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No matter where you live in this world, parents who have children with learning disabilities are forced to make difficult decisions about their care. Before a child reaches the age of 2, parents and family members have a good idea something might not be right. If the child is language delayed, that tends to be an indicator of autism, and sensory processing disorders. Any number of observations may lead parents to seek professional help and when they do, they are most often faced with the following question, Should I label my child? Having your child labelled means you have sought the assistance of a medical practitioner. In the case of children, you would have consulted your family doctor who recommended a developmental pediatrician (DP). After your appointment with the DP they may have provided you an initial diagnosis. For many parents today, for whatever reason, autism is likely the suspected culprit. It is recommended you get a second and a third opinion, or in the very least, ensure multiple appointments with the DP reinforces the diagnosis over time. Is your child labelled now? Maybe. From the point of view of labelling in education, a label is not a label until the school administration actively reinforces that label in the form of modifications or accommodations. Here is where the dilemma blooms into fruition. Unfortunately, not all educators are created equally. Much like a sports team has its star players, schools have amazing teachers, good teachers, okay teachers, and teachers who are wanting. What happens when a teacher who is "wanting" is in charge of your child who has been labelled with a learning disability? I'm quite sure many of you can dream of a lot of unpleasant outcomes without me having to write them down. This is how a label can be harmful to your child's education. Some educators will see the label as an excuse. The excuse can have different outcomes. Firstly, the label can be an excuse to diminish expectations so much so the child will never be challenged. An unchallenged mind will grow fallow and become stagnant. This in turn will lower the child's self confidence and they will come to believe they are not capable. Secondly, the label can be used as an excuse by the teacher to forego teaching pedagogies like differentiated instruction. If the effort is too great, and other students in the class will suffer, teachers oftentimes are faced with devoting their time to the greater good. These are two examples of the harmful effects of labelling your child. If these were the only outcomes to labelling, I would caution against labelling. Thankfully, there are other outcomes. Labelling your child does not have to be doom and gloom. Knowing the potential hazards to labelling in education can provide parents with strategies to prevent harm and ensure success. In many countries, a child who is labelled with a learning disability has access to additional support. This support may be an Education Assistant (EA), or additional access to technology, like a computer. If these supports are used well, the child who is labelled with a learning disability may be able to function in a regular classroom. We all have obstacles to overcome. No one is "normal." As it turns out, some of us have obstacles that are a lot more difficult to traverse. The harm comes when children with seriously challenging obstacles are allowed to accept defeat. Don't do that to your child. Don't do that to someone else's child. The worst thing that can happen is to tell a child, directly or indirectly, that they are incapable of reaching their goals. Labelling a child for education purposes can be a smart and rewarding process, but only if you understand the perils that come with it. Use the label to get additional support and constantly guard against those who would use the label as an excuse to accept defeat. Do this and you have answered the question, should I label my child? Christopher Binns is the owner and operator of Certified Tutors of Canada and Tutor Direct Education Directory and Learning Disabilities Research . Both companies are education based and help students achieve their academic potentials. In addition to being a certified teacher, Christopher publishes articles on learning disabilities to help parents understand the obstacles their children face. Furthermore, Christopher is the creator of the OPIR Framework, a process by which to support learning taking into account multiple intelligence theory.
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