My summary on the AAP admissions process

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The AAP students are hand selected for their potential for high academic achievement. What those who argue that the AAP program has gotten too big need to consider is the possibility that the explosion in the Asian population in Northern Virginia in the last 15 years really has contributed to an explosion in the number of academically high achieving kids, and really these numbers may not be out of whack at all.

"Hand selected"? You mean hit a certain (not especially high) benchmark on a test? Or had pushy parents who made sure they got in? Most of the AAP students in our center are Caucasian, so please stop trying to make race the reason for the gross over-representation of AAP students in FCPS.

over representation? relative to what? Asians are probably 15 -20% of the students in the FCPS system, yet at many of the Centers where we live, in the western part of the county, they make up 50% or more of the AAP students.

Relative to the GE populaton. I also live in the western part of the county and yes, there are a lot of Asians at our center, but the majority of the AAP kids are Caucasian. And the AAP kids as a whole are starting to outnumber the Gen Ed kids, which is preposterous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The AAP students are hand selected for their potential for high academic achievement. What those who argue that the AAP program has gotten too big need to consider is the possibility that the explosion in the Asian population in Northern Virginia in the last 15 years really has contributed to an explosion in the number of academically high achieving kids, and really these numbers may not be out of whack at all.

"Hand selected"? You mean hit a certain (not especially high) benchmark on a test? Or had pushy parents who made sure they got in? Most of the AAP students in our center are Caucasian, so please stop trying to make race the reason for the gross over-representation of AAP students in FCPS.

over representation? relative to what? Asians are probably 15 -20% of the students in the FCPS system, yet at many of the Centers where we live, in the western part of the county, they make up 50% or more of the AAP students.

Relative to the GE populaton. I also live in the western part of the county and yes, there are a lot of Asians at our center, but the majority of the AAP kids are Caucasian. And the AAP kids as a whole are starting to outnumber the Gen Ed kids, which is preposterous.

AAP is about 18% of the eligible FCPS students. Get a grip.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The AAP students are hand selected for their potential for high academic achievement. What those who argue that the AAP program has gotten too big need to consider is the possibility that the explosion in the Asian population in Northern Virginia in the last 15 years really has contributed to an explosion in the number of academically high achieving kids, and really these numbers may not be out of whack at all.

"Hand selected"? You mean hit a certain (not especially high) benchmark on a test? Or had pushy parents who made sure they got in? Most of the AAP students in our center are Caucasian, so please stop trying to make race the reason for the gross over-representation of AAP students in FCPS.

over representation? relative to what? Asians are probably 15 -20% of the students in the FCPS system, yet at many of the Centers where we live, in the western part of the county, they make up 50% or more of the AAP students.

Relative to the GE populaton. I also live in the western part of the county and yes, there are a lot of Asians at our center, but the majority of the AAP kids are Caucasian. And the AAP kids as a whole are starting to outnumber the Gen Ed kids, which is preposterous.

AAP is about 18% of the eligible FCPS students. Get a grip.

18% is too many. And I have a grip, thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The AAP students are hand selected for their potential for high academic achievement. What those who argue that the AAP program has gotten too big need to consider is the possibility that the explosion in the Asian population in Northern Virginia in the last 15 years really has contributed to an explosion in the number of academically high achieving kids, and really these numbers may not be out of whack at all.

"Hand selected"? You mean hit a certain (not especially high) benchmark on a test? Or had pushy parents who made sure they got in? Most of the AAP students in our center are Caucasian, so please stop trying to make race the reason for the gross over-representation of AAP students in FCPS.

over representation? relative to what? Asians are probably 15 -20% of the students in the FCPS system, yet at many of the Centers where we live, in the western part of the county, they make up 50% or more of the AAP students.

Relative to the GE populaton. I also live in the western part of the county and yes, there are a lot of Asians at our center, but the majority of the AAP kids are Caucasian. And the AAP kids as a whole are starting to outnumber the Gen Ed kids, which is preposterous.

AAP is about 18% of the eligible FCPS students. Get a grip.

18% is too many. And I have a grip, thanks!

you said the number of AAP was "starting to outnumber the Gen Ed kids." Nonsense. Just trying to keep the record straight here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The AAP students are hand selected for their potential for high academic achievement. What those who argue that the AAP program has gotten too big need to consider is the possibility that the explosion in the Asian population in Northern Virginia in the last 15 years really has contributed to an explosion in the number of academically high achieving kids, and really these numbers may not be out of whack at all.

