How selective is the young scholars program?

[Anonymous]

My son starts kindergarten this week and our school is a young scholars school. I know young scholars are for schools with minorities. We are a minority (Asian-American) but I know that this program was not designed to promote more Asians into the gifted program.

Just curious how they pick the young scholars, specifically at such a young age.

[Anonymous]

At my DC's school, all the young scholars are primarily Hispanic and low income. They identify children that appear to have budding critical thinking skills, but don't have the home support to encourage that level of thinking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My son starts kindergarten this week and our school is a young scholars school. I know young scholars are for schools with minorities. We are a minority (Asian-American) but I know that this program was not designed to promote more Asians into the gifted program.

Just curious how they pick the young scholars, specifically at such a young age.

I don't think Asian Americans will receive much support under the Young Scholars Program since the generally accepted feeling (whether correct or not) is that there is already an "over representation" of Asian Americans in AAP and at TJ as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At my DC's school, all the young scholars are primarily Hispanic and low income. They identify children that appear to have budding critical thinking skills, but don't have the home support to encourage that level of thinking.

OP here. Does that mean that they won't pick any white or Asian kids for the young scholars program? Or just a few Asian or white kids will get picked?

[Anonymous]

Website link here: http://www.fcps.edu/is/aap/ys.shtml

"Young Scholars is a K-8 initiative that is designed to increase the proportion of historically underrepresented students in gifted programs. School administrators, teachers, and Advanced Academic resource teachers work together to find and nurture gifted potential in young learners. Through flexible grouping, summer school, and after school programs, students are provided an educational setting that raises their personal expectations and prepares them for more challenging and rigorous coursework and academic programs."

I think if your child is Asian-American they are not considered. As the prior poster said this is primarily for minorities such as Hispanics and African Americans.

I believe Young Scholars occurs at all schools. Not sure though. I thought the staff are supposed to identify potential young scholars.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At my DC's school, all the young scholars are primarily Hispanic and low income. They identify children that appear to have budding critical thinking skills, but don't have the home support to encourage that level of thinking.

OP here. Does that mean that they won't pick any white or Asian kids for the young scholars program? Or just a few Asian or white kids will get picked?

Since only Hispanics and black kids will receive this special benefit, maybe you could tell the school it would be a racial discrimination to not include your child? Public school programs should be open to all willing participants without regard to race, gender etc.

[Anonymous]

10:19 here: In the past three years of being at my DC's school, I have never seen one Caucasian or Asian in the Young Scholars program. They do a really interesting and STEM focused summer program at our school for Young Scholars, and my DC always asks if she can attend, but she is not of the demographic that the Young Scholars program was intended for. It really is a shame they don't offer this summer program to all students that have an interest in STEM.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:10:19 here: In the past three years of being at my DC's school, I have never seen one Caucasian or Asian in the Young Scholars program. They do a really interesting and STEM focused summer program at our school for Young Scholars, and my DC always asks if she can attend, but she is not of the demographic that the Young Scholars program was intended for. It really is a shame they don't offer this summer program to all students that have an interest in STEM.

May I ask what race your daughter is?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:10:19 here: In the past three years of being at my DC's school, I have never seen one Caucasian or Asian in the Young Scholars program. They do a really interesting and STEM focused summer program at our school for Young Scholars, and my DC always asks if she can attend, but she is not of the demographic that the Young Scholars program was intended for. It really is a shame they don't offer this summer program to all students that have an interest in STEM.

May I ask what race your daughter is?

She is Caucasian, but selected to receive Level II services (which were pull outs) in 1st and 2nd grade (she's now at an AAP center). She has a great interest in STEM that we supplement at home, but she was always fascinated by the experiments and hands-on activities they did in the Young Scholars program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:10:19 here: In the past three years of being at my DC's school, I have never seen one Caucasian or Asian in the Young Scholars program. They do a really interesting and STEM focused summer program at our school for Young Scholars, and my DC always asks if she can attend, but she is not of the demographic that the Young Scholars program was intended for. It really is a shame they don't offer this summer program to all students that have an interest in STEM.

Just as AAP in general should be offered to all students who are interested.

[Anonymous]

AAP is offered to all students of any race who meet a certain criteria. How is that similar to Young Scholars which may just be for certain minorities?

[Anonymous]

DD is Asian American and was a Young Scholar. She loved it but too bad our elementary school only had it until 3rd grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At my DC's school, all the young scholars are primarily Hispanic and low income. They identify children that appear to have budding critical thinking skills, but don't have the home support to encourage that level of thinking.

OP here. Does that mean that they won't pick any white or Asian kids for the young scholars program? Or just a few Asian or white kids will get picked?

Since only Hispanics and black kids will receive this special benefit, maybe you could tell the school it would be a racial discrimination to not include your child? Public school programs should be open to all willing participants without regard to race, gender etc.

OP here. This is bothering me greatly that there will be racial discrimination against my child. I originally asked this question expecting parents to say that the child needed to test at 95th percentile on a test, show critical thinking skills in the top 20% of a class or a teacher picks X number of children based on X categories.

[Anonymous]

If only that was the case. The young scholars program will remain only for low-income, minority, and sorta AAP'ish level children. Very few (if any, as I think about it now) of the kids selected for the young scholars program were in my DC's advanced academic pull outs. So, it's a mystery how they identified them and why they were deemed young scholar material, but not level - II worthy. And, the school invests some significant summer resources to the young scholars summer program. It's frustrating to say the least.

[Anonymous]

OP: the kids you are talking about get selected for full-time AAP placement, not Young Scholars.