"AAP is not a gifted program"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

And btw you're the one who wants a lower proportion of AA kids in AAP by making it more restrictive.

No, you are missing the point. The program should be treated like a special needs program. Kids that are so advanced they aren't really able to participate in regular classrooms should be placed in an environment that helps them achieve their potential.

The rest of them should be TOGETHER. Helping each other, learning from each other, challenging each other. The idea is to bring the bottom UP, not the top DOWN.

Be careful for what you wish. If the gifted program were treated like special education, then Least Restrictive Environment would prevail and it would lead to the end of the Center model and the local level IV program would be it - with the exception of a handful of students and they would be bused across the county to the one program that meets their needs.

I would be OK with this if there were at least a few centers so the commute wasn't so long for DC.

Special ed students frequently have long commutes to get to their programs. I don't see why it would any different.

But do they have a single facility? I didn't say one in every pyramid, I said at least a few for the whole county.

Some programs have only one site. I don't see why it would be any different.

Seriously. I know Robinson HS is the center for many special needs children. There are kids who ride the bus there from all over the county. Why should AAP be any different?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wow y'all.

We moved here last year from Edmond, OK, and people really need to take a step back and realize Fairfax County is no different than many, many other areas that have pockets of well-educated, relatively affluent populations. (Sorry, but it's true.) Fairfax has a very unusual delivery model with AAP that is not a reflection of how many "brilliant" kids that are here or that they have unusual needs vs. kids across the country, but because it has morphed into a behemoth to accommodate pushy parents.

In Edmond more than 30% of the school population is identified as gifted. The in-school services are superb.

Fairfax County has superb in school services with advanced math, differentiation and level three pull outs. They also have superb services with the level four centers for the kids at the top.

The drama is mostly fueled by parent jealousy, particularly on dcum.

No, the drama is fueled by the obvious stupidity of grouping huge amounts of kids together and saying they're "the top," when the reality is, only a tiny fraction of those kids are actually "the top" and many kids in Gen Ed are just as bright and capable as those in AAP. Which begs the question: why the segregation in the first place?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wow y'all.

We moved here last year from Edmond, OK, and people really need to take a step back and realize Fairfax County is no different than many, many other areas that have pockets of well-educated, relatively affluent populations. (Sorry, but it's true.) Fairfax has a very unusual delivery model with AAP that is not a reflection of how many "brilliant" kids that are here or that they have unusual needs vs. kids across the country, but because it has morphed into a behemoth to accommodate pushy parents.

In Edmond more than 30% of the school population is identified as gifted. The in-school services are superb.

Don't you get that is the complaint here: too easy to get into! Edmund has 30% in it because a 97% on the NNAT or two sections of the CogAT are a basis for automatic admission. Here, you'd need a 98% To be automatically CONSIDERED in the possible pool of applicants.

And Edmund serves them in school. That's the point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wow y'all.

We moved here last year from Edmond, OK, and people really need to take a step back and realize Fairfax County is no different than many, many other areas that have pockets of well-educated, relatively affluent populations. (Sorry, but it's true.) Fairfax has a very unusual delivery model with AAP that is not a reflection of how many "brilliant" kids that are here or that they have unusual needs vs. kids across the country, but because it has morphed into a behemoth to accommodate pushy parents.

In Edmond more than 30% of the school population is identified as gifted. The in-school services are superb.

Fairfax County has superb in school services with advanced math, differentiation and level three pull outs. They also have superb services with the level four centers for the kids at the top.

The drama is mostly fueled by parent jealousy, particularly on dcum.

No, the drama is fueled by the obvious stupidity of grouping huge amounts of kids together and saying they're "the top," when the reality is, only a tiny fraction of those kids are actually "the top" and many kids in Gen Ed are just as bright and capable as those in AAP. Which begs the question: why the segregation in the first place?

This. x1000

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Palo Alto suspended its gifted program back in 2012.

http://www.pausd.org/gifted-talented-education

And they are served perfectly well in non AAP-style schools. Gasp! And I would be willing to bet those kids as a whole are probably even smarter than Fairfax County.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wow y'all.

We moved here last year from Edmond, OK, and people really need to take a step back and realize Fairfax County is no different than many, many other areas that have pockets of well-educated, relatively affluent populations. (Sorry, but it's true.) Fairfax has a very unusual delivery model with AAP that is not a reflection of how many "brilliant" kids that are here or that they have unusual needs vs. kids across the country, but because it has morphed into a behemoth to accommodate pushy parents.