"Hand selected"? You mean hit a certain (not especially high) benchmark on a test? Or had pushy parents who made sure they got in? Most of the AAP students in our center are Caucasian, so please stop trying to make race the reason for the gross over-representation of AAP students in FCPS.

over representation? relative to what? Asians are probably 15 -20% of the students in the FCPS system, yet at many of the Centers where we live, in the western part of the county, they make up 50% or more of the AAP students.

Relative to the GE populaton. I also live in the western part of the county and yes, there are a lot of Asians at our center, but the majority of the AAP kids are Caucasian. And the AAP kids as a whole are starting to outnumber the Gen Ed kids, which is preposterous.

AAP is about 18% of the eligible FCPS students. Get a grip.

18% is too many. And I have a grip, thanks!

you said the number of AAP was "starting to outnumber the Gen Ed kids." Nonsense. Just trying to keep the record straight here.

NP here -- thank you.

There are some Center schools that are very overcrowded. That's where there will likely be shifts in implementing Local Level IV at the feeder schools to try to reduce the number of students at the Center school.

See Attachment A in the linked document below:

http://www.fcps.edu/schlbd/docs/sb%20follow%20up%20responses/fy%202014/SBfollow-up14-2-3-4.pdf

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The AAP students are hand selected for their potential for high academic achievement. What those who argue that the AAP program has gotten too big need to consider is the possibility that the explosion in the Asian population in Northern Virginia in the last 15 years really has contributed to an explosion in the number of academically high achieving kids, and really these numbers may not be out of whack at all.

"Hand selected"? You mean hit a certain (not especially high) benchmark on a test? Or had pushy parents who made sure they got in? Most of the AAP students in our center are Caucasian, so please stop trying to make race the reason for the gross over-representation of AAP students in FCPS.

over representation? relative to what? Asians are probably 15 -20% of the students in the FCPS system, yet at many of the Centers where we live, in the western part of the county, they make up 50% or more of the AAP students.

Relative to the GE populaton. I also live in the western part of the county and yes, there are a lot of Asians at our center, but the majority of the AAP kids are Caucasian. And the AAP kids as a whole are starting to outnumber the Gen Ed kids, which is preposterous.

AAP is about 18% of the eligible FCPS students. Get a grip.

18% is too many. And I have a grip, thanks!

you said the number of AAP was "starting to outnumber the Gen Ed kids." Nonsense. Just trying to keep the record straight here.

And you said Asians "make up 50% or more of AAP students". Hmm. Sounds like you are the one spouting nonsense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The AAP students are hand selected for their potential for high academic achievement. What those who argue that the AAP program has gotten too big need to consider is the possibility that the explosion in the Asian population in Northern Virginia in the last 15 years really has contributed to an explosion in the number of academically high achieving kids, and really these numbers may not be out of whack at all.

"Hand selected"? You mean hit a certain (not especially high) benchmark on a test? Or had pushy parents who made sure they got in? Most of the AAP students in our center are Caucasian, so please stop trying to make race the reason for the gross over-representation of AAP students in FCPS.

over representation? relative to what? Asians are probably 15 -20% of the students in the FCPS system, yet at many of the Centers where we live, in the western part of the county, they make up 50% or more of the AAP students.

Relative to the GE populaton. I also live in the western part of the county and yes, there are a lot of Asians at our center, but the majority of the AAP kids are Caucasian. And the AAP kids as a whole are starting to outnumber the Gen Ed kids, which is preposterous.

AAP is about 18% of the eligible FCPS students. Get a grip.

18% is too many. And I have a grip, thanks!

you said the number of AAP was "starting to outnumber the Gen Ed kids." Nonsense. Just trying to keep the record straight here.

And you said Asians "make up 50% or more of AAP students". Hmm. Sounds like you are the one spouting nonsense.

no, I said at some of the Centers they do, RCMS definitely being one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Weird post.

Not weird at all. As a parent who is going through this process for the first time, it's VERY HELPFUL!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people who appeal get in -- just sayin'

Absolutely true at our center.

At any center, by defintion, most kids got in through parental appeal. If only 5% FCPS kids make the pool, but the program includes 20% of the FCPS kids (really, what overall percentage is it?), it stands to reason that most kids in AAP came from outside the pool -> parent referal.

That still does not mean that most kids who appeal make it in.

What you could probably say is that some schools are more relaxed in offering high GBRS scores than others -- either because they want a slim upper grades cohort, or because they just are inclined to believe in ther kids more. In those schools, it is more likely that a parent referral will be successful. A kid with great GBRS scores, but who is not in the pool, will still not make AAP unless parents appeal. So the talk at the playground may well be that all you have to do is self-refer at some schools, and the school administraton may well be quietly approving that message. But in general, what drives admissons are not the test scores, and not the parental referral. It's the GBRS.

