Research Paper on:
The Case Against Ritalin

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
inability to concentrate. It has become a familiar acronym and buzzword in the school systems and a favorite explanation of teachers who prompt parents to get their children treated. Some  teachers even recommend that the child needs medication and this has caused much controversy. Charges that school systems and teachers are recommending a drug for classroom control have been waged.  How can this be the case? Clearly, an individual who is medicated will be more compliant and easily managed. Ritalin to an extent--the drug most often prescribed to treat ADHD--does  seem to render children more manageable and compliant. Ironically, this stimulant slows them down and allows more control both within and from without. However, there is concern that Ritalin is  over prescribed for children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Ritalin is a stimulant. Stimulants will counteract the unnatural hyperactivity and this makes individuals able to sustain  attention for a longer period of time (Sandel 50). It is an idea that makes sense. The ADHD child has difficulty controlling his or her behavior. The drug allows a  child to focus so that he can stop moving. That compulsion to misbehave is gone. However, the use of the drug is very controversial and many say that children are  "doped" which is a chemical alternative to treating the real problem ("Britain" 29). In other words, Ritalin is a band-aid and not a cure for ADHD. By using drugs,  administrators and parents will pay less attention to environmental remedies which are safer but more difficult to implement. For example, parents may need to spend more time with their children  to calm them down, but if the drug does that, the parent need not act. Similarly, in the classroom, students may not need extra help or accommodations. If Ritalin does