Prez' brother behind effort to ban educators from prescribing Ritalin. (Notebook: education information from schools, business, research and professional organizations).It was about six years ago, when Neil Bush's son, Pierce, who is now 16 and a high school junior, was first diagnosed with attention-deficit disorder. It left the president's brother in disbelief, and officials at Pierce's Houston private school recommended the boy take Ritalin, medication for abnormally high levels of activity. Pierce wouldn't take it. About a year later, the Bush family took Pierce to The Howard School in Atlanta, a pioneer in developing innovative educational programs and individual assessment. After tests and evaluations, experts found Pierce did not have ADD, but rather was a gifted child gifted child Child naturally endowed with a high degree of general mental ability or extraordinary ability in a specific domain. Although the designation of giftedness is largely a matter of administrative convenience, the best indications of giftedness are often those . "It the school system could engage Pierce the way he learns best, then any symptoms of ADD would disappear," Bush says. "The one-size-fits-all [philosophy] in education fails to engage most kids." "It's a real sick thing to me that we punish kids by first labeling them, and that diminishes their confidence, to categorize them in a lesser ability ... and then we drag them to comply in a system that ... fails to engage them," Bush adds. Partly as a result of his experience with Pierce, Bush started and runs the education-technology business, Ignite! Learning in Austin, Texas. This company helps teachers engage students to learn. Bush is not actively involved in changing laws, but he empathizes with New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of parents enduring the same stress. New York State Assemblyman Felix Ortiz Felix W. Ortiz is currently representing New York's 51st Assembly District, originally elected in November 1994. In 2000, Assemblyman Ortiz achieved passage of the nation’s first law to ban the use of hand held cell phones while driving a motor vehicle. , D-Brooklyn, is pushing for a law to ban educators from verbally prescribing Ritalin. Texas, Connecticut and Virginia already have similar laws. The National Institute of Mental Health The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is part of the federal government of the United States and the largest research organization in the world specializing in mental illness. says about 3 percent to 5 percent of the population, mostly children, has attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) A condition in which a person (usually a child) has an unusually high activity level and a short attention span. People with the disorder may act impulsively and may have learning and behavioral problems. . A recent study by Washington State University Washington State University, at Pullman; land-grant and state supported; chartered 1890, opened 1892 as an agriculture college. From 1905 to 1959 it was the State College of Washington. showed physician office visits to treat ADHD Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Definition Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a developmental disorder characterized by distractibility, hyperactivity, impulsive behaviors, and the inability to remain focused on tasks or more than doubled between 1990 and 1995, and prescriptions for treatment, including drugs such as Ritalin, nearly tripled among 5- to 18-year-olds, according to Science Daily magazine. Ortiz initially proposed a bill three years ago after he learned that many students in various New York public school districts were nearly forced to take medication, such as Ritalin, or be barred from classes and put in special education. With the newest bill proposal, Ortiz says dozens of parents have contacted his office with horror stories of their children's predicaments. The proposed legislation would state that a teacher's job is to teach and not diagnose. If a child has a problem, Ortiz says, the matter would be brought to the parents' attention and then a guidance counselor guidance counselor Child psychology A school worker trained to screen, evaluate and advise students on career and academic matters and doctors would meet with the child. Ortiz says he is confident the proposal will pass by December, being that he has the "best support" from many state legislators and parents. |
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