Passion Blog: For my passion blog I decided to write about my favorite Disney Channel Original Movies. These movies are a staple in many peoples’ childhoods ad I would like to do a deeper dive on the context of their creation and the cultural impact they had on people. I would like to look at why some DCOMs became incredibly popular franchises while others are more underrated or forgotten about. I would also like to look at the messages of these movies and how they have aged over time with many of my favorites being released 10-20 years ago.

Civic Blog: I am going to be doing my civic blog on how mental health has become more relevant in the public sphere as stigma is becoming reduced. As a college student where mental health advocacy is everywhere and as someone who struggles with mental illness myself, it is very interesting to me how something that was once so stigmatized has become openly discussed. I want to look at different celebrities that have spoken openly about mental health, as well as different political movements and laws that have changed how mental health is perceived from a legal standpoint.

This I Believe Speech Outline:

Introduction

Attention grabber

• How many of you were “gifted” kids in elementary school?

Context

• In many American elementary schools, kids within a classroom are categorized as gifted or non gifted and are taught as such, being very obviously given different material to where it was clear who was “smart” vs “dumb”

Ethos

• I was always put into the “smart” group and given the harder math packets or more advanced spelling words, so I’ve seen firsthand the kind of impacts it has on people like me and those who were not

Thesis

• I believe that young kids should not be categorized as “gifted” or “not gifted”
• The “gifted” kids often end up facing gifted kid burnout while the “not gifted” kids feel diminished and discouraged to even try hard since they’ve already been put in a box from a young age

Preview of main point

• Despite it seeming helpful to let kids move at their own pace, we are going to look at how this categorization is harmful for both sides.

Body

Categories

• Harmful for “gifted kids”
  • High ego- Being labeled as “smart” from a young age creates an unhealthy but inherent sense of superiority over other peers which is harmful for social interactions
  • Burnout- Many “gifted” kids eventually face gifted kid burnout where they feel extreme pressure to live up to their labeled potential. If they do not continue to outperform their peers or reach certain standards it can be incredibly harmful for their self esteem and cause a sort of identity crisis. Natural talent only takes you so far
  • Change- They struggle with asking for help or asking questions because they feel as though they’re supposed to know how to do everything; struggle to challenge themselves or try new things because they want to be good at everything
  • Ridicule- At the same time, they also may face ridicule and slander from classmates who label them as “teachers pets” and make fun of them for being a perfectionist when its not their fault that’s how they were conditioned.
  • “who often feel they’ve gained a special status for being smart. It’s not uncommon for gifted students to fear failure more than other students because they feel they have more to lose” Students Share The Downside Of Being Labeled ‘Gifted’ | KQED
• Harmful for “non-gifted” kids
  • Internalized- They begin to internalize the idea that they are not gifted and feel no need to even try; like they will never be the best so why even try
  • Resentment- Feel resentment toward “gifted” kids or jealousy, feel embarrassed to ask questions for fear of “proving” their label
  • Unrepresentative- Test scores are not all that matters and can be entirely unrepresentative: “Lower scores can reflect test anxiety, a misunderstanding of test requirements, health on test day, motivation to succeed on the test, the nature of the test itself, or something else entirely that has nothing to do with how competent a particular child might be.” One Child Gifted, Another One Not | Psychology Today
    • To reduce someone to solely whether they’re good at math or not ignores who they are as a person or the complexities of who they are, maybe they face adversity. If they are taught from a young age that all that matters is being good at school and they aren’t, they face an extreme lack of motivation and low self esteem, like they are worthless
  • Separation- “The “ungifted” child may feel they’re not very bright, which can damage their self-confidence and willingness to take academic risks. The children may drift apart, with disdain, insecurity, resentment, or guilt interfering with a previously warm relationship.” One Child Gifted, Another One Not | Psychology Today
• General notes
• My anecdotes
  • When I had an internal crisis because one week I got “demoted” to an easier spelling list- it was so obvious which list was easy vs medium vs hard and which kids got the hard vs easy words
  • When a classmate and I weren’t put into the same math class as the other “smart kids” and complained even though it was purely coincidental 
  • When a teacher put me on the spot to answer a question and I didn’t know the answer and she was surprised/disappointed and called on someone else instead and I felt so embarrassed
  • I lowkey felt like I was better than everyone because I was in an accelerated math program in school where we’d leave class to work on advanced problems with the other “gifted” kids, but I simultaneously felt like the dumbest one there 

Conclusion

Signal closure

• So what actually are the solutions for this? Where is the balance between some kids struggling with a faster pace and others getting bored at a slower pace?

Summarize main ideas

• Needs to be emphasized from a young age that school and grades are not all that matters. Yes, things like AP vs CP classes make sense for older students or even taking different math levels in middle school. But not elementary
• It is harmful to have labels from such a young age in both directions, and these labels cause many more problems in the short and long run than they help solve.

Thesis

• I believe that young kids should not be labeled and treated as “gifted” or “not gifted”

End memorable

• A quote from Albert Einstein: “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing it is stupid.”