So... spend time with your kid building the social skills that teachers are looking for -- and throw in a bit of advanced math and some good reads of your own. That should work better than any test prep.

[DS63]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people who appeal get in -- just sayin'

Absolutely true at our center.

At any center, by defintion, most kids got in through parental appeal. If only 5% FCPS kids make the pool, but the program includes 20% of the FCPS kids (really, what overall percentage is it?), it stands to reason that most kids in AAP came from outside the pool -> parent referal.

That still does not mean that most kids who appeal make it in.

What you could probably say is that some schools are more relaxed in offering high GBRS scores than others -- either because they want a slim upper grades cohort, or because they just are inclined to believe in ther kids more. In those schools, it is more likely that a parent referral will be successful. A kid with great GBRS scores, but who is not in the pool, will still not make AAP unless parents appeal. So the talk at the playground may well be that all you have to do is self-refer at some schools, and the school administraton may well be quietly approving that message. But in general, what drives admissons are not the test scores, and not the parental referral. It's the GBRS.

So... spend time with your kid building the social skills that teachers are looking for -- and throw in a bit of advanced math and some good reads of your own. That should work better than any test prep.

You confuse parental referral and the appeals process. Parental referral is so the county can consider kids not in the pool. That includes kids that scored below benchmark, and kids that were not evaluated by the county.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most people who appeal get in -- just sayin'

Absolutely true at our center.

At any center, by defintion, most kids got in through parental appeal. If only 5% FCPS kids make the pool, but the program includes 20% of the FCPS kids (really, what overall percentage is it?), it stands to reason that most kids in AAP came from outside the pool -> parent referal.

That still does not mean that most kids who appeal make it in.

What you could probably say is that some schools are more relaxed in offering high GBRS scores than others -- either because they want a slim upper grades cohort, or because they just are inclined to believe in ther kids more. In those schools, it is more likely that a parent referral will be successful. A kid with great GBRS scores, but who is not in the pool, will still not make AAP unless parents appeal. So the talk at the playground may well be that all you have to do is self-refer at some schools, and the school administraton may well be quietly approving that message. But in general, what drives admissons are not the test scores, and not the parental referral. It's the GBRS.

So... spend time with your kid building the social skills that teachers are looking for -- and throw in a bit of advanced math and some good reads of your own. That should work better than any test prep.

More than 5 percent are in-pool. 5% is just for the FXAT. There are hard stats for percentage in AAP latest is between 18 and 18 percent...an all time high.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are hard stats for percentage in AAP latest is between 18 and 18 percent...an all time high.

Would you post a link for that 18% figure that you cite? All I can find is this:

http://www.boarddocs.com/vsba/fairfax/Board.nsf/files/99LQQ56A5BDA/$file/a_Increase%20of%20AAP%20students%20in%20last%20ten%20years.pdf

[DS63]

That is a really bad table. It tells you what percent of overall students are admitted each year....but most happen at Grade 3. But, the key piece of information is, what is the number of kids in Level IV, compared with the number of kids in the county. They give you the number of kids not in level iv; number in level 4 = total - number not in level 4.

That is about 20,000 kids getting level IV services, out of 81,000 in grades 3-8, or 25% getting level 4.

[Anonymous]

DS63 wrote:That is a really bad table. It tells you what percent of overall students are admitted each year....but most happen at Grade 3. But, the key piece of information is, what is the number of kids in Level IV, compared with the number of kids in the county. They give you the number of kids not in level iv; number in level 4 = total - number not in level 4.

That is about 20,000 kids getting level IV services, out of 81,000 in grades 3-8, or 25% getting level 4.

I wonder how much of that 20,000 is the number of middle schoolers taking all honors classes. A middle schooler not at an AAP Center but still taking four honors classes is considered receiving Level IV services.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

DS63 wrote:That is a really bad table. It tells you what percent of overall students are admitted each year....but most happen at Grade 3. But, the key piece of information is, what is the number of kids in Level IV, compared with the number of kids in the county. They give you the number of kids not in level iv; number in level 4 = total - number not in level 4.

That is about 20,000 kids getting level IV services, out of 81,000 in grades 3-8, or 25% getting level 4.

I wonder how much of that 20,000 is the number of middle schoolers taking all honors classes. A middle schooler not at an AAP Center but still taking four honors classes is considered receiving Level IV services.

Following up on my post -- I just looked at Thoreau Middle School's school profile page and the 2012-2013 Advanced Academics - Level IV membership number is 336. It would be interesting to get a total for all middle schools to get a better idea how many of the middle school numbers are at the AAP Center versus taking all honors.