Snails. Endangered. Moving Toward Better Terminology.

Firstly, I want to just say how much I enjoy CNF writing. This is one of my favorite genres (even though it is so vast). I always love how something seemingly indirect can directly relate with our lives (such as a snail). For this weeks readings, I loved The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating, and I actually added that to my summer reading list, but I really resonated with At Risk. Imani Keith discussed how she is at-risk in the environment, “Black.Woman.Alone.Camping.” and then she goes on to discuss her youth crew and how the at-risk label isn’t a “protection but a limitation, a judgement, an assumption”.

I kept thinking about my own experience with at-risk students and how much I hate that terminology. When I worked at my previous institution, I taught a type of bridge composition course that was intended for students who hadn’t met the regular parameters for admission to the school, so they had to take a 9-credit-hour, intensive summer load. There was so much admonishment for these students, and senior faculty didn’t want to have anything to do with them (well many senior faculty), so it was a job for grad students. I LOVED IT.

These students were creative, eager to learn, eager to prove, and a lot of them were feisty — and I relished class with them. We ended up having a conversation with about the “at-risk” label, because instead of saying “bridge” program, many described it as working with the at-risk students. While some students didn’t mind this label, others had very strong opinions, and they echoed Imani Keith’s point that these students were viewed as having a limitation, that they weren’t cut out for college, or they weren’t smart enough or didn’t have the work ethic to make it. But, I love Imani Keith’s response that “all youth are at-risk — the risks are just different” and some are endangered. That perfectly sums up my experience working with these students.

These students were similar to the African White Rhino, close to extinction because not enough people cared to see them thrive. Faculty had other concerns, and typically these students take a little more time and effort on the ends of the teachers part. I don’t want to say that the teachers I worked with were lazy or didn’t care, but it was evident that these students were the ones who were forgotten and on the edge of extinction from even being included in higher education.

So, what can we do?

Re-labeing. I am pretty sure we are all aware how much rhetoric matters, so what can we label these students so not as to pass some pre-conceived bias or judgement on to them? I love the “bridge” term, but it doesn’t apply to everyone. From my perspective, these students were highly-motivated, but I’m not sure that would be the right term either. Vulnerable? No, too many negative connotations associated with it. The Bill and Melinda Gates started coining the term “Opportunity Youth,” but I am not sure that is it yet either. What are some thoughts you all have? If you want to read about the harms of labeling students at-risk and how it can quickly lead to other labels like super predator, feel free to start reading here.