How to improve AAP and General Ed Together

[Anonymous]

Instead of bashing AAP and trying to get rid of the program which is unlikely anytime soon, what are some ideas for improving AAP for AAP students and all other students in FCPS? Please only post suggestions that attempt to help all students in FCPS.

[Anonymous]

Where did all the sensible people go?

[Anonymous]

From my other post:

* Ensure all elementary schools provide options for advanced mathematics to all qualified students
* Improve and standardize delivery of Level 3 services at all elementary schools.

[Anonymous]

Redo the boundaries to align elementary, middle, and high schools better for general ed and AAP students.
Restrict center bussing when schools have grades with 40 plus students per grade qualifying for AAP.
Don't allow elementary centers to have more than 90 kids in AAP per grade or have center only schools. Try to keep AAP numbers even or below general ed numbers in each school, particularly in middle school.
Integrate AAP and general ed students for at least 1/3 of the day in elementary and middle school.
Allow students who qualify for advanced math or advanced language arts to join AAP classes or have their own advanced instruction daily.
Reduce LLIII class pullouts with the AART which are expensive and provide more support to classroom teachers who can teach children advanced in one subject on a more regular schedule.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:From my other post:

* Ensure all elementary schools provide options for advanced mathematics to all qualified students
* Improve and standardize delivery of Level 3 services at all elementary schools.

I have heard that Level 3 is different from school to school and that frustrates parents. When mine were in K-2 (before AAP) they were pulled out off class for 'advanced' reading and math, but I was never notified and have no idea how they were identified for the need for that other than maybe teacher recommendation? Reading and math assessment results?


Having the processes more formal and transparent would be helpful I think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Reduce LLIII class pullouts with the AART which are expensive and provide more support to classroom teachers who can teach children advanced in one subject on a more regular schedule.

+1 on this idea. Perhaps (and I don't know if this would apply to all schools depending on the # of students per grade/classrooms per grade) there could be differentiation grade-wide so Mrs. Q's class has higher-level instruction, Mrs. L's and Mr. A's class have on-level instruction, etc., so the (usually) part-time AART has more of a train-the-trainer role, benefitting more students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Reduce LLIII class pullouts with the AART which are expensive and provide more support to classroom teachers who can teach children advanced in one subject on a more regular schedule.

+1 on this idea. Perhaps (and I don't know if this would apply to all schools depending on the # of students per grade/classrooms per grade) there could be differentiation grade-wide so Mrs. Q's class has higher-level instruction, Mrs. L's and Mr. A's class have on-level instruction, etc., so the (usually) part-time AART has more of a train-the-trainer role, benefitting more students.

At our elementary school, which was not a center, this was done automatically. Kids were put in math classes based upon aptitude, where they were, etc. It worked great.

[Anonymous]

Advanced math is supposed to be offered at every grade level at every school. If it isn't, are parents telling FCPS higher ups about the discrepancy? What is the response?

[Anonymous]

Enrich and differentiate instruction in the same classroom. Separate gifted education is evil. It separates friends, siblings and communities. These kids aren't that different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Enrich and differentiate instruction in the same classroom. Separate gifted education is evil. It separates friends, siblings and communities. These kids aren't that different.

It isn't evil and neither is special ed. Most teachers will tell you that it's often too much for them to do a combo class or a highly differentiated class. There has to be somewhere in the middle where differentiation can exist without advanced kids overwhelming a school.

[Anonymous]

I like the way our local ES did it. Everyone is mixed for homeroom, lunch and specials. Student change classes for the 4 core classes. Some were in AAP for all four. Some were a mix of gen ed and AAP. Some were in all gen ed. My DC was in AAP for two, gen ed for one and special ed for one. The math classes were smaller because there was an extra math teacher who taught one math class to each grade and the special ed teacher had her own class, in addition to the homeroom teachers. The language arts classes were slightly smaller as the special ed teacher also had a class. This helped differentiate based on the individual student.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I like the way our local ES did it. Everyone is mixed for homeroom, lunch and specials. Student change classes for the 4 core classes. Some were in AAP for all four. Some were a mix of gen ed and AAP. Some were in all gen ed. My DC was in AAP for two, gen ed for one and special ed for one. The math classes were smaller because there was an extra math teacher who taught one math class to each grade and the special ed teacher had her own class, in addition to the homeroom teachers. The language arts classes were slightly smaller as the special ed teacher also had a class. This helped differentiate based on the individual student.

Which school is this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Advanced math is supposed to be offered at every grade level at every school. If it isn't, are parents telling FCPS higher ups about the discrepancy? What is the response?

The response is always something along the lines of, "Not our problem. We only are responsible for teaching to minimal standards of the grade level. We have our hands full with students who can't pass the tests, and they make us look bad, so it's all we can focus on."

[Anonymous]

Scrap the AAP model. It's time to reinvent.

Level IV curriculum in every school and classroom.

Very top 3-4% of students that simply cannot function in a normal classroom with differentiation are bussed to a special center for truly gifted, extreme IQ students.

These kids need special education the same way kids need special education on the other side of the spectrum. Mainstreamed to the greatest extent possible with differentiation in their home school and if that cannot work then they can be provided highly specialized teaching at a center that suits their needs.

This AAP madness is a burden on the school system and is simply lowering the standards for the majority of students in FCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Advanced math is supposed to be offered at every grade level at every school. If it isn't, are parents telling FCPS higher ups about the discrepancy? What is the response?

The response is always something along the lines of, "Not our problem. We only are responsible for teaching to minimal standards of the grade level. We have our hands full with students who can't pass the tests, and they make us look bad, so it's all we can focus on."

Is it possible that your school actually does have advanced math, but you are not aware of it because your kid does not qualify?

I can see this easily happening, especially in the younger grades.

Of my two kids, one has received advanced math pull outs since kindergarten and is now almost finished with the official advance math elementary track. We knew he was getting pull outs for math since the first parent conference in K.

My other kid did not get advanced math pullouts and missed qualifying for the official advance math program. The first time advanced math was mentioned with him is when they did the formal assessments in third grade, and even then it was very low key in how it was presented. If it had not been for my older kid I would not have been aware that the school offered advanced math and language pullouts starting in K.