Editorial on class rankings ignores today's reality ? phillyBurbs ...

The June 21st editorial noted the Hatboro-Horsham schooldistrict has followed the lead of more than half of the schooldistricts in the country by eliminating the practice of class rankby number. Kudos to Hatboro-Horsham, and all school districts, forkeeping up with studies on the teenage brain and the alarmingimpact of stress on teens.

?The basic American school day and school year is the same as itwas 150 years ago, and yet our children are expected to fit 150more years of history, computer and technological developments, andadvances in science into that day. They must balance this with theneed to participate in extracurricular activities and sports, holdpart-time jobs and handle family responsibilities as well as thechallenges of peer pressure, cyber bullying, drug and alcoholavailability, and an environment with increasing angst overpredators here and abroad.

MRIs and brain mapping have allowed researchers to examine andcompare the human brain at various stages of life. Findingsconclude that the teen brain remains under-developed. the frontallobe, where executive decisions are made, does not mature until age23 and the process of myelination (where excess white matter ispruned away) continues into the mid 20s, as well. This means teensand young adults are forced to deal with social and academicmatters using the emotional centers of the brain, which results inthoughts and actions that are often impulsive, emotional andsomewhat disorganized.

Knowledge and understanding of teens and brain development iswhy school districts across the country have stopped theunnecessary practice of class rankings, eliminated complicatedgraduation projects, lobbied against certain standardized tests andeven discouraged advanced placement classes. Colleges have beeneliminating early admission options as they recognize that thisadds an unnecessary burden on the adolescent mind. Many schools arerecognizing the value of classroom meetings and creating supportiveschool environments where tolerance is emphasized.

While the editorial emphasizes the need to prepare students forcompetition in the real world, I would suggest there is more thanenough competition already in the young person?s world andpost-secondary education is the more appropriate forum for suchchallenges. the editors also reference America?s children asunderperforming on standardized tests when compared to othernations. This comparison is not accurate, as America includes thetest results of all students; other nations eliminate those withlearning or emotional challenges.

The editorial suggests today?s high school graduates are illprepared to meet the challenges of today?s world. I disagree withthis assertion, but wonder how we can expect today?s graduates tobe prepared, with all the information they need, in the same 12years of school we provided over 150 years ago. as a mother whosechild did not live to complete high school, I would assert thereare things far more important than class rank as evidence ofadequate preparation.

It is important to remember that there is a cost to forcingchildren to tolerate requirements and stress beyond their brain?scapacity and it can include anxiety, depression, drug/alcohol use,eating disorders, and suicide. Half of American teens report beingstressed all the time, with two-thirds of those relating theirstress to school work. each day, there is an epidemic of youthsuicide attempts (over 2,700) and it remains the second leadingcause of death for 15-19 year olds and college students. In fact,more teens have died from suicide than cancer, heart disease, AIDS,birth defects, strokes, pneumonia, influenza and chronic heartdisease combined! These are frightening statistic, but they arereal. I applaud Hatboro-Horsham, and all school districts, whichhave done their homework on adolescence, brain development, andstress and recognize there is no evidence to support the need forthe trappings of many traditional measures of worth in our modern,complicated world.

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