Do You Know About “Redshirting?”. . . Used in Some Schools

Have you heard about Redshirting?  Exactly what is Redshirting? It is a practice that several schools have adopted. The thing to determine is whether it is right for your child.

What is Redshirting?

I first heard about this on 60 minutes:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtEsw49o4RY,    It is a practice of holding a kindergartener back because it supposedly gives them an edge on the other children. There was emphasis that holding a child back will help make that child a leader and that that child will have an advantage over other children. Also, there is an emphasis that bigger is better. I have even heard some teachers say, “Oh that student is struggling so.” My response to that is, “Life is a struggle.” I talked with another principal that did not encourage “Redshirting.” She stated, “A good teacher will find the problems that a student has and find a way to reach that student.”

Age

I started school at age 4 and turned 5 that September. I could not imagine being held back because of my size or because the teachers felt that would make me a better leader. I recall loving school and looking forward to graduating to the next grade.

Parents

This is an individual decision that parents are choosing to do. There are parents that do not agree with it. I believe that bigger is not always better. Your size will not determine your outcome. Just look at the models that were told they were too short or too big. There are now models of all sizes. Just think of the basket ball players that were told they were too short. How many have stereotyped people that you need to be a certain height or size to succeed. That is definitely not true. This is a parent's personal decision. However, I disagree with “Redshirting.”

Debateable

According to abcnews, Dina Abou Salem, Redshirting is still debatable. There are those parents that believe that holding their Kindergartener back will make their child bigger and better and possibly more emotionally able to handle school. One parent stated her reasoning was that holding her child back would ensure that her child did not attend college too early. I still say that older is not necessarily better nor a guarantee of maturity. What are Your thoughts about “Redshirting?”

Photo Caption: Commons, Wikimedia.org, Vector Image, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

Source:

“Redshirting in Kindergarten StillSubject to Debate,” Dina Abou Salem via Good Morning America

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