ADHD - Learning Disability or Situational Mismatch?

Over the years I have taught a multitude of students with this...label.  ADHD.  ADD.  As a young teacher, I drank from the company Kool-Aid and accepted that this was a learning disability.  Some students were born with it, others develop it through their environment (nature vs. nurture).  It became a topic that teachers would talk about in hushed voices beyond the reach of students' ears.  "Little Ronnie Runamuck is sooooo hyper today.  I wish they would put him on some meds already."   And me? Guilty as charged also.  Having an 11 year old boy that can't sit still, won't listen to directions, and is constantly tapping, talking, or prodding at other students can be devestating to a teacher's classroom management.  I too, wished lil Ronnie's mother would finally take her son to the doctor and have him evaluated.  Medicate that kid.  Calm him down.  I need some peace and quiet and my classroom back.

Now?  I've had some time to marinate with this idea.  Perhaps the problem isn't that lil Ronnie has a learning disability, but that our traditional model of schools isn't equipped or designed to deal with kids who are so kinesthetic.  Would these children excel if they were in a charter or private school that was designed to allow kids to get up, move around, and learn in a way that fit them?  The Montessori movement was designed to address this need, but primarily for elementary students.  Think about it.  Are we medicating them because they have a learning disability and CAN'T LEARN or because THEY CAN'T LEARN IN OUR CURRENT SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT?  If the answer is the latter, should we really be medicating them to make them fit this mold?  Is it a biological problem or a logistical problem?

Some of our best business leaders are walking posterboys for adult ADHD.  They change gears and multitask constantly; holding conferences, making snap decisions, and quickly analyzing information.  Try to hold a steady, focused conversation for more than 5 minutes though and you'll see what I mean.  For them, their learning style is an asset.  It actually gives them an edge over the rest of us in that environment.  In school, their learning style was a disability, in the "real world" its their edge.  So was it ever a disability to begin with?

A Bully Can Come in All Shapes and Sizes

     When asked to describe a bully, most people describe them as "often bigger than other kids, have low self-esteem, often were bullied themselves, constantly carry a foul attitude".  This stereotype is even the first offered up from school age children as well.  However, if you dig a little more, and ask the right questions, you find that they describe bullying behavior coming from all types.  Girls.  Boys.  Short.  Tall.  Overweight.  Scrawny.  Aggressive.   Passive Agressive.

     Actually, recent studies have shown that bullies are often confident to the point of arrogance.  Sometimes engaging in the bullying behavior for amusement or to flex their social muscle and exert dominance.   Sometimes the bullying is driven by more sinister attitudes, like racism, sexism, or other discriminations.  It can be as simple as excluding someone out from activities because they aren't wearing the right brand of clothes. 

     The truth is, in order to put a stop to bullying, we have to stop working off of old ideas.  Bullies are children.  Our children.  Sometimes the bully becomes the victim.  Sometimes your nice, compassionate straight A student can have a day where they make wrong decisions and participate in bullying behavior.  The lines aren't so clear cut.  Children who chronically participate in bullying can have moments of compassion and understanding.  Sometimes even the victims make wrong decisions that taunt or even encourage a bully so that they can receive some type of attention (negative attention can be better than none sometimes).  We can't simply say that one child is a bully, and this one is not and then work off of those labels.  Instead, we have to teach kids what bullying behavior is, how to break the pattern if they are engaging in it, and how to deal with it if they are a victim or a bystander.