The musical “Next to Normal” by Brian Yorkey is about a dysfunctional family who is far from normal according the dictionary definition of normal. The family contains four members; the mother Diana is bipolar-schizophrenic, the father Dan whose trying to take care of his wife all while he’s in denial that he may be just as crazy as her, the daughter Natalie whom gets no attention from either of her parents, and a son who died at the age of eight months but still appears in Diana’s head every single day for the last eighteen years. Diana’s mental illnesses affect the entire family’s goal of normalcy, but in life a few mental illnesses doesn’t only affect the creation of a picture perfect family; it affects a person gaining a normal education. In the American culture many schools, from elementary to high school, separate students by classes in which who have “special needs” from those who are “normal.” Special education classes usually contain “no more than twelve to fifteen students per class depending on the level” (United Federation of Teachers) and sets back the learning curriculum even if those who may be the same age, or even younger, are in a higher level grade than those placed in special education. The notion of normalcy is affecting students of their education in the American culture because they are being defined by their mental illness; some students may not even need to be placed in special needs classes, but just need a little extra help from peers around them. Those with mental illnesses aren’t seen as normal in American society so it can automatically affect students’ educations because they are being ‘babied’ when in some cases being placed in “normal” classes can be beneficial.
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