In Edmond more than 30% of the school population is identified as gifted. The in-school services are superb.

Don't you get that is the complaint here: too easy to get into! Edmund has 30% in it because a 97% on the NNAT or two sections of the CogAT are a basis for automatic admission. Here, you'd need a 98% To be automatically CONSIDERED in the possible pool of applicants.

And Edmund serves them in school. That's the point.

APS does too, but they don't seem to be 100% thrilled with how that works in their schools, going by posts on DCUM.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Palo Alto suspended its gifted program back in 2012.

http://www.pausd.org/gifted-talented-education

And they are served perfectly well in non AAP-style schools. Gasp! And I would be willing to bet those kids as a whole are probably even smarter than Fairfax County.

The school system is broke and they must raise money for everything

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Palo Alto suspended its gifted program back in 2012.

http://www.pausd.org/gifted-talented-education

And they are served perfectly well in non AAP-style schools. Gasp! And I would be willing to bet those kids as a whole are probably even smarter than Fairfax County.

The school system is broke and they must raise money for everything

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Palo Alto suspended its gifted program back in 2012.

http://www.pausd.org/gifted-talented-education

And they are served perfectly well in non AAP-style schools. Gasp! And I would be willing to bet those kids as a whole are probably even smarter than Fairfax County.

The school system is broke and they must raise money for everything

+1

Seems more like a cautionary tale than something to emulate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

And btw you're the one who wants a lower proportion of AA kids in AAP by making it more restrictive.

No, you are missing the point. The program should be treated like a special needs program. Kids that are so advanced they aren't really able to participate in regular classrooms should be placed in an environment that helps them achieve their potential.

The rest of them should be TOGETHER. Helping each other, learning from each other, challenging each other. The idea is to bring the bottom UP, not the top DOWN.

Be careful for what you wish. If the gifted program were treated like special education, then Least Restrictive Environment would prevail and it would lead to the end of the Center model and the local level IV program would be it - with the exception of a handful of students and they would be bused across the county to the one program that meets their needs.

I would be OK with this if there were at least a few centers so the commute wasn't so long for DC.

Special ed students frequently have long commutes to get to their programs. I don't see why it would any different.

But do they have a single facility? I didn't say one in every pyramid, I said at least a few for the whole county.

Some programs have only one site. I don't see why it would be any different.

All right, fine. If that's the case then I'm still in support of the single-site facility for these kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Palo Alto suspended its gifted program back in 2012.

http://www.pausd.org/gifted-talented-education

And they are served perfectly well in non AAP-style schools. Gasp! And I would be willing to bet those kids as a whole are probably even smarter than Fairfax County.

The school system is broke and they must raise money for everything

+1

Seems more like a cautionary tale than something to emulate.

And yet those kids score higher on standardized tests than the rest of the country.

All of California is broke.

[Anonymous]

Which is funny coming from someone who is adamant that AAP not return to a smaller, more selective program because you know full well your child wouldn't qualify. You seem to enjoy the AAP label more than anybody. God forbid your snowflake is sent marching back to Gen Ed. The shame!

Pot meets kettle. You have my vote for most despicable line in the thread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Which is funny coming from someone who is adamant that AAP not return to a smaller, more selective program because you know full well your child wouldn't qualify. You seem to enjoy the AAP label more than anybody. God forbid your snowflake is sent marching back to Gen Ed. The shame!

Pot meets kettle. You have my vote for most despicable line in the thread.

Actually, I think the first poster's assessment was spot on. A true "gifted" program in Fx would eliminate 90+% of those in AAP. That's why people are trying to defend the AAP.

Ps. The "pot/kettle" line is a non sequitor.

[Anonymous]

Interesting. California IS broke, and seems to have eliminated all of the G/T programming.

Wonder how all of those truly smart kids of Silicon Valley engineers, etc., will survive in a regular school, where their brilliance is dimmed by the mere sight of those not as smart.

Oh right! They're thriving. The school still provides appropriate educational experiences and levels in neighborhood facilities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Interesting. California IS broke, and seems to have eliminated all of the G/T programming.

Wonder how all of those truly smart kids of Silicon Valley engineers, etc., will survive in a regular school, where their brilliance is dimmed by the mere sight of those not as smart.

Oh right! They're thriving. The school still provides appropriate educational experiences and levels in neighborhood facilities.

The white and Asian kids are thriving, at least. Also, note that 57% of the elementary students reported using math tutoring. This was in 2013, so perhaps things have changed significantly since then.

http://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/2013/08/30/palo-alto-school-district-ranks-sixth-in-state