Is FCPS getting rid of AAP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The program is not the problem. What they do with the middle level kids is the issue. They are not being well served by pretending that teaching them on the same level as the slowest learners works. The way to improve thing is not to tear down a program working well for many kids but rather to fix the parts of the system NOT working well. Gen Ed is what is NOT working for many MC kids.

Crappy gen Ed is the natural result of pulling out the top 20% of students out of the program.

Yes, if they'd stop segregating kids and offer opportunities at all schools none of this would be necessary.

No. That’s just not correct. At least not at all schools. Like many on this board, my now AAP kids were in the highest reading group. That meant they virtually never met with the teacher. Eliminating AAP would just prolong the experience of K-2 of the faster kids being left far too much to their own devices while the teacher works with the slower kids. We need to move back toward grouping kids for instruction at the whole class level (review quarterly maybe so kids do not get stuck) vs this fairy tale fantasy they can teach all levels in a room of 20-30 kids.

So you're making a case for segregation? They used to teach all kids in the same classroom with more than 30 kids. It's nonsense to suggest this isn't possible.

[Anonymous]

I don't understand why AAP is a segregated cohort with a complex process to gain admittance. Why not just offer advanced math, science, English groups to ALL kids. So they switch rooms for those classes according to ability and nobody is excluded.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The program is not the problem. What they do with the middle level kids is the issue. They are not being well served by pretending that teaching them on the same level as the slowest learners works. The way to improve thing is not to tear down a program working well for many kids but rather to fix the parts of the system NOT working well. Gen Ed is what is NOT working for many MC kids.

Crappy gen Ed is the natural result of pulling out the top 20% of students out of the program.

Yes, if they'd stop segregating kids and offer opportunities at all schools none of this would be necessary.

No. That’s just not correct. At least not at all schools. Like many on this board, my now AAP kids were in the highest reading group. That meant they virtually never met with the teacher. Eliminating AAP would just prolong the experience of K-2 of the faster kids being left far too much to their own devices while the teacher works with the slower kids. We need to move back toward grouping kids for instruction at the whole class level (review quarterly maybe so kids do not get stuck) vs this fairy tale fantasy they can teach all levels in a room of 20-30 kids.

So you're making a case for segregation? They used to teach all kids in the same classroom with more than 30 kids. It's nonsense to suggest this isn't possible.

It isn't possible in a post-NCLB world. When I was in ES, the teacher met with the above grade level group, the on grade level group, and the below grade level group for equal amounts of time, with independent learning activities taking up the remaining time. Now, the focus is entirely on the bottom group, such that the top group gets 15 minutes once per week, and the bottom groups get 30+ minutes every day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The program is not the problem. What they do with the middle level kids is the issue. They are not being well served by pretending that teaching them on the same level as the slowest learners works. The way to improve thing is not to tear down a program working well for many kids but rather to fix the parts of the system NOT working well. Gen Ed is what is NOT working for many MC kids.

Crappy gen Ed is the natural result of pulling out the top 20% of students out of the program.

Yes, if they'd stop segregating kids and offer opportunities at all schools none of this would be necessary.

No. That’s just not correct. At least not at all schools. Like many on this board, my now AAP kids were in the highest reading group. That meant they virtually never met with the teacher. Eliminating AAP would just prolong the experience of K-2 of the faster kids being left far too much to their own devices while the teacher works with the slower kids. We need to move back toward grouping kids for instruction at the whole class level (review quarterly maybe so kids do not get stuck) vs this fairy tale fantasy they can teach all levels in a room of 20-30 kids.

So you're making a case for segregation? They used to teach all kids in the same classroom with more than 30 kids. It's nonsense to suggest this isn't possible.

They used to segregate kids who had learning disabilities and behavior issues into remedial classes. When you remove the kids who are struggling, it is easier to teach the other kids. The kids in the remedial classes learned little to nothing and were not expected to graduate from high school. They just disappeared from the classroom.

