Reply to Why don’t schools make you just through some hoops for redshirting?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]In a world where being youngest in the class is strongly correlated with ADHD diagnosis and medication (something that generally holds true across the world, including places that strictly bar redshirting*), it strikes me as entirely unethical to demand families not redshirt. You don’t get to demand another child goes down a likely medical pathway because you are willing to take on that risk for your own child.

* The only place where the study results haven’t been replicated is the one country that allows parents a large two-year leeway in start time decisions. [/quote]

But there will always be a youngest in class. No matter how many people redshirt, someone's kid will be youngest. So what makes more sense, to play this circular game of "not it!" or to address the reasons why children get blamed for what are simply *normal* variations in maturity and behavior within a grade cohort?[/quote]

Not all parents want to redshirt. Furthermore, the relative age effect for ADHD occurs in countries where redshirting is extremely rare. In fact many anti-redshirting parents on DCUM talk ad nauseum about how they want their child to be the youngest, how they are ready, how awesome it is to be the youngest. Those folks can send their children to be younger, while people who believe their child would benefit by waiting can wait. But anti-redshirting parents who demand that other people send children whose parents have determined that the children would benefit by waiting are deeply unethical. You don’t get to demand other parents not make a decision that school districts both allow and support because you personally don’t like it, particularly where being youngest may send those children down a medicalized pathway. That’s profoundly selfish and unethical behavior. [/quote]

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