SHELBYVILLE, Tenn. —
Dear editor:
“Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive.” From the onset please be advised that I do not consider myself “gifted”, at least not gifted in terms of how today’s gurus define “gifted”.
Now I am not going to get into clinical terms and criteria that define “gifted” because the entire spill is a bunch of hogwash! Rather, I will give you a real life example of what I know about it. I have three kids and only one met the criteria of being “gifted”.
As a parent and educator I saw this child as one of three. She had her strengths and weaknesses just like the other two, but gifted, give me a break! She was smart, sometimes too smart, again, just like the other two.
Did my “gifted” child outperform the other two in school? No! Has my “gifted” child been more successful as an adult than the other two? No! Did my kids help each other in school and around the house to meet my expectations? Yes!
You folks in Colquitt County with average kids, 68 % of you, had best wake up before their opportunities and resources are taken away from them at the expense of those with “gifted” kids. Because of political influence and wealth, many kids will be placed in this so called “magnet school” regardless of any set criteria.
We all have our strengths and weaknesses and if taught basic skills and values we can combine the best to offset the worst, we can love and respect each other without the labels.
Human labels are too often vehicles of deception used to promote the causes and welfare of a select few at the expense of the masses.
I hope that Colquitt County parents see what is happening here.
I do not consider this letter to be well written, but again, I am not gifted. You should try to read my so called “gifted” daughter’s writings. She cannot spell, has no command of grammar and I sometimes wonder how she passed English 101, but remember, she is “gifted”. The same applies to the other two and they ain’t!
Forget this “gifted” hogwash!
L. R. Dampier, Jr.
Shelbyville, Tenn.
Opinion
Beware of 'gifted'
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