Sunday 4 November 2012

Typical "learning centre student"...huh??

So, what's in a name or a simple phrase? Usually quite a lot. A name or phrase can be defining, and sadly sometimes, with less than positive connotations. Let me explain...I have been part of the learning centre community for a long time now....since March 1990, just shy of 23 years. (Yikes! Where has the time gone?) Since starting in the learning centre, all those years ago, I have always grappled with this notion of a "learning centre student". When someone, usually a colleague, makes reference to a "learning centre student" I have often thought, "What exactly does that mean, 'learning centre student'?" Is there really a "typical" learning centre student?? Quite frankly, I don't believe that there is; if there is, the definition evades me. The students who attend a learning centre, are just kids, young adults, similar to any other kid/teenager who attends a mainstream high school. From my perspective, learning centres are a microcosm, if you will, of a high school. The commonality amongst students who attend learning centres, the 'thread that binds', is that most of the students have not been successful in high school for myriad reasons. However, that being said, we have students that cover "all walks of life", from the poor and good attendees, to students who may struggle with learning to the exceptionally bright and gifted, to those who contribute positively to our community to those who challenge the expectations of the learning environment. Does this not sound like any other school population? If so, why then do people often say 'learning centre student'? This phrase, in my perception, tends to 'pigeon hole' a student; it is somehow attaching a stigma to a child unnecessarily which, unfortunately can be very limiting for the student. "Oh well, she is a learning centre kid", or "What do you expect, he's from a learning centre". Unfortunately, the connotation is a negative one. The teenager who attends the North Surrey Learning Centre, is a student first, just like any other student in the Surrey School district. We as a staff, have expectations of and for our students; we are not often disappointed in that the students usually meet or exceed  expectations. When I was an undergraduate student at the University of Alberta taking a pedagogical course in teaching children with learning disabilities, one of the first things that the professor emphasized was that the student is not a "learning disabled child/student', but rather a child/student with a "learning disability'. Always put the child first. This simple but powerful difference has ressonnated with me to this day.
  
My question is, should we not be in the habit of always putting the person first, followed by the descriptor? Therefore would it not be phrased as a "student who attends a learning centre" rather than a "learning centre student"? Or am I needlessly worrying about semantics? I welcome your comments.  

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