Are you surprised at the kids not in AAP?

[Anonymous]

A couple of super brights at our local school but they chose not to attend AAP. There's always that. Some parents still value a neighborhood school over the benefits of busing for a special curriculum in grade school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A couple of super brights at our local school but they chose not to attend AAP. There's always that. Some parents still value a neighborhood school over the benefits of busing for a special curriculum in grade school.

I can see why! Our kids leave the local neighborhood school at 8:10 (if the bus is on time, which it hasn't been yet), and they are supposed to get back at 4:25, but so far they have come back at 5:10, 4:45 and 4:45. We are losing faith in the bus schedule and the system that thinks it's o.k. for an 8 yr. old to get back to his/her base school more than an hour after school gets out. Add another 10 min. on to that to walk home. Basically, our kids riding the AAP bus have a day that starts at 8:00 and ends at 5:00 (if they aren't REALLY late). That's too long and gives us pause in reconsidering our decision to forego the neighborhood school. The AAP school is literally 15 min. away from the neighborhood school... yet these kids are losing 2 hrs. every day just getting to and from the AAP school.

[Anonymous]

Only one standout kids didn't get in. All the other kids getting pulled out in 2nd regularly got in. Hoping this last kid will get in next year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've heard behavior is a big factor as well. I've seen kids with scores off the charts not get admitted because of discipline issues.

That must be a new thing because my now middle schooler's AAP grade was one big behavior issues extravaganza. In fact, I thought there were far more kids who didn't behave in AAP than in the regular class.

That was my ds's experience. Habitual lunch/snack stealing actual fist fights in class, constant efforts to derail and aggravate the teacher, actually leaving class without permission, destroying class property...I honestly wonder if base schools try to offload the most difficult children by giving them a great GBRS. We switched to private. There was very little room for learning with that cohort as the teachers attention was always on the drama.

Since your child wasn't in FX County, then honestly you shouldn't be responding with "your DS's experience" without the disclaimer of saying that his experience had nothing to do with FX AAP.

This was in FCPS AAP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Only one standout kids didn't get in. All the other kids getting pulled out in 2nd regularly got in. Hoping this last kid will get in next year.

My kid was one of the few pull out kids who was not placed in AAP.

It is okay. We are familiar with the program and the center school, and love that school, but we also love our base school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've heard behavior is a big factor as well. I've seen kids with scores off the charts not get admitted because of discipline issues.

That must be a new thing because my now middle schooler's AAP grade was one big behavior issues extravaganza. In fact, I thought there were far more kids who didn't behave in AAP than in the regular class.

Same here. The worst behavior cases in our center school are in the AAP classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Only one standout kids didn't get in. All the other kids getting pulled out in 2nd regularly got in. Hoping this last kid will get in next year.

My kid was one of the few pull out kids who was not placed in AAP.

It is okay. We are familiar with the program and the center school, and love that school, but we also love our base school.

I'm hoping the kid gets in because the kid is at a LLIV school where it's more obvious who got in and who didn't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A couple of super brights at our local school but they chose not to attend AAP. There's always that. Some parents still value a neighborhood school over the benefits of busing for a special curriculum in grade school.

I can see why! Our kids leave the local neighborhood school at 8:10 (if the bus is on time, which it hasn't been yet), and they are supposed to get back at 4:25, but so far they have come back at 5:10, 4:45 and 4:45. We are losing faith in the bus schedule and the system that thinks it's o.k. for an 8 yr. old to get back to his/her base school more than an hour after school gets out. Add another 10 min. on to that to walk home. Basically, our kids riding the AAP bus have a day that starts at 8:00 and ends at 5:00 (if they aren't REALLY late). That's too long and gives us pause in reconsidering our decision to forego the neighborhood school. The AAP school is literally 15 min. away from the neighborhood school... yet these kids are losing 2 hrs. every day just getting to and from the AAP school.

Center schools should be a thing of the past by now and kids should return to their neighborhood schools. It would solve a lot of problems.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP here. I was not referring to Fairfax County but to gifted programs in my school district. I'm not making up the fact that poorly behaved but bright kids get rejected from our GT district's program.

I thought you said it wasn't FX. Which school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A couple of super brights at our local school but they chose not to attend AAP. There's always that. Some parents still value a neighborhood school over the benefits of busing for a special curriculum in grade school.

I can see why! Our kids leave the local neighborhood school at 8:10 (if the bus is on time, which it hasn't been yet), and they are supposed to get back at 4:25, but so far they have come back at 5:10, 4:45 and 4:45. We are losing faith in the bus schedule and the system that thinks it's o.k. for an 8 yr. old to get back to his/her base school more than an hour after school gets out. Add another 10 min. on to that to walk home. Basically, our kids riding the AAP bus have a day that starts at 8:00 and ends at 5:00 (if they aren't REALLY late). That's too long and gives us pause in reconsidering our decision to forego the neighborhood school. The AAP school is literally 15 min. away from the neighborhood school... yet these kids are losing 2 hrs. every day just getting to and from the AAP school.

