A boy played truant from school. Following Government guidelines, the county council took his parents to court. They ended up being told to write a letter of apology to the family because the boy is apparently 'school phobic.'
I can't be the only one who finds myself increasingly divorced from modern society. Why are we going down this path which can only end when everybody has a medical condition of some kind to excuse their behaviour?
There are loads and loads of useful phobias. If a child doesn't want to get up in the morning, then they should claim to be Eosophobic. If they don't fancy sitting exams then a diagnosis of Testaphobia will do the trick. Don't want to come in during the Winter? Just be Cryophobic. (No need to be Chionophobic any more as every school seems to close as soon as the sky turns grey.) Hyelophobics can escape chemistry practicals and Papyrophobics must be provided with a Laptop Computer.
What on Earth is this lad going to do when he starts work? No doubt his employers will not be permitted to ask about his condition and will only discover it when he doesn't turn up.
Mind you, I can feel a bad case of Soceraphobia coming on over the festive season...
8 comments:
I know a boy who was school phobic. He was scared all the time he wad in school, threw up, cried etc. Very scary for him, staff & parents. The GP offered to help but there wa a 6 month waiting list to see a psychologist. The parents paid to see a consultant psychologist privately and he prescribed anti depressants and CBT counselling. The boy was suffering anxiety arising from an event in his past and with counselling and the pills he is back at school full time and doing well. If he had been left without help, if his parents hadn't paid for it, he'd be excluded and his parents criminalisd.
People behave how they do for a reason. If you dong like the behaviour if anybody, figure out why they do it and help them. A school phobic boy is crying for help, probably because of something that happenned to him. Judgemental "professionals" are no help to him.
'If you dong like the behaviour if anybody'? Come again?
Madness, but unfortunately not surprising. It seems that this country is going out of the way to churn out another generation of work-shy, scrounging wasters who will do anything to avoid putting some time and effort in. And they are being excused and encouraged!
Oh, and I think that marksany has SpellingPhobia!
Who knows where to download XRumer 5.0 Palladium?
Help, please. All recommend this program to effectively advertise on the Internet, this is the best program!
I know one girl who had school phobia. She had been badly bullied, verbally as well as physically and was just scared stiff to go to school and fce her tormentors day in, day out. Of course, the bullies, being lovely kids really, just with a few "issues", were NOT expelled. No, it was the victim, as usual, who could not go to school any more.
Marksany is right.
School phobia is a real and serious psycological condition. It just has a stupid name. I would call it severe depression or anxiety or post traumatic stress syndrome. I don't think it would make someone workshy or unable to homestudy and get a job later on assuming it was properly treated so that the child could get over it.
Back in the early 80's I knew someone who got severe depression and anxiety as a 15 year old that stopped him from going to school for 6 months. "Depression" was what it was diagnosed at the time as the term "school phobia" did not exist then. The school did not react like Mr Chalk or others here did. In fact the school was very understanding. Instead the teenager got psychiatric treatment and was back in school after 6 months. He's worked since he left university.
Rachel
Hell, I love this blog. I hated teaching so much I left the UK. I now teach in Korea where I can wack kids with a stick and pull their hair and give them a cuddle. Kids love teachers and education is valued though I think they study way too hard. My first UK school I was spat at and when I told the head, he asked to see my planner!
Anyway, it is fun to read stuff by people with similar experiences and though it's often ranty it is always amusing and witty.
Here in the USA it is the same---a sad picture of future generations. I am sounding pretty ancient at the moment but sheesh! What will become of this extremely narcissistic generation!? Hmmm? In Korea you can whack the kids and then give them hugs....sounds like the way schools used to be back in the day. Not that I would want my kids whacked around in school on a regular basis. We home educated our children for the most part and so I get to do the whacking as needed---but don't tell anyone! Seriously, I was told by a teacher in NYC,NY that she was instructed by her superiors she was no longer free to use the word "no" when speaking with her students. "Please refrain from tossing your fellow student out of the window, Johnny". "It would really make me happy if you would work out your frustrations by not kicking me repeatedly in the shin, Suzy". "We would appreciate it if all the drug paraphernalia you brought to school stayed in your locker, David." YIKES!
Post a Comment