Has anyone received an HGC letter yet?!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can anyone post scores?

No one has received them. That's part of the problem...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:My wait list letter said they had 6200 kids apply and something like 576 spots. They are celebrating the fact that they had so many more kids apply this year. Excellent, I guess. It it just means you're rejecting more 3rd graders who are interested in being challenged further! What in the world??

This should not be like college applications. MCPS should be trying to accommodate ALL of these kids - most likely all very hard working and bright and motivated.

Hear Hear!

So any kid whose parent sends the form in should be considered gifted?? If that is what you are looking for stay in your home school...that is where they accommodate all kids. And image how many more than 6K would apply if acceptance was guaranteed.

Oh come on. No need for being nasty.

I think the poster was just trying to say that there are probably a lot of kids who are qualified for the HGC but who don't get in because there aren't enough seats and that regardless, MCPS should do a better job of meeting the needs of every student.

Home school or HGC, if your child is highly gifted, smart, etc they should be given the work they need to reach their potential.

As for the differences between highly gifted and smart/high-achieving, maybe the former do belong in the center and the latter in the home school, either way, MCPS must meet their needs. It seems that many parents don't feel that their smart kids are getting enough and are looking to the HGC as a solution. It is a legitimate concern even if the HGC is the wrong solution.

I'm the first PP that the nasty PP responded to.

Thank you for clarifying. That is exactly what I was saying. There are lots of bright, high-achieving, motivated kids who do not get into the HGC because there are not enough seats. I really wish MCPS would do more for those kids. Fine if you don't want to label them as 'highly gifted'. Not worried about the label.

But MCPS is not making enough effort to engage these bright kids and they just kind of bide their time in 'regular classes'.

Look at the scores of kids on the Wait List! These are bright kids! Thw county should want to support these kids.

Could you elaborate on what you expect the county to do to support high achievers who are not "gifted"?

So much more than they are doing now!

There are several kids in my DD's class who read way above grade level. Their reading group barely ever meets. Teacher knows they will read independently and she needs to work with the lower reading groups to get them up to level. My kid (and others) spend hours each week simply reading independently.

Kid has also scored very high on MAP testing in math. There is NO enrichment in our school. Kids below level do get pulled out. Kids above level just get the same lessons/same homework as everyone else.

We would never do that to kids in sports. Saw they have to swim slower because the rest of the team swims slow?? We encourage them to move on to the next level, learn the next stroke once the basic ones have beeen mastered. Heat we let these other bright kids languish in the classroom. Seems like a waste of potential talent.

Yes, THIS! Kids who are struggling receive extra help - not just the absolutely slowest students, but those who are slightly lower than grade level, too. This should apply on the other end of the spectrum as well - bright kids who are not "highly gifted" (or ARE, but just don't make the cut in to the HGC because space is so limited) also deserve enrichment and acceleration more than what is being currently provided in most schools. If more was being provided to "high achievers" or "hard workers who are not really highly gifted" then parents wouldn't be so desperate to get their child into a special program where they would be challenged. Kids and parents want challenge and having their educational needs met - if MCPS can get this to happen at the school level, you will see less need for the centers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can anyone post scores?

No one has received them. That's part of the problem...

Just learned that a separate letter with score is on the way...

[Anonymous]

It's a myth that the teacher quality and the curriculum of the HGC are better than those of other schools. Another one that the HGC is only good for the exceptionally "gifted" kids. Having had kids trough those, I see the HGC and middle/high schools nothing more than a fast track. You go there for the peer group. If there is tracking at home school, my kids wouldn't have needed HGC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My wait list letter said they had 6200 kids apply and something like 576 spots. They are celebrating the fact that they had so many more kids apply this year. Excellent, I guess. It it just means you're rejecting more 3rd graders who are interested in being challenged further! What in the world??

This should not be like college applications. MCPS should be trying to accommodate ALL of these kids - most likely all very hard working and bright and motivated.

Hear Hear!