Now, kids with learning issues and behavior issues are expected to be mainstreamed with Teachers and specialists providing support. For kids with mild to moderate issues, mainstreaming works fine, the kids are likely on grade level and might be struggling a bit but not much. Kids with more serious issues fall behind but continue to be mainstreamed. Those kids take up more of the Teachers time because the teacher needs to try and get all kids on grade level. This means less time for the kids who are doing fine but need support to do fine. Those kids start to slide because they are not getting the attention that they need and now the Teacher is trying to teach kids who are behind and the kids who are falling behind and there is less time for the kids on grade level and no time for the ids who are ahead.

The approach to education has changes but not properly supported by the Federal Government, who passed the legislation that essentially stopped tracking. The legislation isn't bad, it is BS that remedial classes were wastelands that taught kids with learning issues and some behavior issues nothing. We legitimately need to do more to provide support and opportunities to kids who are struggling in school for whatever reason. But the lack of funds to provide the necessary supports means that still not enough is being done to support the kids who need the support AND the regular classroom has ended up being harmed because too much is being asked of Teachers.

Tracking does not have to be as problematic as it used to be but the way that the law works today makes it hard to develop a tracking program that meets the federal legislation criteria. So parents of kids who are on grade level and parents of kids who are ahead are increasingly frustrated because the current system is now failing everyone because god knows that it is not really helping kids with learning issues or behavior issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The program is not the problem. What they do with the middle level kids is the issue. They are not being well served by pretending that teaching them on the same level as the slowest learners works. The way to improve thing is not to tear down a program working well for many kids but rather to fix the parts of the system NOT working well. Gen Ed is what is NOT working for many MC kids.

Crappy gen Ed is the natural result of pulling out the top 20% of students out of the program.

Yes, if they'd stop segregating kids and offer opportunities at all schools none of this would be necessary.

No. That’s just not correct. At least not at all schools. Like many on this board, my now AAP kids were in the highest reading group. That meant they virtually never met with the teacher. Eliminating AAP would just prolong the experience of K-2 of the faster kids being left far too much to their own devices while the teacher works with the slower kids. We need to move back toward grouping kids for instruction at the whole class level (review quarterly maybe so kids do not get stuck) vs this fairy tale fantasy they can teach all levels in a room of 20-30 kids.

So you're making a case for segregation? They used to teach all kids in the same classroom with more than 30 kids. It's nonsense to suggest this isn't possible.

They used to segregate kids who had learning disabilities and behavior issues into remedial classes. When you remove the kids who are struggling, it is easier to teach the other kids. The kids in the remedial classes learned little to nothing and were not expected to graduate from high school. They just disappeared from the classroom.

Now, kids with learning issues and behavior issues are expected to be mainstreamed with Teachers and specialists providing support. For kids with mild to moderate issues, mainstreaming works fine, the kids are likely on grade level and might be struggling a bit but not much. Kids with more serious issues fall behind but continue to be mainstreamed. Those kids take up more of the Teachers time because the teacher needs to try and get all kids on grade level. This means less time for the kids who are doing fine but need support to do fine. Those kids start to slide because they are not getting the attention that they need and now the Teacher is trying to teach kids who are behind and the kids who are falling behind and there is less time for the kids on grade level and no time for the ids who are ahead.

The approach to education has changes but not properly supported by the Federal Government, who passed the legislation that essentially stopped tracking. The legislation isn't bad, it is BS that remedial classes were wastelands that taught kids with learning issues and some behavior issues nothing. We legitimately need to do more to provide support and opportunities to kids who are struggling in school for whatever reason. But the lack of funds to provide the necessary supports means that still not enough is being done to support the kids who need the support AND the regular classroom has ended up being harmed because too much is being asked of Teachers.

Tracking does not have to be as problematic as it used to be but the way that the law works today makes it hard to develop a tracking program that meets the federal legislation criteria. So parents of kids who are on grade level and parents of kids who are ahead are increasingly frustrated because the current system is now failing everyone because god knows that it is not really helping kids with learning issues or behavior issues.

I heard these days they even say kids have ADHD when they aren't able to focus. They used to simply call that being slow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The program is not the problem. What they do with the middle level kids is the issue. They are not being well served by pretending that teaching them on the same level as the slowest learners works. The way to improve thing is not to tear down a program working well for many kids but rather to fix the parts of the system NOT working well. Gen Ed is what is NOT working for many MC kids.

