What is the point of AAP? I am getting to the conclusion the only real benefit is to have my child

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The problem is that in the non-AAP classes there are kids that are just barely existing. There are kids that the teachers can barely control. AAP is just a way to have what used to be called an actual classroom 40 years ago. I have no idea how we have progressed to students running wild in class, making noise, distractions, disobeying the teacher, etc. In my older son's 2nd grade class right before he split into level IV, there was a girl who would just sit and curse all day and scream at the teacher... IN SECOND GRADE! In my first grader's class this year there was a kid who literally did not participate in the class. He spent the entire running back and forth in the back of the room, throwing paper airplanes, hitting kids, and spitting on the teacher. Jesus christ.

just remember that if you choose a school district to avoid that, you're racist

AAP is what keeps me from having to do that, I hope. I'm just waiting for my younger one with a 146 NNAT to get rejected now because "equity."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The problem is that in the non-AAP classes there are kids that are just barely existing. There are kids that the teachers can barely control. AAP is just a way to have what used to be called an actual classroom 40 years ago. I have no idea how we have progressed to students running wild in class, making noise, distractions, disobeying the teacher, etc. In my older son's 2nd grade class right before he split into level IV, there was a girl who would just sit and curse all day and scream at the teacher... IN SECOND GRADE! In my first grader's class this year there was a kid who literally did not participate in the class. He spent the entire running back and forth in the back of the room, throwing paper airplanes, hitting kids, and spitting on the teacher. Jesus christ.

just remember that if you choose a school district to avoid that, you're racist

Yeah I felt the behavioral issues went down significantly once the kids went into AAP but it in their classes it was mostly disruptive white boys?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The problem is that in the non-AAP classes there are kids that are just barely existing. There are kids that the teachers can barely control. AAP is just a way to have what used to be called an actual classroom 40 years ago. I have no idea how we have progressed to students running wild in class, making noise, distractions, disobeying the teacher, etc. In my older son's 2nd grade class right before he split into level IV, there was a girl who would just sit and curse all day and scream at the teacher... IN SECOND GRADE! In my first grader's class this year there was a kid who literally did not participate in the class. He spent the entire running back and forth in the back of the room, throwing paper airplanes, hitting kids, and spitting on the teacher. Jesus christ.

just remember that if you choose a school district to avoid that, you're racist

Yeah I felt the behavioral issues went down significantly once the kids went into AAP but it in their classes it was mostly disruptive white boys?

I think schools that have hyper boys with even marginally good schools give them great GBRS just to get rid of them

[Anonymous]

^^ good scores

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My dd was in AAP at Haycock and Longfellow and is in college now. Honestly, if I could go back, I wouldn’t have done it. They were pushed ahead for what? So they could take the same exact classes in high school as the kids who weren’t in AAP (with the exception of some math classes)? So they can feel smarter/superior/more capable than the general public and struggle with the idea that some things are still difficult, even when your ES teachers always told you that you guys were smarter than the gen ed kids? (Two actually did this on a regular basis) It all seemed great at the time to be getting something others were not, and she was honestly very bright and scored extremely high on everything...but the outcome was no different than it would have been in a regular classroom.

Thank you for sharing this.

Do you think this will still be the case with virtual learning? I have a rising 3rd grader in AAP this year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am an AAP teacher who also taught gen ed in the same grade level. Honestly my experiences as a teacher have been night and day. I feel I can do so much more in AAP and got my creativity back as a teacher. They content is the same but the way it is taught is different. There is a lot more critical thinking and a lot more flexibility in the schedule to teach grammar, word study and do fun projects. All of the kids are reading on or above grade level so it is easy to do book clubs. I honestly love it!

This was my experience too as an AAP teacher! I was absolutely able to use best practices and do really creative lessons/group work. My kids were motivated, polite, and on the whole well behaved. Parents were very involved. It was fun!

Don't you think this is incredibly unfair to bright kids in a gen ed classroom? My child is motivated, polite, very well behaved, but doesn't test well and is a little bit behind grade level in reading (but not in comprehension), so she's not going to get into LLIV even though I know she would thrive in this type of classroom and because she's quiet and shy, she gets ignored in GenEd and it's going to set her behind everyone. AAP is really unfair to children like her who also deserve the best but don't get it because of some stupid test and biased teachers such as yourselves.