So any kid whose parent sends the form in should be considered gifted?? If that is what you are looking for stay in your home school...that is where they accommodate all kids. And image how many more than 6K would apply if acceptance was guaranteed.

Oh come on. No need for being nasty.

I think the poster was just trying to say that there are probably a lot of kids who are qualified for the HGC but who don't get in because there aren't enough seats and that regardless, MCPS should do a better job of meeting the needs of every student.

Home school or HGC, if your child is highly gifted, smart, etc they should be given the work they need to reach their potential.

As for the differences between highly gifted and smart/high-achieving, maybe the former do belong in the center and the latter in the home school, either way, MCPS must meet their needs. It seems that many parents don't feel that their smart kids are getting enough and are looking to the HGC as a solution. It is a legitimate concern even if the HGC is the wrong solution.

I'm the first PP that the nasty PP responded to.

Thank you for clarifying. That is exactly what I was saying. There are lots of bright, high-achieving, motivated kids who do not get into the HGC because there are not enough seats. I really wish MCPS would do more for those kids. Fine if you don't want to label them as 'highly gifted'. Not worried about the label.

But MCPS is not making enough effort to engage these bright kids and they just kind of bide their time in 'regular classes'.

Look at the scores of kids on the Wait List! These are bright kids! Thw county should want to support these kids.

Could you elaborate on what you expect the county to do to support high achievers who are not "gifted"?

So much more than they are doing now!

There are several kids in my DD's class who read way above grade level. Their reading group barely ever meets. Teacher knows they will read independently and she needs to work with the lower reading groups to get them up to level. My kid (and others) spend hours each week simply reading independently.

Kid has also scored very high on MAP testing in math. There is NO enrichment in our school. Kids below level do get pulled out. Kids above level just get the same lessons/same homework as everyone else.

We would never do that to kids in sports. Saw they have to swim slower because the rest of the team swims slow?? We encourage them to move on to the next level, learn the next stroke once the basic ones have beeen mastered. Heat we let these other bright kids languish in the classroom. Seems like a waste of potential talent.

THIS! My DC spends hours reading each day and has met with the teacher in a reading group only 2-3 times this year. Why? Because DC is reading more than a grade ahead, and teacher has to spend time with the other kids. I understand that, but why does that mean DC is just being warehoused during the day? And math?! DC complains often that simple concepts take a week to cover. The lack of differentiation makes no sense.

[Anonymous]

Still no letter here either.

[Anonymous]

Our mail just came in Chevy Chase and nothing today...

[Anonymous]

We got a test score letter today, but no acceptance or rejection letter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We got a test score letter today, but no acceptance or rejection letter.

Call the HGC office at MCPS. I called with a question and they called me right back. They will tell you your result I bet.

They said they mailed the results letters on Friday and the acceptance/wait/rejection letter on Monday but that the Friday mailing was by a slower means so they thought kids would get the Monday mailing first.

I am not going to analyze or comment on the wisdom of that... Just passing on what I heard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We got a test score letter today, but no acceptance or rejection letter.

We got nothing. Could you please share the new format of the score? Do you get one score or 3 scores? Is the median of admitted students reported? Thanks a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We got a test score letter today, but no acceptance or rejection letter.

Did it have median scores from the Center where you applied, or just your child's personal score?

[Anonymous]

PP who received the test scores here - It says that the median score for the applicant pool is 113 and lists my child's score.

I called the phone number and they let me know about his status.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP who received the test scores here - It says that the median score for the applicant pool is 113 and lists my child's score.

I called the phone number and they let me know about his status.

Thank you very much!

[Anonymous]

We just found out our DS got into Pine Crest! We were so worried because his current school just gets worse and worse every year, dropping programs for gifted students and focusing only on remedial kids, and there's no way we could let him stay there next year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We just found out our DS got into Pine Crest! We were so worried because his current school just gets worse and worse every year, dropping programs for gifted students and focusing only on remedial kids, and there's no way we could let him stay there next year.

Congrats!