Disappointed about CES

[Anonymous]

Test orientation is important for sure. A friend told me that her kid got 6% MCPS and 40's% National, and was shocked about those numbers when receiving the letter. The kid got all A's and MAP's at 85%tile. She was very concerned not because her kid did not get in, but something went wrong with her. I am very sympathetic and not sure how to help.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP tried gaming the system. Now he/she regretted that he/she did not do enough. What a joke!

+1. You nailed it.

Buying one COGAT prep book is considered gaming the system? Are you people nuts? Do you also consider the kid who takes musical instrument lessons and gets picked for the orchestra or the kid who takes soccer/tennis lessons and gets picked for the team as gaming the system? Because only kids who have never prepared or trained should be considered to identify the truly gifted tennis player?

To be fair, MCPS shall provide every student a COGAT prep book.

[Anonymous]

What do you need to help her through? Her child is a high achiever who gets straight As and is learning well according to her high MAP score. The Cogat only counts for CES and even with an 85th percentile score it's unlikely she would have gotten in.

Every kid has bad days. My DD took the test cold and did not finish it. I didn't familiarize her with the questions so she spent like 10 minutes of the 15 minutes she had per section trying to figure out what was up and what was down. She's still doing great and still has 99th percentile maps and straight As.

[Anonymous]

If your child was not admitted... Please don't project your disappointment on your child. Some of DC's friend's parents are really upset and they have told their DCs really horrible things about the kids that got in. I'm talking racial things and unsubstantiated rumors about doing something to get a leg up on the process.

While you may truly believe something is wrong with the process many children this age don't get the nuances and they end up repeating really nasty things you've said in school which hurts other kids' feelings. It also makes them-and you-look like total a***.

[Anonymous]

Agree! As parents we need to be careful about how we comment. Parents need to be assured that kids are okay and move on, and make this a learning process about how to handle situations when something does not happy in the desired way. I would never want my kid to blame it's other people's fault.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Test orientation is important for sure. A friend told me that her kid got 6% MCPS and 40's% National, and was shocked about those numbers when receiving the letter. The kid got all A's and MAP's at 85%tile. She was very concerned not because her kid did not get in, but something went wrong with her. I am very sympathetic and not sure how to help.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP tried gaming the system. Now he/she regretted that he/she did not do enough. What a joke!

+1. You nailed it.

Buying one COGAT prep book is considered gaming the system? Are you people nuts? Do you also consider the kid who takes musical instrument lessons and gets picked for the orchestra or the kid who takes soccer/tennis lessons and gets picked for the team as gaming the system? Because only kids who have never prepared or trained should be considered to identify the truly gifted tennis player?

To be fair, MCPS shall provide every student a COGAT prep book.

Prep has minimal if any impact on the cogat screener that was the whole point so probably not a good use of anyone's time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My older daughter is very smart, but didn't get into CES either. However, we plan to do our own version of CES at home. There are plenty of home schooling resources available that meet or even exceed what CES teaches. As much as it may be bragging rights, CES doesn't really matter in the long run. Kids can still take AP classes in high school, skip grades if they can test out of the material, etc... Also, there are plenty of coding and robotics camps during the summer, lots and lots of educational toys at a reasonable cost (e.g., robotics kits, game programming tutorials).

The only real difference that I see between CES and non-CES students is that enrichment comes from parents for the latter kids.

If your kid got in, would you still have made the statement that CES doesn’t matter in the long run? The problem with most of you whose kids didn’t get into the the CES is you’re licking each others’ wounds and devaluating the prestige of being in the CES. Do yourselves a huge favor, and teach your kids to give credit where credit is due! The kids who made it to the CES deserve to be praised and uplifted instead of being doubted! To make up stories like some parents pulled strings to get their kids in is just plain stupid!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid is a high performer in his school (which has very smart kids in general). His MAP scores and grades are great (all As and 99 percentile). He says he is quite bored with the 3rd grade material so I was hoping he would make it into CES but he didn't. We didn't send him to any prep classes - did get him one of those COGAT books to work on and he seemed to do great. But now I am regretting not helping him prep further - I am really conflicted about it because on the one hand, I know some kids who are smart but not really gifted but did a lot of prep and got in. On the other hand, maybe prepping them to get in defeats the purpose of CES!
The question I have is how do you get your kids in local school to be competitive in middle and high school if there is such a gap in instruction right from grade 4 between them and the CES kids. I keep reading on these boards how much work the 5th grade kids do in CES --- can some of the parents whose kids didn't make it to CES but got into magnets in middle/high school and/or got into top colleges comment?
I am actually surprised I am feeling bad about this but it may be because my kid is feeling some sting of the rejection.