There are bright kids in general ED too. From your own description it doesn't sound like your child is gifted or even advanced. It sounds like she is right where she needs to be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am an AAP teacher who also taught gen ed in the same grade level. Honestly my experiences as a teacher have been night and day. I feel I can do so much more in AAP and got my creativity back as a teacher. They content is the same but the way it is taught is different. There is a lot more critical thinking and a lot more flexibility in the schedule to teach grammar, word study and do fun projects. All of the kids are reading on or above grade level so it is easy to do book clubs. I honestly love it!

This was my experience too as an AAP teacher! I was absolutely able to use best practices and do really creative lessons/group work. My kids were motivated, polite, and on the whole well behaved. Parents were very involved. It was fun!

Don't you think this is incredibly unfair to bright kids in a gen ed classroom? My child is motivated, polite, very well behaved, but doesn't test well and is a little bit behind grade level in reading (but not in comprehension), so she's not going to get into LLIV even though I know she would thrive in this type of classroom and because she's quiet and shy, she gets ignored in GenEd and it's going to set her behind everyone. AAP is really unfair to children like her who also deserve the best but don't get it because of some stupid test and biased teachers such as yourselves.

There are bright kids in general ED too. From your own description it doesn't sound like your child is gifted or even advanced. It sounds like she is right where she needs to be.

Not PP, make aap more like advanced math where kids (at least the non aap kids) have to test in every year to keep their spots and you might get less resentment. If little suzy can work hard and be at the top of her class, she should have a shot, and little Billy who can't sit still and doesn't bother working can loose his spot - that seems far more fair

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am an AAP teacher who also taught gen ed in the same grade level. Honestly my experiences as a teacher have been night and day. I feel I can do so much more in AAP and got my creativity back as a teacher. They content is the same but the way it is taught is different. There is a lot more critical thinking and a lot more flexibility in the schedule to teach grammar, word study and do fun projects. All of the kids are reading on or above grade level so it is easy to do book clubs. I honestly love it!

This was my experience too as an AAP teacher! I was absolutely able to use best practices and do really creative lessons/group work. My kids were motivated, polite, and on the whole well behaved. Parents were very involved. It was fun!

Don't you think this is incredibly unfair to bright kids in a gen ed classroom? My child is motivated, polite, very well behaved, but doesn't test well and is a little bit behind grade level in reading (but not in comprehension), so she's not going to get into LLIV even though I know she would thrive in this type of classroom and because she's quiet and shy, she gets ignored in GenEd and it's going to set her behind everyone. AAP is really unfair to children like her who also deserve the best but don't get it because of some stupid test and biased teachers such as yourselves.

There are bright kids in general ED too. From your own description it doesn't sound like your child is gifted or even advanced. It sounds like she is right where she needs to be.

Not PP, make aap more like advanced math where kids (at least the non aap kids) have to test in every year to keep their spots and you might get less resentment. If little suzy can work hard and be at the top of her class, she should have a shot, and little Billy who can't sit still and doesn't bother working can loose his spot - that seems far more fair

Non AAP kids can test in every year. Why be mad at the kids already in AAP? Seems like a waste of energy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am an AAP teacher who also taught gen ed in the same grade level. Honestly my experiences as a teacher have been night and day. I feel I can do so much more in AAP and got my creativity back as a teacher. They content is the same but the way it is taught is different. There is a lot more critical thinking and a lot more flexibility in the schedule to teach grammar, word study and do fun projects. All of the kids are reading on or above grade level so it is easy to do book clubs. I honestly love it!

This was my experience too as an AAP teacher! I was absolutely able to use best practices and do really creative lessons/group work. My kids were motivated, polite, and on the whole well behaved. Parents were very involved. It was fun!

Don't you think this is incredibly unfair to bright kids in a gen ed classroom? My child is motivated, polite, very well behaved, but doesn't test well and is a little bit behind grade level in reading (but not in comprehension), so she's not going to get into LLIV even though I know she would thrive in this type of classroom and because she's quiet and shy, she gets ignored in GenEd and it's going to set her behind everyone. AAP is really unfair to children like her who also deserve the best but don't get it because of some stupid test and biased teachers such as yourselves.

There are bright kids in general ED too. From your own description it doesn't sound like your child is gifted or even advanced. It sounds like she is right where she needs to be.