Center schools should be a thing of the past by now and kids should return to their neighborhood schools. It would solve a lot of problems.

It would solve a lot of problems for some people and cause a lot more problems for some people. The school district needs to meet the needs of all students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A couple of super brights at our local school but they chose not to attend AAP. There's always that. Some parents still value a neighborhood school over the benefits of busing for a special curriculum in grade school.

I can see why! Our kids leave the local neighborhood school at 8:10 (if the bus is on time, which it hasn't been yet), and they are supposed to get back at 4:25, but so far they have come back at 5:10, 4:45 and 4:45. We are losing faith in the bus schedule and the system that thinks it's o.k. for an 8 yr. old to get back to his/her base school more than an hour after school gets out. Add another 10 min. on to that to walk home. Basically, our kids riding the AAP bus have a day that starts at 8:00 and ends at 5:00 (if they aren't REALLY late). That's too long and gives us pause in reconsidering our decision to forego the neighborhood school. The AAP school is literally 15 min. away from the neighborhood school... yet these kids are losing 2 hrs. every day just getting to and from the AAP school.

Center schools should be a thing of the past by now and kids should return to their neighborhood schools. It would solve a lot of problems.

It would solve a lot of problems for some people and cause a lot more problems for some people. The school district needs to meet the needs of all students.[/quote]

Think is would solve more problems than it would cause. School district could easily meet the needs of students with LLIV at base schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A couple of super brights at our local school but they chose not to attend AAP. There's always that. Some parents still value a neighborhood school over the benefits of busing for a special curriculum in grade school.

+1 Despite what you read on DCUM, there are many people who choose to stay in base school over the center. There also exist parents who do not appeal if their child does not get into the center through the initial process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A couple of super brights at our local school but they chose not to attend AAP. There's always that. Some parents still value a neighborhood school over the benefits of busing for a special curriculum in grade school.

I can see why! Our kids leave the local neighborhood school at 8:10 (if the bus is on time, which it hasn't been yet), and they are supposed to get back at 4:25, but so far they have come back at 5:10, 4:45 and 4:45. We are losing faith in the bus schedule and the system that thinks it's o.k. for an 8 yr. old to get back to his/her base school more than an hour after school gets out. Add another 10 min. on to that to walk home. Basically, our kids riding the AAP bus have a day that starts at 8:00 and ends at 5:00 (if they aren't REALLY late). That's too long and gives us pause in reconsidering our decision to forego the neighborhood school. The AAP school is literally 15 min. away from the neighborhood school... yet these kids are losing 2 hrs. every day just getting to and from the AAP school.

Center schools should be a thing of the past by now and kids should return to their neighborhood schools. It would solve a lot of problems.

It would solve a lot of problems for some people and cause a lot more problems for some people. The school district needs to meet the needs of all students.[/quote]

Think is would solve more problems than it would cause. School district could easily meet the needs of students with LLIV at base schools.

LLIV at all schools would be far worse.

Could you imagine the drama, the jockeying, the hurt feelings every single day at every single school?

At least now, there is a rip the band aide off approach at the base schools for the parents who are really upset about their kid not being at a center, and the long, daily reminders are limited to a few center schools.

The parents at the base school who still harbor resentment months or years afterwards are going to have that resentment whether or not there is a center or all the schools have LLIV. LLIV will cause many previously content parents to get upset where they weren't before.

The best idea is to have a designated magnet in each pyramid that can support one that are 100% AAP. For the pyramids that can't, the district should keep the center model.

[Anonymous]

I can see the points on both sides of the argument for getting rid of the AAP centers vs. keeping them. For me (the PP with the chronically late bus), the problem could be solved if the bus didn't run a route prior to picking up the AAP kids (or if that route was shortened) so that the bus was not always late picking up the AAP kids at their school. We're getting to the point now where the "price" of AAP for kids at our base school is that you have to drive your kid to AAP and pick them up everyday b/c the bus is so late and unreliable. When your child gets home 1hr. and 20 min. or MORE after the dismissal bell on a regular basis, (and they already start 50 min. later than our neighborhood school), it's not reasonable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The best idea is to have a designated magnet in each pyramid that can support one that are 100% AAP. For the pyramids that can't, the district should keep the center model.

+100000

What works well in one part of the county is not necessarily the best solution in another part of the county. Fairfax County is just so huge.