If you feel that you missed out on something, do not despair, just take this time to have him ready for the next step. In two short years the middle school magnet is on the table and if he gets in he is all set and will never look back weather got into CES or not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP if you're already fretting about your child's college prospects when he is in 3rd grade, you need a psychiatric intervention. Your child will do just fine in a regular classroom. And if he doesn't I'm sure you can just bribe a fencing coach or find some other way to ensure his giftedness finds an appropriate educational reward.

Seriously, get over the CES nonsense. Very few children are so off-the-charts brilliant that they are going to be profoundly disserved by being in a classroom amongst a wide range of their peers.

Oh please! No need to be nasty. School sends you a letter saying your child is picked to be tested for something and then says no he is not eligible. Of course I am disappointed. But that's why it is good to hear from the parents who have responded. Helped me get over this faster than if I was worrying about it alone! Thanks

There is a difference between high achiever and gifted. High achievers can be served well in a regular classroom with enrichment. For many gifted kids, enrichment is just not enough. You’ll be surprised that your “all A’s” and “99 percentile MAP” kid isn’t gifted when he/she takes a formal psychoeducational testing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My older daughter is very smart, but didn't get into CES either. However, we plan to do our own version of CES at home. There are plenty of home schooling resources available that meet or even exceed what CES teaches. As much as it may be bragging rights, CES doesn't really matter in the long run. Kids can still take AP classes in high school, skip grades if they can test out of the material, etc... Also, there are plenty of coding and robotics camps during the summer, lots and lots of educational toys at a reasonable cost (e.g., robotics kits, game programming tutorials).

The only real difference that I see between CES and non-CES students is that enrichment comes from parents for the latter kids.

If your kid got in, would you still have made the statement that CES doesn’t matter in the long run? The problem with most of you whose kids didn’t get into the the CES is you’re licking each others’ wounds and devaluating the prestige of being in the CES. Do yourselves a huge favor, and teach your kids to give credit where credit is due! The kids who made it to the CES deserve to be praised and uplifted instead of being doubted! To make up stories like some parents pulled strings to get their kids in is just plain stupid!!!

CES is not a prestige thing. Parents should not feel they have bragging rights. The kids do NOT deserve to get praised for getting in. They are identified as having a need that CES meets. My child did nothing special to get in, did not study hard, did not practice or show determination, but there are a few kids in his CES who have clearly been praised to the point of insufferable self-esteem about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My older daughter is very smart, but didn't get into CES either. However, we plan to do our own version of CES at home. There are plenty of home schooling resources available that meet or even exceed what CES teaches. As much as it may be bragging rights, CES doesn't really matter in the long run. Kids can still take AP classes in high school, skip grades if they can test out of the material, etc... Also, there are plenty of coding and robotics camps during the summer, lots and lots of educational toys at a reasonable cost (e.g., robotics kits, game programming tutorials).

The only real difference that I see between CES and non-CES students is that enrichment comes from parents for the latter kids.

If your kid got in, would you still have made the statement that CES doesn’t matter in the long run? The problem with most of you whose kids didn’t get into the the CES is you’re licking each others’ wounds and devaluating the prestige of being in the CES. Do yourselves a huge favor, and teach your kids to give credit where credit is due! The kids who made it to the CES deserve to be praised and uplifted instead of being doubted! To make up stories like some parents pulled strings to get their kids in is just plain stupid!!!

Parents like you are what makes the CES insufferable! Unfortunately, there is one too many parents (and aptly their children) who think like you, and it's just pathetic. Hopefully the apple falls very far away from the tree if you have a child at a CES.

FWIW, I have a child who does pretty well at a CES, but I would never for a second think he is gifted or somehow more deserving of the CES spot than some of his peers at the local school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My older daughter is very smart, but didn't get into CES either. However, we plan to do our own version of CES at home. There are plenty of home schooling resources available that meet or even exceed what CES teaches. As much as it may be bragging rights, CES doesn't really matter in the long run. Kids can still take AP classes in high school, skip grades if they can test out of the material, etc... Also, there are plenty of coding and robotics camps during the summer, lots and lots of educational toys at a reasonable cost (e.g., robotics kits, game programming tutorials).

The only real difference that I see between CES and non-CES students is that enrichment comes from parents for the latter kids.

If your kid got in, would you still have made the statement that CES doesn’t matter in the long run? The problem with most of you whose kids didn’t get into the the CES is you’re licking each others’ wounds and devaluating the prestige of being in the CES. Do yourselves a huge favor, and teach your kids to give credit where credit is due! The kids who made it to the CES deserve to be praised and uplifted instead of being doubted! To make up stories like some parents pulled strings to get their kids in is just plain stupid!!!