Not PP, make aap more like advanced math where kids (at least the non aap kids) have to test in every year to keep their spots and you might get less resentment. If little suzy can work hard and be at the top of her class, she should have a shot, and little Billy who can't sit still and doesn't bother working can loose his spot - that seems far more fair

Maybe Billy can't sit still but he aces all the tests and knows how to spell "lose". He's in the right place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The problem is that in the non-AAP classes there are kids that are just barely existing. There are kids that the teachers can barely control. AAP is just a way to have what used to be called an actual classroom 40 years ago. I have no idea how we have progressed to students running wild in class, making noise, distractions, disobeying the teacher, etc. In my older son's 2nd grade class right before he split into level IV, there was a girl who would just sit and curse all day and scream at the teacher... IN SECOND GRADE! In my first grader's class this year there was a kid who literally did not participate in the class. He spent the entire running back and forth in the back of the room, throwing paper airplanes, hitting kids, and spitting on the teacher. Jesus christ.

Does the principal not discipline the misbehaving child?

[Anonymous]

I think the main issue is the structure of the Gen Ed class has changed and the freedom of teachers has changed. When I was in school in the 90’s, there were not standardized tests. There were Special Ed students but they went to resource room. Students were actually scared of going to the principal’s office. Teachers made their own scheduled based of specials. We didn’t have math for an hour the same time everyday.

As a teacher now, you have a class with reading levels A-Z. You are told how much time you will spend on each subject area. There are literally too many standards in each area and not enough time. You have kids with severe behavior issues and nothing happens when they get sent to the office. Parents think their kids can do no wrong and question teachers. This is the problem!


This is what needs to change!

[Anonymous]

The classrooms had a lot of ESOL kids dumped in as well. As PP said, it used to be that ESOL and special education went to separate classrooms to learn. This cut down on a lot of the distractions. Perhaps they can't do that anymore? It would be less distracting for the rest of the kids for sure. In my DC's 1st grade class there was a kid who couldnt speak any english at all and the entire class the teacher had to pause after every sentence so that another student would translate. It slowed the class down a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The classrooms had a lot of ESOL kids dumped in as well. As PP said, it used to be that ESOL and special education went to separate classrooms to learn. This cut down on a lot of the distractions. Perhaps they can't do that anymore? It would be less distracting for the rest of the kids for sure. In my DC's 1st grade class there was a kid who couldnt speak any english at all and the entire class the teacher had to pause after every sentence so that another student would translate. It slowed the class down a lot.

The other issue is staffing. They really need a Sped teacher and ESOL teacher at each grade. Most schools have 3-4 teachers that then need to be shared with other grade levels. Until this happens, the classroom teacher only can do so much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My oldest did advanced math and LIII pull outs at the base school. My next child did AAP at the center. I didn't see much of a difference between anything they did academically. The biggest difference is that my oldest child's classroom was a bit rougher, had more behavior issues, and had a decent number of ESOL students, whereas my AAP child didn't have any of that. Both kids had a tremendous amount of free time and read a lot of books during the school day.

This is why parents push for AAP. They don't want their kids distracted by these elements in the classroom. Fairfax had so many ESOL kids dumped in the schools that parents with high performing students need an outlet where that wont hinder their kid's learning experience.

Or one could argue that children in a gen ed classroom are getting a slice of real life where they won't be coddled, and it's beneficial for them to be exposed to children from different socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds from their own. That is also learning and growth.

They can get exposed during recess, music, lunch and all the social activities all the kids do together.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am an AAP teacher who also taught gen ed in the same grade level. Honestly my experiences as a teacher have been night and day. I feel I can do so much more in AAP and got my creativity back as a teacher. They content is the same but the way it is taught is different. There is a lot more critical thinking and a lot more flexibility in the schedule to teach grammar, word study and do fun projects. All of the kids are reading on or above grade level so it is easy to do book clubs. I honestly love it!

This was my experience too as an AAP teacher! I was absolutely able to use best practices and do really creative lessons/group work. My kids were motivated, polite, and on the whole well behaved. Parents were very involved. It was fun!

Don't you think this is incredibly unfair to bright kids in a gen ed classroom? My child is motivated, polite, very well behaved, but doesn't test well and is a little bit behind grade level in reading (but not in comprehension), so she's not going to get into LLIV even though I know she would thrive in this type of classroom and because she's quiet and shy, she gets ignored in GenEd and it's going to set her behind everyone. AAP is really unfair to children like her who also deserve the best but don't get it because of some stupid test and biased teachers such as yourselves.

Well, what I will say will be extremely unpopular but the solution is very easy to this - teach to the higher denominator in then classrooms, with high standards and expectation. The kids who can't keep up get remedial classes, pull outs to assist them, etc. If the problem is that kids need to move from grade to grade so they don't abandon school, just keep letting them pass with the minimum grade necessary but keep high standards of teaching and expectations for Bs and As.