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Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS)
Challenge Every Child
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Anonymous
I don't see all the HG kids, ages 9 and 10, doing college work consistently. That is hyperbole. |
Anonymous
You do not understand the GT identification system. All kids are tested at the end of second grade. Parent and teacher recommendation forms are sent home and the level of work the child is currently performing is examined (i.e. on level or above level). After looking at all these criteria kids are labeled "GT" or not. All kids labeled "GT" should expect to receive teaching at their level -- so a 2nd grader doing or capable of 3rd grade math should get that. But, the range of kids who get the "GT" label is still pretty wide. Some kids who qualify as "GT" read 2 grades ahead. Some kids who qualify as "GT" read 10 grades ahead. Practically speaking the "GT" kids who read 2 grades ahead probably have a significant number of peers in their homeschool and can be given services fairly easily at the homeschool by regrouping w/in the school. The "GT" kids who are reading 10 grades ahead are fewer in number and rarely can be grouped at the homeschool appropriately, thus they are excellent candidates for the HGCs which are designed to meet the needs of students whose needs can not be met in the home school. So, it is not true that "if you are GT, you go to the Centers." Nor is it true that anyone is making a "stealth run at getting the GT label for non-GT students." GT students are basically kids who are capable of working above grade level. What the Challenge Every Child petition wants is for both types of GT students to receive appropriate challenge. And, by the way, GTA was instrumental in fighting to end the hard gatekeeping to these GT programs. So, if you as a parent believe that your child wasn't identified as GT but should have been, and you want them placed in the above level class because you are convinced your child can handle it, then GTA has supported the notion that parents should be the final deciders. You should talk with your principal about more appropriate challenge for your child and if the principal is not responsive you should go above their head to the Division of Accelerated and Enriched Instruction and to the Community Superintendent to resolve the issue. (Unfortunately, for some programs, like the by application Centers, there is simply not enough space to accommodate all who apply.) Many, many parents have found this "label" useful. That has certainly been my experience. In my child's prior school (DC), I knew she was a high level reader, but the school refused to test her and refused to assign her appropriate reading texts. In MCPS, testing clearly showed her reading skill level to be far above grade, and using this information, I was able to get her appropriate support in homeschool GT program in 3rd grade and then in a center. The GT label has also been useful for my son. He has specific learning, speech and hearing disabilities, but he is very smart. Without understanding these disabilities, some teachers have seen my son as stupid, disobedient, lazy and socially inept. What they don't realize is that he is very smart, but sometimes he can't hear them or process what they are saying. The GT/LD (GT/Learning Disability) label helps focus the teacher to provide appropriate accommodations for my child. |
Anonymous
To be clear, testing for the HGC is not done until around December of the 3rd grade year. In second grade all students get what is called the "Global Screening." The "identification" (or as some call it "labeling") in second grade of students as "GT" is based on the Global Screening Tests and other factors (teacher and parent recs., current level of work, etc.). This GT "label" (or notice that their child has been "identified") is for some parents, the first clue that their child might actually qualify for an HGC, but not all will apply or gain entrance. In our experience, no one gets "recommended" for HGC testing. Information is sent home to all parents about HGC testing and anyone who wants to have their child tested for an HGC can do so. Perhaps the GT identification letter after the 2nd grade global screening spurs parents to consider having their child tested for the HGC, but this is certainly not the same as being "recommended" for HGC testing. As for "the law requires identification, not labeling." IMO, this is just semantics. So if we get rid of the "GT" label, how do we refer to the kids who are "identified" as gifted? Will we start calling them "identified" and "non-identified"? OK, but that's still labeling to me. |
Anonymous
It's not, actually. My son is now in high school, but attended the HGC years ago. One of his friends took a Logic class at a local college one summer, for fun, and earned an A. Not all of the HGC kids are functioning at that level, but many are. |
Anonymous
Please be careful, I did not say they are doing college level work consistently. That is part of the asynchronous development that can often occur with gifted kids. They may have MAP-R scores which translate to college level lexile reading scores, but they are not capable of writing college level papers. And, of course, they are only 9-11, so they definitely don't have college level understandings of life. It can be hard to pick a text that it is sufficiently complex for an 11 y.o. kid with an 1300 lexile. If the text is sufficiently complex, the subject matter/theme is often socially inappropriate for the age. It is not hyperbole to say that the kid with a 1300 lexile will not be a rarity at the HGC. That child will have probably at least a quarter of the class as reading peers. Those who aren't reading at the exact same level will span from high school thru upper middle school levels. If the reader with a 1300 lexile remained at his/her homeschool he/she would likely be far and away the highest level reader in his/her heterogenous reading group at the homeschool. In a heterogenous homeschool class like MCEA wants, the HG child will be left to read Robinson Crusoe by him/herself, the at or slightly above grade children will read Island of the Blue Dolphins, and the below grade child will be reading Marvin Redpost: Alone on a Desert Island (OK, I made that last one up). All three reading groups will meet in whole group together to discuss how they would feel if they were stuck on a desert island. Then they'll be sent back to their desks to draw a picture of how their imaginary escape from the desert island and to complete a geography worksheet on islands around the world. I really don't see how that's useful to anyone. |
Anonymous
| So, how was the meeting? |
Anonymous
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I think this discussion proves that the GTA shouldn't have mentioned the label. One poster pointed out " In MCPS, testing clearly showed her reading skill level to be far above grade, and using this information, I was able to get her appropriate support in homeschool GT program in 3rd grade and then in a center. "
That shows the label isn't needed, right? Now, MCPS is sending us a letter with that info. Son, we need the label for what? Another thing, a student reading above the class level is normal in most schools in the wealthy areas. It isn't anything to do with GT. |