Washington Post article on FCPS' AAP report

[Anonymous]

Link to a Washington Post article about the AAP report that will be presented to the Fairfax County School Board tonight:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/george-mason-study-lauds-fairfax-county-schools-gifted-programs/2013/06/26/d2c62d3c-de71-11e2-b197-f248b21f94c4_story.html

George Mason study lauds Fairfax County schools’ gifted programs

By T. Rees Shapiro, Published: June 26
Academic programs for Fairfax County’s brightest students met or exceeded national and state standards, according to a George Mason University report scheduled to be presented to county officials Thursday.

The study, which the school board commissioned, concluded that the county’s gifted education curriculum is “highly successful” and that it “serves as a national and global model.” A panel of George Mason education experts presented no major critiques and recommended no significant changes as a result of the study.

[Anonymous]

Thank you!! The imagined failures of AAP have been much exaggerated here me thinks! (although I'm sure we all welcome constructive criticism!!)

[Anonymous]

surprising to me that more than half the teachers in the program don't have a gifted teaching endorsement. Obviously not enough trained teachers available to serve all these "gifted" kids.

[Anonymous]

They only asked people in the program what they think of the program. They are not the people who usually don't like it. It's the general education students who are denied additional services (advanced services for them is usually pull-outs once a month), because all the resources are put towards the Center AAP students. They didn't ask the general education students in the AAP Center schools how they feel about the program. I think they would've seen a different response.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They only asked people in the program what they think of the program. They are not the people who usually don't like it. It's the general education students who are denied additional services (advanced services for them is usually pull-outs once a month), because all the resources are put towards the Center AAP students. They didn't ask the general education students in the AAP Center schools how they feel about the program. I think they would've seen a different response.

Hmmm GMU (and I'm a GMU alum). I'm sure GMU makes tons of cash off of the AAP program via people who take the WISCs through GMU.
Of course the folks in the program will like the program. I can't imagine that there were no comments about the admission process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They only asked people in the program what they think of the program. They are not the people who usually don't like it. It's the general education students who are denied additional services (advanced services for them is usually pull-outs once a month), because all the resources are put towards the Center AAP students. They didn't ask the general education students in the AAP Center schools how they feel about the program. I think they would've seen a different response.

Hmmm GMU (and I'm a GMU alum). I'm sure GMU makes tons of cash off of the AAP program via people who take the WISCs through GMU.
Of course the folks in the program will like the program. I can't imagine that there were no comments about the admission process.

...yes that must be it...a conspiracy to get the tons of cash from WISCs...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They only asked people in the program what they think of the program. They are not the people who usually don't like it. It's the general education students who are denied additional services (advanced services for them is usually pull-outs once a month), because all the resources are put towards the Center AAP students. They didn't ask the general education students in the AAP Center schools how they feel about the program. I think they would've seen a different response.

Hmmm GMU (and I'm a GMU alum). I'm sure GMU makes tons of cash off of the AAP program via people who take the WISCs through GMU.
Of course the folks in the program will like the program. I can't imagine that there were no comments about the admission process.

...yes that must be it...a conspiracy to get the tons of cash from WISCs...

Not a conspiracy, perhaps, but an appalling conflict of interest. In their one nod to over-identification of AAP students, the GMU "investigators" who wrote the report suggest that maybe all appeals testing should be done by one organization. Who should that be? Hmmm...who does the most now? GMU. Shameful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank you!! The imagined failures of AAP have been much exaggerated here me thinks! (although I'm sure we all welcome constructive criticism!!)

That study is a conflict of interest and a crock. I hope the school board has the sense to light into these folks when they discuss said report tonight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They only asked people in the program what they think of the program. They are not the people who usually don't like it. It's the general education students who are denied additional services (advanced services for them is usually pull-outs once a month), because all the resources are put towards the Center AAP students. They didn't ask the general education students in the AAP Center schools how they feel about the program. I think they would've seen a different response.

Hmmm GMU (and I'm a GMU alum). I'm sure GMU makes tons of cash off of the AAP program via people who take the WISCs through GMU.
Of course the folks in the program will like the program. I can't imagine that there were no comments about the admission process.

...yes that must be it...a conspiracy to get the tons of cash from WISCs...

Not a conspiracy, perhaps, but an appalling conflict of interest. In their one nod to over-identification of AAP students, the GMU "investigators" who wrote the report suggest that maybe all appeals testing should be done by one organization. Who should that be? Hmmm...who does the most now? GMU. Shameful.

At the work session tonight, FCPS actually stated they are considering having the FCPS school psychologists do the testing in the summer months.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They only asked people in the program what they think of the program. They are not the people who usually don't like it. It's the general education students who are denied additional services (advanced services for them is usually pull-outs once a month), because all the resources are put towards the Center AAP students. They didn't ask the general education students in the AAP Center schools how they feel about the program. I think they would've seen a different response.

