Help Interpreting HOPE
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Anonymous
OP here. Iready and VALLS are both high. CogAT and NNAT both 99th percentile. Assuming the HOPE is actually good (seems yes from thread), it must be the work samples. Our pyramid is high SES, but still frustrating. |
Anonymous
Did you do the parent referral paragraph and parent questionnaire? Our AART said to always do those, as it gives yet another data point. If you didn't, I believe you can include at least the questionnaire in your appeal. |
Anonymous
We did both, yes. We’ll focus on work samples and the appeal cover letter, I guess. |
Anonymous
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It is possible to get into AAP without high hope and test scores, but you have to make a very compelling case.
My child in 6th grade at a very high SES school got in with 4 Rarely, 3 Sometimes, and 4 Often (0 Almost Always and 0 Always). The only exceptional talent marked was Performing Arts. 97th percentile math Lexile and 78th percentile reading Lexile (the score report shower that DC was ready for 10th grade comprehension, but scored low in vocab, that extra info wasn’t indicated anywhere in the AAP packet). DC’s report card was almost all 4s in the first grading period this year and the school included that in the packet. DC has ADHD and has had some teachers tell us that DC is truly gifted and very intelligent, and others in the past who have given the lowest score on every part of GBRS. The Hope Score and test scores don’t show the full picture. We put together a very compelling application knowing that DC would likely not receive high Hope scores and that the school would not advocate for our child (more the AAP Coordinator and Administrators weren’t helpful than the teachers who have been great this year). Last year the principal told us that it wouldn’t matter in middle school about AAP because our child can take honors. It 100% does matter in middle school especially to a student with ADHD that needs a faster pace of learning to stay engaged, and also the cohort of students that will be in the AAP classes tend to be more studious and good examples for our child. The teachers chose pretty decent work samples. They included 2 writing samples that were a cute short story, and an informative writing that showed a lot of personality (and a few spelling and grammar mistakes), a science mind map, and 2 math worksheets that show knowledge of advanced concepts (also the teacher write up on the math samples mentioned understanding of above grade level and advanced math concepts on the school based math samples). My advice for anyone appealing is to not try to write comments based on GBRS/Hope, but to find as many examples of why your child needs AAP. Get a WISC completed at GMU ASAP (only submit if scores show giftedness). Include activities that your child participates in (particularly school based activities such as Science Olympiad, math contests, spelling bees). Write about any instruments that your child plays, how often they practice, and their dedication. Do they love puzzles, coding, origami, or building creative things with legos? Give a list of above grade level books that your child has read and discussed with you. Include information about academic peers and advanced curriculum and why these are important to your particular child. If your child has ADHD or a 504/IEP write about that and how it has affected your child in the past in school. If you suspect ADHD make an appointment with your child’s doctor and write about that. Don’t ever say that your child is bored at school!!!! |