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Martin, my sentiments exactly! There's too much going on and it is cause for confusion (among other feelings). For students who do not fit the mold of how a person "is supposed to learn", what types of strengths they "should have" to succeed in school, and those who are not internally motivated to learn even if the instruction may not be best suited for their particular learning style, school can be very confusing for the student. A student can think that they either "get it" or they don't--and consequently (and mistakingly) they're either smart or they're not. What comes to mind is the student that gives his/her all, struggles daily to understand what is being taught, only to fail--while seeing others succeed, sometimes without much effort. The student who struggles fruitlessly wonders just what is going on--what is going on with their difficulty performing and inability to succeed in school, what is going on with their difficulty learning and picking up concepts, what is going on with their lack of academic abilities, low self-esteem, a defeatist attitude, and sometimes even resistance going to school. Indeed, there is too much (of the wrong things) going on. Martin--quite a perceptive comment!
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