Posted by Dinah on March 23, 2006, at 9:26:15
In reply to Re: Subject close to my heart, posted by special_k on March 23, 2006, at 4:04:41
Yes, actually it does, to some extent.
He won't be hampered in any pursuit that depends on intelligence. He'll likely be hampered in some pursuits that depend on other factors. Does that make me think more or less of him? No. Would I be any less proud of him with a low IQ? No, of course not.
You can't be proud of things that are gifts from God. That would be taking credit for things that are not yours to take credit for. You can only be proud of what you do with them. You can be grateful for them though. I am grateful for those gifts I've been given, and I sometimes wish for a few of the gifts I haven't been given.
Can the tests be wrong? Sure. Some kids just test poorly for one reason or another. Can they be right? Sure. Does it affect a teacher's expectations? Yes, and I've benefitted a few times in my life from a teacher expecting the best from me and giving me the benefit of the doubt. And there's also the negative side of it, in that teachers believe you're slacking if you don't do well - even if there's a subject you just aren't able to grasp easily.
It's not the be all and end all. If a kid grasps concepts easily and turns in excellent work, a teacher's going to expect good things even without a stellar IQ test result. If a kid doesn't do well on a standardized test, parents can ask that other qualities be considered. And it would be a strange teacher, or even testing psychologist, who believed the test scores over other indications of a child's IQ. Good grief, we knew our son was smart before the test. And my father, to my knowledge, was never tested, but I know he would have tested well. A goodly number of people saw him as the smartest person they knew.
I just don't get the big deal. I really don't.
IQ tests do have predictive value. They aren't perfect, but they're not irrelevant either. And they do help identify special needs, which isn't to be scoffed at. If you've got a kid who's misbehaving in class, it's useful to be able to see if it's because he's just bored and needs more challenge, or if he's in an overly challenging environment and could use more support.
It's only a judgement if people make it into a judgement. It's a quality, that's all. Like beauty, or quick reflexes and whatever else makes up athletic ability, or introversion or extroversion.
But there seems to be a movement that makes it something you almost need to apologize for, or downplay. And that doesn't seem right, or grateful. The same thing is true of beauty, I think. But doesn't seem to be true of athletic ability, or many other abilities.
(I'm also grateful that my son looks like my husband and not me. grin.)
poster:Dinah
thread:622738
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/poli/20060322/msgs/623608.html