Crappy gen Ed is the natural result of pulling out the top 20% of students out of the program.

Yes, if they'd stop segregating kids and offer opportunities at all schools none of this would be necessary.

No. That’s just not correct. At least not at all schools. Like many on this board, my now AAP kids were in the highest reading group. That meant they virtually never met with the teacher. Eliminating AAP would just prolong the experience of K-2 of the faster kids being left far too much to their own devices while the teacher works with the slower kids. We need to move back toward grouping kids for instruction at the whole class level (review quarterly maybe so kids do not get stuck) vs this fairy tale fantasy they can teach all levels in a room of 20-30 kids.

So you're making a case for segregation? They used to teach all kids in the same classroom with more than 30 kids. It's nonsense to suggest this isn't possible.

They used to segregate kids who had learning disabilities and behavior issues into remedial classes. When you remove the kids who are struggling, it is easier to teach the other kids. The kids in the remedial classes learned little to nothing and were not expected to graduate from high school. They just disappeared from the classroom.

Now, kids with learning issues and behavior issues are expected to be mainstreamed with Teachers and specialists providing support. For kids with mild to moderate issues, mainstreaming works fine, the kids are likely on grade level and might be struggling a bit but not much. Kids with more serious issues fall behind but continue to be mainstreamed. Those kids take up more of the Teachers time because the teacher needs to try and get all kids on grade level. This means less time for the kids who are doing fine but need support to do fine. Those kids start to slide because they are not getting the attention that they need and now the Teacher is trying to teach kids who are behind and the kids who are falling behind and there is less time for the kids on grade level and no time for the ids who are ahead.

The approach to education has changes but not properly supported by the Federal Government, who passed the legislation that essentially stopped tracking. The legislation isn't bad, it is BS that remedial classes were wastelands that taught kids with learning issues and some behavior issues nothing. We legitimately need to do more to provide support and opportunities to kids who are struggling in school for whatever reason. But the lack of funds to provide the necessary supports means that still not enough is being done to support the kids who need the support AND the regular classroom has ended up being harmed because too much is being asked of Teachers.

Tracking does not have to be as problematic as it used to be but the way that the law works today makes it hard to develop a tracking program that meets the federal legislation criteria. So parents of kids who are on grade level and parents of kids who are ahead are increasingly frustrated because the current system is now failing everyone because god knows that it is not really helping kids with learning issues or behavior issues.

I heard these days they even say kids have ADHD when they aren't able to focus. They used to simply call that being slow.

I know it will be unpopular to say but I think they should separate the slower learners from gen ed. I went to school in a different state. There was a very obvious smart class, some average classes and then a remedial class. In middle school, you could pick your classes. I chose all honors. Our middle had several elementary schools feeding into it so there were enough for 3-4 honors classes for each subject. Some students chose to only take a few honors or all honors. I ended up going to a magnet high school that pulled the top 5-10% from each middle school. I actually think this model worked well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The program is not the problem. What they do with the middle level kids is the issue. They are not being well served by pretending that teaching them on the same level as the slowest learners works. The way to improve thing is not to tear down a program working well for many kids but rather to fix the parts of the system NOT working well. Gen Ed is what is NOT working for many MC kids.

Crappy gen Ed is the natural result of pulling out the top 20% of students out of the program.

Yes, if they'd stop segregating kids and offer opportunities at all schools none of this would be necessary.

No. That’s just not correct. At least not at all schools. Like many on this board, my now AAP kids were in the highest reading group. That meant they virtually never met with the teacher. Eliminating AAP would just prolong the experience of K-2 of the faster kids being left far too much to their own devices while the teacher works with the slower kids. We need to move back toward grouping kids for instruction at the whole class level (review quarterly maybe so kids do not get stuck) vs this fairy tale fantasy they can teach all levels in a room of 20-30 kids.

So you're making a case for segregation? They used to teach all kids in the same classroom with more than 30 kids. It's nonsense to suggest this isn't possible.

They used to segregate kids who had learning disabilities and behavior issues into remedial classes. When you remove the kids who are struggling, it is easier to teach the other kids. The kids in the remedial classes learned little to nothing and were not expected to graduate from high school. They just disappeared from the classroom.

