As I learned from a friend today, Rasco Middle School decided to have students nominate students for various negative “awards” based on a list provided by teachers.
As reported by CBS-KHOU news, one of these students, a child on the autism spectrum, was nominated both “drama king” and “most gullible.”
My friend’s daughter was nominated “drama queen.”
What in the world were these teachers (not) thinking? At this point, the ceremony where these negative “awards” were to be distributed in front of the entire school has been canceled, but this is not enough.
Rasco Middle School and Brazosport Independent School District need to issue a public apology and individual apologies, possibly reconsider assignments of some teachers and administrators (do we really want these individuals charged with being educators and role models for children at such a precious and important age?), and mandate all personal at Rasco Middle School receive multicultural diversity sensitivity training and lessons in human growth and development. Furthermore, the school needs to bring in professional psychologists—and it doesn’t matter that school is almost over—and have a talk with all of the students together and a talk with some of the students individually.
Such negative, demeaning “awards” have no place in a classroom.
The teachers who came up with this idea are, sadly, bullies, pure and simple, and they are encouraging other students to be bullies, and they are hurting many of the most creative, gifted, and loving students.
I’d encourage you to contact the Principal at Rasco at RPelton@Brazosportisd.net and the Superintendent of BISD at KHolacka@brazosportisd.net. The voice of The People can be most powerful.
This IS NOT ABOUT everyone needing an award…not at all…this is about stopping BULLYING.
Words are unbelievably powerful – especially when sanctioned by those with authority.
Added June 4, 2014, 4:07 pm:
I learned today another one of the “awards” was “Most Beautiful.” Such an award (like the others) is is no way appropriate for 5th and 6th graders when issues of self-esteem are particularly important. Additionally, such an award would unavoidably contribute to sexism (toward those genderized as male, female, etc), racism (toward those racialized as Black, White, etc), etc. “Beauty” is a social construction – people should focus on inner beauty anyway
Dr. Andrew Joseph Pegoda 