Four Perspectives on Anti-Achievement

Children guessed But only a few And down they forgot As up they grew.

There is much current concern about underachievement, usually defined as poor academic work by children or adolescents whose intelligence would lead us to expect better. We have found mat for most students struggling with this problem, it is more aptly descriptive to call it anti-achievement than underachievement. This term is used by Frank Wexler* to indicate that often no simple static concept of intelligence-minus-school grades (or achievement test scores) accurately depicts the situation of the dynamic battle against accomplishment that is waged within many adolescents. By using this term we can also exclude from the concept those whose performance falls below their capacity because of cultural deprivation, poor education and physical handicap. Further, we need not use statistical measures which have dubious validity to classify a child. Instead, we need look only for an attitude that actively fights against many areas of achievement regardless of the child's intelligence, health or background. And, unfortunately, this attitude seems to be an increasing mental health problem as well as an educational one.