Unfortunately, bullying is still a very common issue these days. In fact, 19% of students in grades 9-12 report being bullied on school property. However, it may be a controversial take, but anyone can be a bully. Sometimes the person who looks the sweetest and the kindest may actually be the bully, but sometimes the person who looks angry, who everybody tends to be afraid of, may turn out to be the kindest person.

Speaking about bullying, one Reddit user shared her story online after she complained about being bullied by her classmate with whom she keeps being paired up by her class coordinator and her concerns were dismissed because the person has Down syndrome and he doesn’t have a mean bone in him.

More info: Reddit

People tend to act differently around different people and it’s not always a lie when a person complains about somebody’s behavior who seems to be nice to you

Image credits: Tima Miroshnichenko (not the actual photo)

This teen shares that she is in the special needs class, but it’s mostly for people who had drug or mental problems before

Image credits: Katerina Holmes (not the actual photo)

The class coordinator likes to get students to do different activities during the day as their class is structured differently from the rest of the school

Image credits: Nathan Anderson (not the actual photo)

She explains that she has an autoimmune condition and has a classmate with Down syndrome with whom she always gets paired up for class activities

Image credits: u/Subject_Card_1414

She adds that he is always rude to her, but the class coordinator dismisses her concerns, so last time they were paired up again, she just walked out

Recently a Reddit user shared her story asking folks for opinions on whether she was being a jerk for refusing to work with her classmate who has Down syndrome because he’s often mean to her. She adds that she may be a jerk for not knowing if it’s part of his condition and she may be discriminating against him. The post received a lot of attention and collected more than 10.6K upvotes and 830 comments.

The teen shares that she is in her school’s class for students for ‘special needs’, but most of these kids are those who have had substance or mental problems before and dropped out of school. She adds that she has an autoimmune condition and uses a cane or walker. Moreover, her class coordinator tends to create different activities that get students socialized by playing some board games or helping in the cafeteria.

OP adds that she has a classmate who has Down syndrome and as they are the only ones in the class who are physically disabled, they tend to always get paired up. However, OP emphasizes that he is always rude to her and does such things as take her cane and give it to his friend.

The author shares that she had told her class coordinator that she doesn’t want to be left alone with him but got a response that she’s just being prejudiced against his condition and she’s lying. However, she refuses to do anything with him and simply walked out of the kitchen the last time they were paired together again.

Community members voted that the author was not being a jerk in this situation. “Anybody is capable of being mean. You should be able to work in peace and you aren’t able to,” one user wrote. “I wear hearing aids and I struggle to imagine how I’d manage if somebody just snatched them. OP is in a [bad] situation and being let down by people in authority,” another added.

Image credits: cottonbro studio (not the actual photo)

For this story, Bored Panda reached out to an expert who requested to stay anonymous, but works with adults that have intellectual and developmental disabilities. They kindly agreed to share insights regarding the psychological impact when a person’s disabilities are questioned and how society can work towards creating a more inclusive environment where disabled individuals feel more accepted.

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To begin with, they share that when someone’s disability is doubted, it can absolutely affect their psychological health. “It’s like telling someone the sky isn’t really blue.” Also, disability invalidation negates personal experiences and the daily challenges that they may face. It can make people question the legitimacy of their own needs and whether they deserve the support that they have.

Moreover, the expert emphasizes that this can lead to significant stress, anxiety and social withdrawal as a means of self-protection. In turn, it can also lead to loneliness and contribute to a feeling of marginalization and not fitting the societal mold. So you can imagine how awful the poster must feel having her own struggles discredited by the school administration and even her equipment being taken away by her bully.

Now, speaking about inclusive education, they share that it’s important as it ensures that individuals within our neurodivergent population are given equal opportunities to access education and all that comes with that. “It’s about acknowledging the diverse spectrum of human nature and creating an environment where this diversity is not just recognized but celebrated.”

Inclusive education allows students with disabilities to be part of the community, to grow up with and learn alongside their peers. Also, it fosters a sense of belonging, prepares all students for a diverse world and helps to create a more accepting and adaptable society.

It’s also important to add that stereotypes about disabilities can create significant barriers to an inclusive and supportive learning environment. It can prevent the recognition of the unique strengths and contributions that individuals with disabilities bring to the learning environment. 

“Schools and educators looking to create a more inclusive environment should consider adopting ‘aspects of design’—a concept that includes creating spaces, like sensory rooms, that accommodate diverse needs, similar to those found in some airports,” the expert shares. 

Finally, classrooms should be designed with the understanding that not all students experience learning environments in the same way. “Regular exposure to people with disabilities is key—if neurotypical people and neurodivergent people are not regularly around each other, they can’t learn how to understand or navigate the world from diverse perspectives. I think it’s very important that we take the time to understand each other so that we may navigate the world together.”

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Redditors supported the teen and shamed the class coordinator for ignoring her concerns

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