An 11-year-old boy with autism suffered complete public humiliation at a 5th-grade award ceremony, and you won’t believe what he was forced to endure.
His teacher decided to give out awards to each student in the class, but when this boy received his award, he had the unthinkable words engraved on his trophy.
And now a shocked and outraged father is sounding the alarm on the series of events that went down that day to ensure this doesn’t happen to any other child.
One could imagine the excitement of an awards ceremony – giving honor to children and acknowledging their contributions to the classroom.
So when a father attended an award ceremony with his 11-year-old autistic son, nothing could prepare him for what would happen next.
As it turns out, the teacher awarded this child with special needs an award for “the most annoying male.”
The little boy’s father Rick Castejon told NWI the award was given publicly, in front of other parents and teachers.
He was humiliated for his child and shocked the event was allowed to take place.
NWI Times reported:
“We were blindsided. We just weren’t expecting it,” Castejon said. “As a principal or teacher, you should never let this happen to any student.”
According to NWI, the father tried to leave the “award” on the table, but the out of touch teacher ran up and reminded him not to leave his trophy.
This display continued to add further insult to injury and shows just how out of touch this teacher is with reality.
The 11-year-old boy did not understand the “joke” of the trophy and proudly went home to show his mother.
When his parents complained to the school, they apologized for the teacher but did not comment if she would receive disciplinary action.
Children with special needs can often face an uphill battle in the classroom and they need to be in a nurturing environment with trained teachers who are both mature and capable enough to lead students with special needs.
Specifically, children with autism can sometimes struggle with excessive sensory output such as bright lights, noise, and lack of structure.
Their behavior isn’t something to criticize them for, but as each child is unique they should have a customized plan to work through difficulties that may arise during the day.
Many children with special needs are able to succeed in the classroom if they are placed in the proper environment with a trained teacher.
But having a teacher label their behaviors “annoying”, and even go so far as to award them a trophy calling attention to struggles they may have is abusive and completely unacceptable.
Children with special needs should be placed in a classroom with loving and supporting teachers who will encourage them and help them thrive.
And if a teacher is seen harming a student by publicly humiliating them in front of students, teachers, and other parents – that teacher should lose her job.
Every child deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.
And a child’s disability should not be something to exploit because an out-of-touch teacher thinks she’s being “funny.”
What are your thoughts on a teacher giving the “most annoying male” trophy to an 11-year-old boy with autism?
Do you think this teacher should lose her job?
Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.
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