MCPS Gifted and Talented - Chevy Chase Elementary

[Anonymous]

How hard is it to get in?

[Anonymous]

Very hard.

[Anonymous]

I assume high score, great grades and recommendations is not a guarantee. Wondering what is the acceptance rate?

[Anonymous]

It's the Highly Gifted Center.

Parents have to fill out the application before a certain date in October or November of 3rd grade. What counts most are test scores (the 3rd grade test done in January, not the Inview done in 2nd grade); as well as teacher recommendations. Grade reports are also submitted.

The HGC is mostly a humanities-driven experience with a lot of writing and interdisciplinary projects. Students can take the regular math classes or the compacted math classes (accelerated). Students need to be organized, self-starters and keep on top of deadlines and multiple projects going on at once.

[Anonymous]

OP, in a few weeks people will start posting that they received their HGC letters. Generally the letters come with the median test score of accepted students and they also get posted. That will give you an idea on the test scores. It is the general understanding that admission is mostly based on the test scores.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, in a few weeks people will start posting that they received their HGC letters. Generally the letters come with the median test score of accepted students and they also get posted. That will give you an idea on the test scores. It is the general understanding that admission is mostly based on the test scores.

I don't think that's the general understanding. Not for the elementary-school HGCs. The test scores are certainly one factor, but they are not the only factor, and possibly not even the most important factor.

[Anonymous]

12:44, What is the most important factor, if not the test?

[Anonymous]

I agree with the PP who wrote the test is considered the most significant assessment tool, but school ranking and teacher evaluations also carry weight. But, yes, incredibly competitive, since designed for the top 3-5% of MoCo students. And some centers are more competitive than others. CC is highly competitive, but not quite as much as Cold Spring, whereas some other centers have lower median scores (e.g. sometimes 10 points lower). Search HGC--many threads on this topic!

[Anonymous]

12:13 here again.

What the selection committee looks for is a consistent ensemble of facts. So if scores are good, yet the teacher says the student can't stay on task and some grades are bad, the student might not be accepted. If scores are right at the median of accepted students, grades are mostly Ps and teachers recommendations are good, that student might get accepted. If all the scores are below the median of accepted students, good grades and glowing teachers recs will be a harder sell.
You see my point? They don't want students they might have to worry about. They want the whole package.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:12:13 here again.

What the selection committee looks for is a consistent ensemble of facts. So if scores are good, yet the teacher says the student can't stay on task and some grades are bad, the student might not be accepted. If scores are right at the median of accepted students, grades are mostly Ps and teachers recommendations are good, that student might get accepted. If all the scores are below the median of accepted students, good grades and glowing teachers recs will be a harder sell.
You see my point? They don't want students they might have to worry about. They want the whole package.

There are certainly students they might have to (and actually do) worry about at my child's HGC. It's the Center for the Highly Gifted, not the Center for Kids With High Test Scores, Whom Teachers Like.

[Anonymous]

12:13 - I have heard that there are some very poorly behaved children in the HGC because they are truly the kids who are poorly served in the home school environment. Your post makes it sound otherwise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:12:13 - I have heard that there are some very poorly behaved children in the HGC because they are truly the kids who are poorly served in the home school environment. Your post makes it sound otherwise.

there are some poorly behaved kids in HGC because... they are kids and they are not perfect. It's not a school for the perfectly-behaved-smart kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:12:44, What is the most important factor, if not the test?

Nobody knows for certain but the admissions committees. And actually I think that's a good thing. This case http://marylandpublicschools.org/MSDE/stateboard/legalopinions/2010/docs/StanislavandIrinaP.Opin.No.14-31.pdf is both a good explanation of the admissions process and an example of why MCPS shouldn't be more transparent about the admissions decisions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:12:13 - I have heard that there are some very poorly behaved children in the HGC because they are truly the kids who are poorly served in the home school environment. Your post makes it sound otherwise.

There are some very poorly-behaved children in the HGCs. Why? Because they are highly-gifted kids who are very poorly-behaved. There are also well-behaved children in the HGCs. Why? Because they are highly-gifted kids who are well-behaved. That's how it works.

[Anonymous]

So, is there a good measure of highly gifted (behavior, aside) that is not a test? Isn't the concept of highly gifted based on IQ test scores?