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November 23, 2009, 03:12 PM ET
Are They 'At-Promise' Youth?
Are students facing economic or social problems “at risk” or “at promise”?
A growing number of educators across the country are referring to such youth with the latter phrase, triggering a debate about how schools and nonprofit groups describe students, writes Jay Mathews, an education columnist for The Washington Post.
In a Post blog, Mr. Mathews says proponents of the change argue it will help instill a sense of potential and does not imply some kind of deficit in students. Others disagree.
Calling youth at promise “sugarcoats the larger issue: At-risk children are underserved children, and terming them anything else would take our eyes off the issues that plague them,” writes Lisa Feldner, a nonprofit communications consultant, in a letter to the editor.
On the other hand, Larry Bell, co-chair of the Reaching At-Promise Students Association, says the word change represents a “paradigm shift.” It “encourages teachers to approach students from a positive place, one that keeps in mind the students’ promise, not their failures,” he writes in a letter to the newspaper.
What do you think? Which phrase is better for charities working with youth? Click on the comment button below to share your views.
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