Published in CT School Psychologist, Vol.13, 3 p.9

One Size Does Not Fit All -Carolyn R. Falk Ph.D., retired School Psychologist
Wouldn’t it be ideal if all schools were like Lake Woebegone, “…… all the students are above average? But students run the spectrum of challenged to gifted. Programs have been created to address the differences. Over time we have seen special schools, self contained classrooms, and mainstreamed. We have tried modifications and accommodations. No child left behind has been mandated. Funding has been squeezed to the bone to provide catch up assistance.
Schools have tried labeling and classifying students’ needs in order to facilitate meeting these needs. Giving challenged students a label seemed to violate their privacy. All detection of their special classes was not differentiated on a diploma. Many parents wanted their child to have any extra help that was available, but for the child not to know he was getting it. All children were encouraged to believe that they could be brain surgeons no matter what their ability or even worse, no matter what their talent.
What about honoring individual strengths? One size does not fit all. Not everyone is meant to be a brain surgeon. I, for one, don’t want a surgeon who requires extra time. How can we mandate “no child left behind” when we feel that “ahead” is the same for all?
Years ago I took a middle school team to a competition for “gifted students” called “Odyssey of the Mind”. The team had to create a solution to a pre described problem. To be eligible for the gifted program in that school system, a student needed an IQ of 138 or higher. The team was made of highly academically motivated children. But it was lacking a diversity of other types of gifts. We needed a motivator, a team spirit person, and most of all, a practical thinker. When we invited friends and interested students to join the team, we had a winner. When students’ strengths were validated, all benefited.
When parents and schools appreciate the uniqueness of all students and build on their strengths, Lake Woebegone will seem like a distant second.