Raising AAP standards

[Anonymous]

Hi all-does anyone whose second grader took the new modified CoGat this year (also known as the Fairfax Ability Test) anticipate that it will do anything to reduce the AAP pool for 2013 and beyond and help alleviate the congestion currenty going on in AAP? I am wondering if the test is basically the same as before but graded on a higher curve in order to account for the student prepping that we all know runs rampant in this county. With a third grader in an overcrowded AAP center, I really think the county should address this issue not just with redistricting but by raising the bar for admission-and am not afraid to say it despite the maelstrom of hate posts this will generate.

[Anonymous]

This wouldn't be an issue for my kids, but I'm surprised you aren't worried yours will miss the cut?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This wouldn't be an issue for my kids, but I'm surprised you aren't worried yours will miss the cut?

Wow.
Already?

[Anonymous]

Serious responses only please-and with a GRBS of 15, no not that worried...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Serious responses only please-and with a GRBS of 15, no not that worried...

The more the merrier. Those of you who regard this as some exclusive club suck.

[Anonymous]

I don't think AAP should raise the bar for admission until they address the lack of level III services. My current second grader receives level III services, which is pullout small group work, one hour, twice a month. I don't think DC would get any more in 3-6 grade. The current system is set up so that level IV gets full day services, while the rest of the advanced learners barely get any services. I don't think my child is in the top 1%, but gen Ed classes are designed for the middle of the road child. Unless they start offering more services for the 70-99% group, parents of children in this "advanced" group will continue to prep, appeal, and otherwise work within the system to get their children in AAP. It's not fair that the top 1% should receive so much more assistance than children who are also advanced, just not to the same degree.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Serious responses only please-and with a GRBS of 15, no not that worried...

You already know the GRBS for for your second grader ? How ? Do I have to contact the school's AAP Resource Teacher ?

[Anonymous]

20% of all kids in grades 3-8 are in AAP.

They should go to a straight IQ test, and limit it to no more than the top 1%. Return the rest to gen ed. The teachers already provide differentiated services in the classroom, and will simply continue to do so.

[Anonymous]

I'd love to see a chart showing the increase in the percentage of AAP students in FCPS over time. My sense is that it has accelerated quite a bit, due to a combination of concerns over the economy and the changing demographics in the county. It is increasingly less about delivering services to the small percentage of truly gifted learners who would be bored and even potentially disruptive in a normal classroom, and more about anxious white and Asian parents seeking to differentiate their children from others who purportedly care less about education.

Be that as it may, FCPS seems to be tying itself up in knots trying to placate parents, and it may be time to hit the reset button, particularly if doing so might allow the county to make more efficient use of its current facilities. The discussion at Haycock exemplifies this: some parents have screamed and yelled about FCPS's lack of foresight in failing to make plans to renovate Haycock to accommodate over 1,000 students, yet the county now expects there to be extra capacity at several schools in McLean and Great Falls in the coming years. But those parents don't want to hear this, because they treat Haycock like the single life boat as the Titanic goes down. It will be interesting to see the new Superintendant's views on this topic.

[Anonymous]

Why only the top 1%? Why not the top 25%? Differentiated services in the classroom are not working. My child, who would likely not be in the top 1%, is working multiple grades ahead in some subjects. In our parent teacher conference, the teacher stated she couldn't provide any differentiation greater than one grade level ahead. We have private tutoring for DC, so our child receives challenging instruction just not in school. It would be crazy for us to continue private tutoring when an advanced class is available but DC couldn't attend if DC didn't test at the top 1% level. If anything, the selection should be based on those children who are capable and driven enough to do challenging work. Seems like a waste of resources to base selection just on test scores if a child hasn't shown the classroom skills to justify advanced curriculum.

[Anonymous]

OP here-personally, I think they should do away with level IV services and differentiate learning based on subject alone-that would solve a lot of these problems with level III vs IV, etc. The teachers would probably like that as well and it would obviate the need for centers and reducing overcrowding in any one school.

Since the county refuses to go in this direction, and with the economy tanking and less and less people being able to afford private school, the overcrowding of centers is going to be a very serious issue in the next few years-perhaps the county is waiting to deal with it comprehensively until they have a new superintendent, but the obvious short term fix would be to raise the composite scores needed on the NNAT and CoGat in combination with a high GRBS for admission. They can and need to do this to reduce the overcrowding.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:20% of all kids in grades 3-8 are in AAP.

They should go to a straight IQ test, and limit it to no more than the top 1%. Return the rest to gen ed. The teachers already provide differentiated services in the classroom, and will simply continue to do so.

Na. Do away with services for the 1%. Why spend precious resources on them? If general ed isn't good enough for them, let them go private.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:20% of all kids in grades 3-8 are in AAP.

They should go to a straight IQ test, and limit it to no more than the top 1%. Return the rest to gen ed. The teachers already provide differentiated services in the classroom, and will simply continue to do so.

Our base school just eliminated ability grouping. My kid is not AAP but I have no confidence that he will be challenged anymore. I just don't think the teachers can adequately differentiate in one classroom for all of the different abilities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd love to see a chart showing the increase in the percentage of AAP students in FCPS over time. My sense is that it has accelerated quite a bit, due to a combination of concerns over the economy and the changing demographics in the county. It is increasingly less about delivering services to the small percentage of truly gifted learners who would be bored and even potentially disruptive in a normal classroom, and more about anxious white and Asian parents seeking to differentiate their children from others who purportedly care less about education.

Be that as it may, FCPS seems to be tying itself up in knots trying to placate parents, and it may be time to hit the reset button, particularly if doing so might allow the county to make more efficient use of its current facilities. The discussion at Haycock exemplifies this: some parents have screamed and yelled about FCPS's lack of foresight in failing to make plans to renovate Haycock to accommodate over 1,000 students, yet the county now expects there to be extra capacity at several schools in McLean and Great Falls in the coming years. But those parents don't want to hear this, because they treat Haycock like the single life boat as the Titanic goes down. It will be interesting to see the new Superintendant's views on this topic.

I'm confused. Which schools will have extra capacity?? I think all schools in the Tyson's area are projected to be overcrowded.

[Anonymous]

Some schools without centers, such as Lemon Road, Franklin Sherman, and Kent Gardens have far less students than Churchill Road and Haycock-so they have more capacity relatively speaking.