Abnormal child behavior

[Cris_Rowan]

What is “normal” child behavior, and what type of behavior should be classified as “abnormal”?

[carie_998]

I don't know about normal and abnormal, I just know that things have changed and are getting tougher for us teachers. I've been teaching for over 20 years, and am confused as to all of the diagnoses. I often wonder if kids didn't have all of the digital toys these days, and were forced to play outside using their imaginations and bodies, would we be having all the issues?

[70Princess]

I can understand the frustration as I see it everyday in my job also. That being said we are getting students that 'are what they are' and I think we are going to get more in terms of behaviour issues, FASD and ADHD etc. We must learn, to the best of our ability, to do as much as we can for each and every one of them. A tall order to be sure but one well worth the effort.

[East Coast OT]

I tend to worry less about a diagnosis and try to concentrate on finding ways to help these children function in their daily lives. Unfortunately having a diagnosis often helps to source funding or resources to help these children. That can be good or bad. As an example, children under age 5 in this province get 20 hours of services a week, if they are diagnosed as being within the Autism Spectrum... As a result, the diagnosis sometimes is just a label to access to services for a pre-schooler. Children with behaviour problems are often not identified until the structure of school is introduced. The funding then becomes a battle between three or more funding sources: Education, Health and Social Services.

[crowan]

I wonder if "behavior" truely origninates from the physical body, as is assumed by the education and health professions when they set about diagnosing and treating it. Or is behavior the manifestation of the mind, arising from the body no doubt, but a much more complex and etheral concept. Maybe behavior is simply a child's spirit, unharnessed and free, wild with the passion of being human. If we choose the path of diagnosing and treating a child's spirit, are we not quenching the very flame that gives them a purpose to live?

[Joshdog]

Regardless if behaviour is of the body mind, spirit – we still have to live in a society with others (or at least it is assumed that children will want to live within this society with others) – and “quenching a flame” is no one’s goal. I think behaviours are generally thought of as "negative" because they don't allow function within the society that we are constrained. "Behaviours" are generally labeled as something that one child is doing that is or could be impinging on the rights of other children to learn and function. Unfortunately that is the model we have to work with.

I think diagnosis is valuable when it will change or enhance treatment. If there will be no change to either the way we treat, or the funding a child gets then pursuing a diagnosis is wasteful. Unfortunately to allocate funding, diagnosis is used. If someone can think of a more fair way to allocate limited funding, then they should start making noise. If funding was limitless then we wouldn’t have an issue.