Hmmm GMU (and I'm a GMU alum). I'm sure GMU makes tons of cash off of the AAP program via people who take the WISCs through GMU.
Of course the folks in the program will like the program. I can't imagine that there were no comments about the admission process.

...yes that must be it...a conspiracy to get the tons of cash from WISCs...

Not a conspiracy, perhaps, but an appalling conflict of interest. In their one nod to over-identification of AAP students, the GMU "investigators" who wrote the report suggest that maybe all appeals testing should be done by one organization. Who should that be? Hmmm...who does the most now? GMU. Shameful.

At the work session tonight, FCPS actually stated they are considering having the FCPS school psychologists do the testing in the summer months.

That's very encouraging

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They only asked people in the program what they think of the program. They are not the people who usually don't like it. It's the general education students who are denied additional services (advanced services for them is usually pull-outs once a month), because all the resources are put towards the Center AAP students. They didn't ask the general education students in the AAP Center schools how they feel about the program. I think they would've seen a different response.

And they also did not ask the people who have opted out of the program for various reasons - not necessarily related to the AAP designation itself. If they only spoke to LLIV and Center students, what about the delivery of Level III and below at non-center and non LLIV schools - or did I miss that in the report? Clearly they didn't come to our school, or several others where the Level III students only see their AAP teacher once every two weeks, and only for 45 minutes or so. And we DO have Level IV eligible kids at our school that are NOT getting sufficient services, but for various reasons have decided to stay at their base school instead of getting bussed to a center.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They only asked people in the program what they think of the program. They are not the people who usually don't like it. It's the general education students who are denied additional services (advanced services for them is usually pull-outs once a month), because all the resources are put towards the Center AAP students. They didn't ask the general education students in the AAP Center schools how they feel about the program. I think they would've seen a different response.

And they also did not ask the people who have opted out of the program for various reasons - not necessarily related to the AAP designation itself. If they only spoke to LLIV and Center students, what about the delivery of Level III and below at non-center and non LLIV schools - or did I miss that in the report? Clearly they didn't come to our school, or several others where the Level III students only see their AAP teacher once every two weeks, and only for 45 minutes or so. And we DO have Level IV eligible kids at our school that are NOT getting sufficient services, but for various reasons have decided to stay at their base school instead of getting bussed to a center.

They used four schools -- one Local Level IV elementary school, one Center elementary school, and two middle schools -- and spoke to Levels II, III and IV.

Link to the report:
http://www.boarddocs.com/vsba/fairfax/Board.nsf/files/993GWW45D9AF/$file/AAP%20Report.pdf

Link to the recommendations:
http://www.boarddocs.com/vsba/fairfax/Board.nsf/files/993S8V717FF0/$file/AAP%20Recommendations%20Summary.pdf

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They only asked people in the program what they think of the program. They are not the people who usually don't like it. It's the general education students who are denied additional services (advanced services for them is usually pull-outs once a month), because all the resources are put towards the Center AAP students. They didn't ask the general education students in the AAP Center schools how they feel about the program. I think they would've seen a different response.

Hmmm GMU (and I'm a GMU alum). I'm sure GMU makes tons of cash off of the AAP program via people who take the WISCs through GMU.
Of course the folks in the program will like the program. I can't imagine that there were no comments about the admission process.

...yes that must be it...a conspiracy to get the tons of cash from WISCs...

Not a conspiracy, perhaps, but an appalling conflict of interest. In their one nod to over-identification of AAP students, the GMU "investigators" who wrote the report suggest that maybe all appeals testing should be done by one organization. Who should that be? Hmmm...who does the most now? GMU. Shameful.

At the work session tonight, FCPS actually stated they are considering having the FCPS school psychologists do the testing in the summer months.

How will this be paid for?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank you!! The imagined failures of AAP have been much exaggerated here me thinks! (although I'm sure we all welcome constructive criticism!!)

"me thinks"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They only asked people in the program what they think of the program. They are not the people who usually don't like it. It's the general education students who are denied additional services (advanced services for them is usually pull-outs once a month), because all the resources are put towards the Center AAP students. They didn't ask the general education students in the AAP Center schools how they feel about the program. I think they would've seen a different response.

Hmmm GMU (and I'm a GMU alum). I'm sure GMU makes tons of cash off of the AAP program via people who take the WISCs through GMU.
Of course the folks in the program will like the program. I can't imagine that there were no comments about the admission process.

...yes that must be it...a conspiracy to get the tons of cash from WISCs...

Not a conspiracy, perhaps, but an appalling conflict of interest. In their one nod to over-identification of AAP students, the GMU "investigators" who wrote the report suggest that maybe all appeals testing should be done by one organization. Who should that be? Hmmm...who does the most now? GMU. Shameful.

At the work session tonight, FCPS actually stated they are considering having the FCPS school psychologists do the testing in the summer months.

How will this be paid for?

I am assuming by the parents who have appealed or would like to have their kids tested further. Same as it is done now with Mason and other psychologists.