Now, kids with learning issues and behavior issues are expected to be mainstreamed with Teachers and specialists providing support. For kids with mild to moderate issues, mainstreaming works fine, the kids are likely on grade level and might be struggling a bit but not much. Kids with more serious issues fall behind but continue to be mainstreamed. Those kids take up more of the Teachers time because the teacher needs to try and get all kids on grade level. This means less time for the kids who are doing fine but need support to do fine. Those kids start to slide because they are not getting the attention that they need and now the Teacher is trying to teach kids who are behind and the kids who are falling behind and there is less time for the kids on grade level and no time for the ids who are ahead.

The approach to education has changes but not properly supported by the Federal Government, who passed the legislation that essentially stopped tracking. The legislation isn't bad, it is BS that remedial classes were wastelands that taught kids with learning issues and some behavior issues nothing. We legitimately need to do more to provide support and opportunities to kids who are struggling in school for whatever reason. But the lack of funds to provide the necessary supports means that still not enough is being done to support the kids who need the support AND the regular classroom has ended up being harmed because too much is being asked of Teachers.

Tracking does not have to be as problematic as it used to be but the way that the law works today makes it hard to develop a tracking program that meets the federal legislation criteria. So parents of kids who are on grade level and parents of kids who are ahead are increasingly frustrated because the current system is now failing everyone because god knows that it is not really helping kids with learning issues or behavior issues.

I heard these days they even say kids have ADHD when they aren't able to focus. They used to simply call that being slow.

Yes. It was really disgusting how we treated bright kids with learning disabilities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand why AAP is a segregated cohort with a complex process to gain admittance. Why not just offer advanced math, science, English groups to ALL kids. So they switch rooms for those classes according to ability and nobody is excluded.

x1

offer to all and cluster as needed

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand why AAP is a segregated cohort with a complex process to gain admittance. Why not just offer advanced math, science, English groups to ALL kids. So they switch rooms for those classes according to ability and nobody is excluded.

That's how things used to work but now we just group the bottom 85% of kids in the same class and shrug our shoulders. The difference now is that the low performers still get individual focus but now the average and above average essentially just sit through individual learning while listening to remedial instruction. If you want AAP to go away then take away more slots from the wealthy and it will be gone in 5 years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Local level iv doesn’t serve the kids who the original center gt program was designed for. They have special needs. FCPS has moved to dilute the program through local programs. They haven’t said they are killing aap but they’re doing it this way.

Several board members consistently rail against serving the needs of these students - Omeish, Andersen, meren and gamarra. Some even dislike young scholars. They only want to serve certain students based on their demographics.

It's what you get with an all-Democrat board. The Democrats who represent or only care about the districts with lower-performing schools want to dumb everything down so their schools look better, and the other Democrats go along despite their reservations because they don't want Anderson, Keys Gamarra, Omeish, or Corbett Sanders attacking them. So you get the combination of no brains and no backbone.

+1000

Vote out every candidate with a “D” after their name, in 2023. It is the only way anything will change for the better in FFX county schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Local level iv doesn’t serve the kids who the original center gt program was designed for. They have special needs. FCPS has moved to dilute the program through local programs. They haven’t said they are killing aap but they’re doing it this way.

Several board members consistently rail against serving the needs of these students - Omeish, Andersen, meren and gamarra. Some even dislike young scholars. They only want to serve certain students based on their demographics.

The number of kids that are truly gifted is so low that centers would not be needed or only a few centers with a class.

It was never about giftedness but segregation.

100%

I hope they are getting rid of it!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The program is not the problem. What they do with the middle level kids is the issue. They are not being well served by pretending that teaching them on the same level as the slowest learners works. The way to improve thing is not to tear down a program working well for many kids but rather to fix the parts of the system NOT working well. Gen Ed is what is NOT working for many MC kids.

Crappy gen Ed is the natural result of pulling out the top 20% of students out of the program.

Yes, if they'd stop segregating kids and offer opportunities at all schools none of this would be necessary.

