"AAP is not a gifted program"

[Anonymous]

Can those of you who keep saying that on this board explain this to me?
Are you the parents of the kids with really high IQs?
What is your child not getting in the AAP program?
What should your child be getting in a gifted program?

Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Outside of FCPS, it's generally believed that about 2% of the population falls into the "gifted" range. It also isn't typically an across-the-board giftedness, usually a person is gifted in a particular area. Accordingly to a 2013 WaPo piece I found, nearly 17% of FCPS students qualified under the AAP standards. And then they get put into a program that treats than that way across all the core subjects. It's not a program for identifying truly gifted children, it's a program for identifying smarter-than-average kids who would benefit from a more rigorous curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Outside of FCPS, it's generally believed that about 2% of the population falls into the "gifted" range. It also isn't typically an across-the-board giftedness, usually a person is gifted in a particular area. Accordingly to a 2013 WaPo piece I found, nearly 17% of FCPS students qualified under the AAP standards. And then they get put into a program that treats than that way across all the core subjects. It's not a program for identifying truly gifted children, it's a program for identifying smarter-than-average kids who would benefit from a more rigorous curriculum.

Agree with this, but don't really see the problem with it. All the kids who are smart at our neighborhood school are either identified LLIV or LLIII. They all get advanced instruction and are happy. There are plenty of kids in general ed who are smart, but aren't into school and wouldn't be happy with the increased workload of AAP. They're fine with their classes too. We're in one of those mixed AAP/Gen Ed schools though so there isn't the social divide talked about at other schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Outside of FCPS, it's generally believed that about 2% of the population falls into the "gifted" range. It also isn't typically an across-the-board giftedness, usually a person is gifted in a particular area. Accordingly to a 2013 WaPo piece I found, nearly 17% of FCPS students qualified under the AAP standards. And then they get put into a program that treats than that way across all the core subjects. It's not a program for identifying truly gifted children, it's a program for identifying smarter-than-average kids who would benefit from a more rigorous curriculum.

Agree with this, but don't really see the problem with it. All the kids who are smart at our neighborhood school are either identified LLIV or LLIII. They all get advanced instruction and are happy. There are plenty of kids in general ed who are smart, but aren't into school and wouldn't be happy with the increased workload of AAP. They're fine with their classes too. We're in one of those mixed AAP/Gen Ed schools though so there isn't the social divide talked about at other schools.

I don't have a problem with it either, I think it's good those kids are getting the opportunity for a more advanced curriculum. I was just addressing OP as to why AAP isn't a gifted program, because it's not identifying only gift students. That your child gets into AAP doesn't make them gifted, just smarter-than average (which is still great).

[Anonymous]

AAP is now: if your kid can do the work, they can be considered. What initiated the change was math. There were hard working, conscientious general ed students outperforming the "gifted kids" in math.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Outside of FCPS, it's generally believed that about 2% of the population falls into the "gifted" range. It also isn't typically an across-the-board giftedness, usually a person is gifted in a particular area. Accordingly to a 2013 WaPo piece I found, nearly 17% of FCPS students qualified under the AAP standards. And then they get put into a program that treats than that way across all the core subjects. It's not a program for identifying truly gifted children, it's a program for identifying smarter-than-average kids who would benefit from a more rigorous curriculum.

Agree with this, but don't really see the problem with it. All the kids who are smart at our neighborhood school are either identified LLIV or LLIII. They all get advanced instruction and are happy. There are plenty of kids in general ed who are smart, but aren't into school and wouldn't be happy with the increased workload of AAP. They're fine with their classes too. We're in one of those mixed AAP/Gen Ed schools though so there isn't the social divide talked about at other schools.

We're in a center school, so mixed AAP and Gen Ed (though far more AAP kids in grades 3-6). One of the major problems I have with AAP is the mindset, above, that "all the kids who are smart" are in AAP. It does the Gen Ed kids a HUGE disservice to be labeled (by default) "not smart". Even though the PP throws in the qualifier, "there are plenty of kids in general ed who are smart, but aren't into school, etc. etc.". I'm sorry, but that is such B.S. There are plenty of very bright kids in Gen Ed who are indeed "into school," but who may have missed the AAP benchmark. And by just missing this benchmark, they really are no different than the kids who did get into AAP - and here the resentment begins. There is most definitely a social divide at our school, which is completely unnecessary and could be eradicated if AAP no longer existed, but instead a small gifted program was implemented to serve only those who actually have special learning needs. The typical AAP kid does not have special needs, as I think we're all aware by now.

