted reality, they could educate all the children. Ignoring the fact that children learn at different rates, and that some are better able to grasp complex problems then others, means that those children (now labeled "low confidence learners") who need extra help do not get it.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I wonder if "low confidence learners" will be encouraged by having a new label to follow them throughout school.

Alastriona, The Cats and Dogs said...

Somehow, I doubt it.