In the long run of life - I doubt very much it matters. Great for the kids who got in - but not a huge detriment to those who didn't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My older daughter is very smart, but didn't get into CES either. However, we plan to do our own version of CES at home. There are plenty of home schooling resources available that meet or even exceed what CES teaches. As much as it may be bragging rights, CES doesn't really matter in the long run. Kids can still take AP classes in high school, skip grades if they can test out of the material, etc... Also, there are plenty of coding and robotics camps during the summer, lots and lots of educational toys at a reasonable cost (e.g., robotics kits, game programming tutorials).

The only real difference that I see between CES and non-CES students is that enrichment comes from parents for the latter kids.

If your kid got in, would you still have made the statement that CES doesn’t matter in the long run? The problem with most of you whose kids didn’t get into the the CES is you’re licking each others’ wounds and devaluating the prestige of being in the CES. Do yourselves a huge favor, and teach your kids to give credit where credit is due! The kids who made it to the CES deserve to be praised and uplifted instead of being doubted! To make up stories like some parents pulled strings to get their kids in is just plain stupid!!!

In the long run of life - I doubt very much it matters. Great for the kids who got in - but not a huge detriment to those who didn't.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid is a high performer in his school (which has very smart kids in general). His MAP scores and grades are great (all As and 99 percentile). He says he is quite bored with the 3rd grade material so I was hoping he would make it into CES but he didn't. We didn't send him to any prep classes - did get him one of those COGAT books to work on and he seemed to do great. But now I am regretting not helping him prep further - I am really conflicted about it because on the one hand, I know some kids who are smart but not really gifted but did a lot of prep and got in. On the other hand, maybe prepping them to get in defeats the purpose of CES!
The question I have is how do you get your kids in local school to be competitive in middle and high school if there is such a gap in instruction right from grade 4 between them and the CES kids. I keep reading on these boards how much work the 5th grade kids do in CES --- can some of the parents whose kids didn't make it to CES but got into magnets in middle/high school and/or got into top colleges comment?
I am actually surprised I am feeling bad about this but it may be because my kid is feeling some sting of the rejection.

So you are upset your very bright son did not get into CES? It’s a total socially engineered crapshoot to get in. Try private school so he’s not bored out of his mind until 9th grade when he can finally really differentiate. MCPS greatly underserves it’s top quartile and expects parents to supplement, enrich and challenge their kids via other educational programs outside of MCPS. Good gig they got...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Test orientation is important for sure. A friend told me that her kid got 6% MCPS and 40's% National, and was shocked about those numbers when receiving the letter. The kid got all A's and MAP's at 85%tile. She was very concerned not because her kid did not get in, but something went wrong with her. I am very sympathetic and not sure how to help.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP tried gaming the system. Now he/she regretted that he/she did not do enough. What a joke!

+1. You nailed it.

Buying one COGAT prep book is considered gaming the system? Are you people nuts? Do you also consider the kid who takes musical instrument lessons and gets picked for the orchestra or the kid who takes soccer/tennis lessons and gets picked for the team as gaming the system? Because only kids who have never prepared or trained should be considered to identify the truly gifted tennis player?

To be fair, MCPS shall provide every student a COGAT prep book.

Your peer cohort at home school has way more withthing to get in to CES than a top cogay score.

Prep has minimal if any impact on the cogat screener that was the whole point so probably not a good use of anyone's time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My older daughter is very smart, but didn't get into CES either. However, we plan to do our own version of CES at home. There are plenty of home schooling resources available that meet or even exceed what CES teaches. As much as it may be bragging rights, CES doesn't really matter in the long run. Kids can still take AP classes in high school, skip grades if they can test out of the material, etc... Also, there are plenty of coding and robotics camps during the summer, lots and lots of educational toys at a reasonable cost (e.g., robotics kits, game programming tutorials).

The only real difference that I see between CES and non-CES students is that enrichment comes from parents for the latter kids.

If your kid got in, would you still have made the statement that CES doesn’t matter in the long run? The problem with most of you whose kids didn’t get into the the CES is you’re licking each others’ wounds and devaluating the prestige of being in the CES. Do yourselves a huge favor, and teach your kids to give credit where credit is due! The kids who made it to the CES deserve to be praised and uplifted instead of being doubted! To make up stories like some parents pulled strings to get their kids in is just plain stupid!!!

Parents like you are what makes the CES insufferable! Unfortunately, there is one too many parents (and aptly their children) who think like you, and it's just pathetic. Hopefully the apple falls very far away from the tree if you have a child at a CES.

FWIW, I have a child who does pretty well at a CES, but I would never for a second think he is gifted or somehow more deserving of the CES spot than some of his peers at the local school.

I can see the two perspectives here: 1) One parent who suggests that CES means nothing, and 2) One parent who wants to give credit to where credit is due. Both are normal emotions during this time of the year; and oftentimes, that is what most parents do — advocate for their kids. We can all agree to disagree that our view can be biased based on the results of the CES evaluation. What I do not get are parents who question the process and those who create hypotheticals about the process.