What many of us wish for, is a small, extremely selective gifted program that takes only those kids with extremely high IQs - not the run-of-the-mill good students found in abundance in FxCo. A gifted program should be for kids who can't learn adequately in a regular classroom. That was the original intent of GT, but AAP has strayed so far that it's now just slightly more advanced work - nothing that most kids couldn't do, including those in Gen Ed.

[Anonymous]

I don't understand why there exists a full-time program for kids who aren't even advanced across the board. Many LLIV AAP students are advanced in one, maybe two subjects, and completely average in the others. Hmm, sounds a lot like Gen Ed kids, who currently can take AAP math, but are shut out of LLIV AAP language arts, science, and social studies, even if those are their strongest subjects. So why aren't advanced classes open to all kids who can do the work?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: it's a program for identifying smarter-than-average kids who would benefit from a more rigorous curriculum.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand why there exists a full-time program for kids who aren't even advanced across the board. Many LLIV AAP students are advanced in one, maybe two subjects, and completely average in the others. Hmm, sounds a lot like Gen Ed kids, who currently can take AAP math, but are shut out of LLIV AAP language arts, science, and social studies, even if those are their strongest subjects. So why aren't advanced classes open to all kids who can do the work?

They are, starting in middle school, and anyone whose scores don't make AAP the first go round can retest during the next three years of elementary school. No one is being ripped off. You haven't stumbled across some conspiracy no one else notices.

[Anonymous]

The average IQ in Fairfax County is a bit higher than the average IQ nationally. The area is full of educated professionals, our SAT scores (a good proxy for IQ) are higher than average, etc.

So it's not surprising that the gifted population here should be higher than 2%. 17% actually sounds about right.

Besides which, AAP is Fairfax County's implementation of the VA state regulations on gifted education, so it is a gifted program.

To those who say it's not, please name a "real" gifted program. Have you seen what other counties do? One hour pullouts once a week, for brainteaser worksheets? If AAP is not a real gifted program, it's the closest thing by a long way to one in this area if not the country.

[Anonymous]

What many of us wish for, is a small, extremely selective gifted program that takes only those kids with extremely high IQs - not the run-of-the-mill good students found in abundance in FxCo. A gifted program should be for kids who can't learn adequately in a regular classroom. That was the original intent of GT, but AAP has strayed so far that it's now just slightly more advanced work - nothing that most kids couldn't do, including those in Gen Ed.

There's not a day goes by that this sentiment is not posted again on these boards to same effect. Plenty of kids in AAP you likely would not regard as gifted also can't learn adequately in a Gen Ed classroom because they are too advanced or move through material too fast. That's one reason they get placed in AAP. It's a system that works for many. Rather than trying to send the system backwards, work toward getting kids who can't even learn in AAP into the special ed wing of your school. You don't need to change AAP to do that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

What many of us wish for, is a small, extremely selective gifted program that takes only those kids with extremely high IQs - not the run-of-the-mill good students found in abundance in FxCo. A gifted program should be for kids who can't learn adequately in a regular classroom. That was the original intent of GT, but AAP has strayed so far that it's now just slightly more advanced work - nothing that most kids couldn't do, including those in Gen Ed.

There's not a day goes by that this sentiment is not posted again on these boards to same effect. Plenty of kids in AAP you likely would not regard as gifted also can't learn adequately in a Gen Ed classroom because they are too advanced or move through material too fast. That's one reason they get placed in AAP. It's a system that works for many. Rather than trying to send the system backwards, work toward getting kids who can't even learn in AAP into the special ed wing of your school. You don't need to change AAP to do that.

That's because there are so many parents who feel this way and who are tired of the AAP status quo. A lot of us are beginning to wake up to what a poorly designed system AAP is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand why there exists a full-time program for kids who aren't even advanced across the board. Many LLIV AAP students are advanced in one, maybe two subjects, and completely average in the others. Hmm, sounds a lot like Gen Ed kids, who currently can take AAP math, but are shut out of LLIV AAP language arts, science, and social studies, even if those are their strongest subjects. So why aren't advanced classes open to all kids who can do the work?

They are, starting in middle school, and anyone whose scores don't make AAP the first go round can retest during the next three years of elementary school. No one is being ripped off. You haven't stumbled across some conspiracy no one else notices.

Why waste a full year of elementary school until the next testing period? If a child can do the work, they should be allowed to do it. It's not a conspiracy, it's just stupidity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That's because there are so many parents who feel this way and who are tired of the AAP status quo. A lot of us are beginning to wake up to what a poorly designed system AAP is.

What's a well-designed G&T system?

[Anonymous]

That's because there are so many parents who feel this way and who are tired of the AAP status quo. A lot of us are beginning to wake up to what a poorly designed system AAP is.

Yes, yes, viva la revolución! We demand less for the students of Fairfax!