No. That’s just not correct. At least not at all schools. Like many on this board, my now AAP kids were in the highest reading group. That meant they virtually never met with the teacher. Eliminating AAP would just prolong the experience of K-2 of the faster kids being left far too much to their own devices while the teacher works with the slower kids. We need to move back toward grouping kids for instruction at the whole class level (review quarterly maybe so kids do not get stuck) vs this fairy tale fantasy they can teach all levels in a room of 20-30 kids.

So you're making a case for segregation? They used to teach all kids in the same classroom with more than 30 kids. It's nonsense to suggest this isn't possible.

I know! Mykid is a genius at least I tell myself this all the time but who cares that they can only read picture books at 10 and are unable to sit still or follow simple directions.

They used to segregate kids who had learning disabilities and behavior issues into remedial classes. When you remove the kids who are struggling, it is easier to teach the other kids. The kids in the remedial classes learned little to nothing and were not expected to graduate from high school. They just disappeared from the classroom.

Now, kids with learning issues and behavior issues are expected to be mainstreamed with Teachers and specialists providing support. For kids with mild to moderate issues, mainstreaming works fine, the kids are likely on grade level and might be struggling a bit but not much. Kids with more serious issues fall behind but continue to be mainstreamed. Those kids take up more of the Teachers time because the teacher needs to try and get all kids on grade level. This means less time for the kids who are doing fine but need support to do fine. Those kids start to slide because they are not getting the attention that they need and now the Teacher is trying to teach kids who are behind and the kids who are falling behind and there is less time for the kids on grade level and no time for the ids who are ahead.

The approach to education has changes but not properly supported by the Federal Government, who passed the legislation that essentially stopped tracking. The legislation isn't bad, it is BS that remedial classes were wastelands that taught kids with learning issues and some behavior issues nothing. We legitimately need to do more to provide support and opportunities to kids who are struggling in school for whatever reason. But the lack of funds to provide the necessary supports means that still not enough is being done to support the kids who need the support AND the regular classroom has ended up being harmed because too much is being asked of Teachers.

Tracking does not have to be as problematic as it used to be but the way that the law works today makes it hard to develop a tracking program that meets the federal legislation criteria. So parents of kids who are on grade level and parents of kids who are ahead are increasingly frustrated because the current system is now failing everyone because god knows that it is not really helping kids with learning issues or behavior issues.

I heard these days they even say kids have ADHD when they aren't able to focus. They used to simply call that being slow.

Yes. It was really disgusting how we treated bright kids with learning disabilities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't mind them keeping AAP, but FCPS needs desperately to figure out how to help the students who are bright, solid upper-middle performers who didn't make the cut.

Our kids were kept in general ed, and were bored out of their minds for years. Bringing home a math worksheet with five problems, and they have been doing the same unit for five weeks. Getting to middle school was the best thing that happened to our kids because they could finally take some classes that challenged them to think. Grade school was a long slog of boredom.

I thought the whole idea of equity is everyone gets the same outcome regardless of whether they're smart or slow. This means everyone should be in AAP LLIV and all classes are honors!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Local level iv doesn’t serve the kids who the original center gt program was designed for. They have special needs. FCPS has moved to dilute the program through local programs. They haven’t said they are killing aap but they’re doing it this way.

Several board members consistently rail against serving the needs of these students - Omeish, Andersen, meren and gamarra. Some even dislike young scholars. They only want to serve certain students based on their demographics.

It's what you get with an all-Democrat board. The Democrats who represent or only care about the districts with lower-performing schools want to dumb everything down so their schools look better, and the other Democrats go along despite their reservations because they don't want Anderson, Keys Gamarra, Omeish, or Corbett Sanders attacking them. So you get the combination of no brains and no backbone.

+1000

Vote out every candidate with a “D” after their name, in 2023. It is the only way anything will change for the better in FFX county schools.

Personally, as a teacher, I would love to run for school board. I am pretty sure a lot more would get done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't understand why AAP is a segregated cohort with a complex process to gain admittance. Why not just offer advanced math, science, English groups to ALL kids. So they switch rooms for those classes according to ability and nobody is excluded.

TWO WORDS: WEALTHY PARENTS