Joseph Harris
Core 100D-Mrs. Rutz
Formal Paper Final Draft
20 October 2011
From Predicted Failure to Success
Before I was able to start going to school, doctors and physiologists predicted that I was
going to be a failure. When I was three years old, my one of a kind academic journey
commenced. My first negative review came from a speech specialist who told my parents
that my speaking skills were below average for my age. My next stop was to a special
school where I had my hearing tested by doctors. After numerous hearing tests, the doctors
said to my parents, “According to our results, Joseph has several ear infections making his
hearing skills below average for his age. Because his hearing skills will be below average,
his learning skills will be the same as well.” Based on what they said, my parents knew I
wasn’t going to be living the life of a normal student.
After all of my tests results were finalized, the doctors decided to send my parents and I to
a Grant Wood Area Education Association building so that a teacher evaluator could
examine me. After inspecting me, the teacher evaluator told my parents this, “Joseph
apparently has a learning difference compared to normal kids his age. For example, he has
a speaking problem with his R’s, he writes half the speed of the normal rate, and he
seemed to answer my questions seriously.” Although these results were beginning to make
my parents worry, this was not the worst bulletin they received.
The most difficult news came to my parents when a child psychologist came to our home a
few months after my Grant Wood visit. After the child psychologist had examined me for a
few hours, he gave my parents the grievous news that I possibly had Pervasive Personality
Disorder (PPD). According to Wikipedia, “PPD is a psychiatric diagnosis characterized by
pervasive long-standing suspiciousness and general mistrust of others.” What he inferred
from this was that I would probably have behavioral problems with my parents, teachers,
and other superiors. Because I would be a behavior problem for my teachers, he then
processed that I would be a C or D average student and that I would probably not go to
college. This was devastating news for my parents because they were both master degree
college graduates. However, because my parents loved me so much, they believed that
there was still hope for me.
