Letters: Readers discuss Lincoln Prep standards, kids with ADHD, Kansas Gadsden flag

School standards

The news that Lincoln College Preparatory Academy intends to oust students who don’t maintain mandatory academic achievement means that the school’s long tradition of holding students responsible for building up its standards and image is still operating, apparently. (April 12, 7A, “No mercy? Poor grades during COVID-19 could kick students out of Lincoln College Prep”)

It’s up to the schools to bring out the best in their students, not the reverse. One small example of this is that many students are not taught how to learn, yet are expected to achieve — a losing approach, in my book.

When are those with power and influence going to do right by our children and seriously get to the basic issues of school for at least the past 20 years, and make real changes in learning processes?

It’s time to work like hell to escape bureaucratic-authoritarian encasement.

- Jan B. Roosa, Kansas City

Too careful?

Judging from recent statements by political and corporate spokespeople, one thing America doesn’t lack right now is caution. We have an abundance of caution. A plenitude. Untold reserves. We’re swimming in it. It is everywhere we turn. And no matter how much we use, nothing we do with it seems to make a dent.

Abundances of caution are not always good. You buy 50 rolls of toilet paper out of an abundance of caution, and now there is no toilet paper in stores.

And where do we stop using our abundant caution? Drivers under 25 cause a disproportionate number of accidents. Out of an abundance of caution, should we raise the driving age to 25? There are many bathtub deaths every year. Should we stop bathing?

Given all this talk of abundance, I guess there’s still more than enough to go around. Our national caution supply remains secure. But for how long? Will future Americans judge how extravagantly we burned through our caution, just as we condemn earlier generations for treating fossil fuels as unlimited resources?

To answer these questions, the subject of an abundance of caution should be studied with an abundance of caution

- Kyle Black, Overland Park

Help kids early

As a pediatrician, I know that many children who have poor listening skills, difficulty paying attention, trouble sitting still or are overly talkative and disruptive are labeled in the community as having attention-deficit disorder or attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.

But which kids actually have it? And when does it become a problem? Where is the line between behaviors that are normal for their age versus behaviors that may be caused by ADHD? Your child’s pediatrician can help answer those questions.

School closings during the COVID-19 pandemic have made it difficult to identify kids with ADHD because teacher input is typically needed to make the diagnosis. As students go back to school, it is important not to ignore behaviors that are disruptive to their home or school environment. Nine percent of children in the U.S. are diagnosed with ADHD, one-third of whom are diagnosed before age 6. Early intervention with therapy and potentially medication is key.

Studies show that children with ADHD have poorer long-term outcomes, including more trips to the emergency room with serious injuries, lower educational and occupational achievement, incarceration, depression, relationship problems and even early death and suicide.

Diagnosis and effective treatment are imperative to their success and proven to improve their social outcomes, academic performance and self-esteem.

- Taylor Van Dam, Kansas City

Wrong symbol

I can’t believe what Kansas Republicans are doing. They have approved a license plate featuring the Gadsden flag — the yellow flag emblazoned with a rattlesnake and the motto “Don’t tread on me.” (April 12, 2A, “Kansas OKs license plate to benefit gun group, but critics say it celebrates slavery”)

It has been barely three months since this flag was carried by domestic terrorists during the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. It is no longer a symbol associated with the U.S. Marine Corps, as some of its defenders say, but a symbol of people who despise our country.

Why did legislators vote to sanction this license plate? They wanted to support a gun rights lobbying group, the Kansas State Rifle Association, a subsidiary of the National Rifle Association. If they want to support this organization, let them send their personal funds. Please don’t use our state to promote such a vile message.

- David Lewis, Leawood