The sheer number of posts relating to AAP and CoGAT and TAG and G&T is staggering

[Anonymous]

Are we really THIS neurotic?

[Anonymous]

The posts have definitely made me more neurotic on this topic.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for yet another AAP thread!!

[Anonymous]

Yes, it's "silly season" for AAP.

October: Cogat and Naglieri Testing for 2nd graders. Should you prep or not?

January: Pool results in. Should I parent refer or not. How to put together a decent parent referral package.

Late April: Did my kid get in? How do I appeal? etc..

June/July: Appeal decisions come in.

[Anonymous]

I know. Sometimes I wonder if it is really that many different parents or if it is a small group who keeps posting again and again and having discussions with each other. It's hard to believe this many people are worried about all of these programs.

[Anonymous]

I guess some parents want to be on top of this, and clearly understand the best way for their children to get in the program. It is one of the best in the country for advanced academics at the elementary level. We have friends in Silicon Valley, New Jersey, and Chicago whose children are quite advanced and bored in their elementary school programs. They do not have an advanced academic cirriculum (except for once a week in one case) and are quite surprised at the depth of that offered in Fairfax County. The fact my son was admitted was a big relief, as we value education and would have sent him to a private school had he not been admitted through the appeal process. Now I know he will be at least a grade ahead and academically ready when he goes to 9th grade.

From reading this board, we know a lot more about the admission, testing, and other hurdles to get in the program. It is a process and it is not at all transparent by any stretch of the imaginiation. There is much that the County intentionally keeps vague, such as the admission criteria, the weighting of the various submissions, favoritism to minorities (or not), the value of the WISC, etc.

PP, I am sorry you are put off by parents who may appear to be "worried". I think they are simply trying to assure that their children have the best chance to gain admittance to a program that offers the highest quality education that a public school can offer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I guess some parents want to be on top of this, and clearly understand the best way for their children to get in the program. It is one of the best in the country for advanced academics at the elementary level. We have friends in Silicon Valley, New Jersey, and Chicago whose children are quite advanced and bored in their elementary school programs. They do not have an advanced academic cirriculum (except for once a week in one case) and are quite surprised at the depth of that offered in Fairfax County. The fact my son was admitted was a big relief, as we value education and would have sent him to a private school had he not been admitted through the appeal process. Now I know he will be at least a grade ahead and academically ready when he goes to 9th grade.

From reading this board, we know a lot more about the admission, testing, and other hurdles to get in the program. It is a process and it is not at all transparent by any stretch of the imaginiation. There is much that the County intentionally keeps vague, such as the admission criteria, the weighting of the various submissions, favoritism to minorities (or not), the value of the WISC, etc.

PP, I am sorry you are put off by parents who may appear to be "worried". I think they are simply trying to assure that their children have the best chance to gain admittance to a program that offers the highest quality education that a public school can offer.

Don't you mean parents who want to game the system and force their (not AAP) kid into the AAP? And yes, that is exactly what you are doing...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The fact my son was admitted was a big relief, as we value education and would have sent him to a private school had he not been admitted through the appeal process. Now I know he will be at least a grade ahead and academically ready when he goes to 9th grade.

PP, I am sorry you are put off by parents who may appear to be "worried". I think they are simply trying to assure that their children have the best chance to gain admittance to a program that offers the highest quality education that a public school can offer.

Don't you mean parents who want to game the system and force their (not AAP) kid into the AAP? And yes, that is exactly what you are doing...

The PP is exactly right. Everyone is looking for the cliffnotes version on how they can break through the system and get their borderline child in the program.

What exactly do you think your son is going to gain by being one grade ahead in HS? Graduating HS a year earlier?

[Anonymous]

What is stranger is why there are so few posts about special education. The amount of money spent on special education is staggering. For instance there are about 10 special education specialists at our school and only about 30 children who qualify for special education services. There are about 160 children who qualify for AAP services and only one AAP specialist. And classrooms with AAP children tend to have higher class sizes probably negating the cost of that additional specialist. I don't know why there is such a fuss over AAP when this is not a program that is really using any extra tax dollars.

[Anonymous]

DC is chock FULL of people either trying to gain the system or trying desperately to take the next guy down. AVOID either of these sets of parents like the plague they are. Their kids will NEVER measure up to their own parents, how seriously sad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is stranger is why there are so few posts about special education. The amount of money spent on special education is staggering. For instance there are about 10 special education specialists at our school and only about 30 children who qualify for special education services. There are about 160 children who qualify for AAP services and only one AAP specialist. And classrooms with AAP children tend to have higher class sizes probably negating the cost of that additional specialist. I don't know why there is such a fuss over AAP when this is not a program that is really using any extra tax dollars.

There's a special needs forum, and that is where most of those threads go.

[Anonymous]

Agreed, I was thinking the other day this should be the FFX AAP forum instead of VA public schools.

That said I am so relieved my child made it in. I really do feel it is going to give her a much better education and a better foundation for l;ife-long learning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I guess some parents want to be on top of this, and clearly understand the best way for their children to get in the program. It is one of the best in the country for advanced academics at the elementary level. We have friends in Silicon Valley, New Jersey, and Chicago whose children are quite advanced and bored in their elementary school programs. They do not have an advanced academic cirriculum (except for once a week in one case) and are quite surprised at the depth of that offered in Fairfax County. The fact my son was admitted was a big relief, as we value education and would have sent him to a private school had he not been admitted through the appeal process. Now I know he will be at least a grade ahead and academically ready when he goes to 9th grade.

From reading this board, we know a lot more about the admission, testing, and other hurdles to get in the program. It is a process and it is not at all transparent by any stretch of the imaginiation. There is much that the County intentionally keeps vague, such as the admission criteria, the weighting of the various submissions, favoritism to minorities (or not), the value of the WISC, etc.

PP, I am sorry you are put off by parents who may appear to be "worried". I think they are simply trying to assure that their children have the best chance to gain admittance to a program that offers the highest quality education that a public school can offer.

FCPS has site based management so the AAP is one way of hedging your bets on academic content. Even then you never know what you're getting. In regular education [until recently ] FCPS made no effort to offer equal opportunity in math across the division. It is an accident of geography.

Hopefully the new school board will synchronize instruction.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are we really THIS neurotic?

No, SOME of us are perfectly fine. Unfortunately, SOME parents' egos can't handle the rejection when their daughter/son is rejected for AAP. So they commiserate here and plot ways to sneak into the program. Much angst despite the fact that many kids not admitted to AAP are extremely bright and will have a fine academic future.

[Anonymous]

What do you mean "sneak" into the program? Nobody is sneaking into anything. If you have to self refer, or provide additional private testing scores per the process set forth by the county....then you are following the procedures and not sneaking in. Nobody is hiring attorneys, nobody is greasing palms, nobody is doing anything but looking to those of us here who BTDT.

Are you saying that only the children who sailed through the process are truly AAP material? That's not true.