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 Screening
Mothers and Babes
Instead of Potential Terrorists
Nancy Salvato
August 26, 2004 |
I was absolutely dumbfounded to read about
something called The Children’s Mental Health Act of 2003. It requires a
mental health screening of children ages zero through 18 and pregnant women.
Pregnant women would be screened prior to delivery for depression and
periodically for the first six months after giving birth.
It’s appalling that a country where people have the audacity to scream
"violation of rights” to the profiling of Muslims, would allow an act of
this nature, based on the premise that early intervention is the key to
academic success and crime prevention, be passed into legislation! Something
is askew when the Patriot Act, all about pre-emption of another terrorist
attack is considered a violation of our precious rights, but those of the
innocent children and mothers subjected to these screenings are fair game?
In the Illinois Leader, Mike Burke who is the director of communications for
Ounce of Prevention was quoted as saying, "We know that behavior is shaped
in the early years, and that emotional well being is affected by
complications with birth. This act forces Illinois to recognize the
importance of children's emotional well being."[1] Perhaps we need to be
reminded that those most likely to commit acts of terror against the United
States would be male Muslims between 18 and 27, and we can’t be assured they
won’t blow up themselves and the rest of us as we fly across the country
unless they, too, are screened for this eventuality.
In Illinois, The Children's Mental Health Act of 2003 was signed into law by
a House vote of 107-5 and a unanimous decision in the Senate. We can thank
(not) the sponsors of the measure; IL Representatives Julie Hamos
(D-Evanston), Patricia Bellock (R-Westmont), and State Senators Maggie
Crotty (D-Oak Forest) and Susan Garrett (D-Highwood). It’s estimated that it
will cost about $10 million to implement this gross violation of rights.
This measure fits extremely well with the outcome based educational methods
currently utilized in our failing school systems. OBE is based on the ideas
that our schools are responsible for the emotional and nurturance needs of
children from families where they’re not being met.
Steven Kossor a licensed psychologist says OBE doesn’t prepare children for
the real world. In this type of educational setting, high expectations and
standards for learning are not seen as important to the process of learning.
Character is systematically deflated through acceptable practices such as;
grade inflation, watered down curriculum, an emphasis on cooperative
learning over individual achievement, and the substitution of
"criterion-referenced" for "norm-referenced" testing. Eventually, a weak
person results from a succession of academic failures couched in the
illusion of educational success.
With OBE, every classroom becomes a special education environment because
all children are to receive individualized instruction. It is not of concern
how student behavior of those truly needing individualized education plans
affects the learning environment.
The OBE strategic planning committee is made up of outside consultants and
as a result, community members are outnumbered and local control is gone.
OBE plans are the same across the country, and imagine this…expensive to
implement.
OBE is exactly the type of non scientifically backed method that No Child
Left Behind is trying to eliminate. Forcing every child to receive mental
health treatment is a waste of everybody's education time and tax dollars
because there is no scientific evidence that any of this works.
They say, "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.” The potential
consequences of the decisions made by those we elect to office or put in
charge of the education of our children must be taken into consideration
before the overreaching consequences of misguided legislation is allowed to
adversely affect our most precious resource –the assurance of our continued
quality of existence. Otherwise the safety of our country will continue to
be compromised while our freedoms continue to be chipped away.
[1] Alliance for Human Research Protection
http://www.ahrp.org/infomail/04/07/23.html
Kossor Education Newsletter
http://www.voicenet.com/~sakossor/Pe1_1.html
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