Anyone attend 11/29 cluster 1,2,and 3 AAP meeting at Kilmer?

[Anonymous]

So why are some proposing AAP centers in current office buildings instead of schools or arguing about commute times to new centers? You can't always have everything and still have all these different school options for your kids to attend.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Another thing to consider, is that by having such a small group of kids in middle school is opening those kids up to all sorts of social issues. I don't know if you have been around many AAP classes, but those classes tend to be dominated by quirky, geeky, nerdy kids who in other situation are the type of kids who tend to be singled out as bully victims. At a center with 2-3 classes, those kids have a peer group where they can just be one of the crowd, or in some cases, have the opportunity to become a social leader. In a regular classroom setting, many of these kids are the ones who are isolated, made fun of and have trouble fitting in. Having such a tiny group of AAP students at the middle school level drastically increases the odds that these kids are going to have a less than positive school experience than they would have in a larger AAP program, and increases the odds of isolation and bullying.

My child's AAP teacher last year said that one of the things she likes best about the peer group in AAP is that it brings together many kids from different schools, who are they type of kids who usually end up bullied, and gives them a place where they fit in and where their differences are seen as something to be accepted, not something to be teased. I think she hit it on the head. Although this sentiment has gone unstated on this board, I think this is one of the many reasons why AAP parents are so emotional about the proposed changes.

Thank you. I have been thinking the same thing. My DD did not fit in and was a bully magnet before the AAP center. For some kids that large peer group really makes a difference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If they would only slow it down until they at least have the fully certified teachers to staff all these new centers.

I've seen this sentiment a lot in recent threads on this topic. DH is an AAP teacher in Fairfax County. When he first started the job, he wasn't a certified AAP teacher. He had a certain amount of years (maybe it was 5, I forget) to complete the training and earn the special certification. Right now at the center where he teaches, each year existing teachers are reassigned to fill needs for more AAP teachers (and the shrinking need for general education teachers) - many of them do not have the certification and are given the usual amount of time to get the certification. What I'm telling you all is that this is not a new thing and should not be a major concern for parents of AAP students. Hopefully this eases some concerns.

Highly qualified teachers are but one element of the Readiness Checklist. The other elements include a critical mass of students identified for Level IV services, a school plan for Level IV services & extracurricular activities (e.g., Math Counts, Science Olympiad etc.), facility readiness, and transportation.

Understood. I just wanted to address the qualifications of the teachers. I don't really think that part is a concern.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Thoreau is a very nice school which would greatly benefit from Level IV AAP. There are plenty of students there in Honors who could easily qualify for AAP, or already have.

Quite a few students from Archer AAP declined the Jackson offer. AAP Archer to Jackson= 1/2 of the sixth grade: 4 classes.

If those students from Archer AAP declined the Jackson offer and are happy at Thoreau, then let them continue to attend Thoreau. Don't take the freedom of choice from those who want to attend a bigger and better AAP Center at Luther Jackson. Luther Jackson has enjoyed a bigger AAP Center the last couple of years and have enjoyed a success for their enrichment activities such as Science Olympiad and Mathcount programs. They've done very well at Science Olympiad the last couple of years coming in 4th place behind the power houses of Longfellow, Kilmer, and Lake Braddock last year. If you can draw from a bigger pool of AAP students then you can have successful enrichment programs. I noticed that not many non AAP kids were interested in joining enrichment activities. Science Olympiad only had 1 non-AAP student in the Science Olympiad team last year. AAP kids will lose out if they make every middle schools an AAP Center! If AAP kids are happy at Thoreau then let them stay there. Don't take the choice away from other AAP kids!

Jackson will lose out. Thoreau will have the programs, as the programs will follow the Vienna kids who will attend thoreau

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If they would only slow it down until they at least have the fully certified teachers to staff all these new centers.

I've seen this sentiment a lot in recent threads on this topic. DH is an AAP teacher in Fairfax County. When he first started the job, he wasn't a certified AAP teacher. He had a certain amount of years (maybe it was 5, I forget) to complete the training and earn the special certification. Right now at the center where he teaches, each year existing teachers are reassigned to fill needs for more AAP teachers (and the shrinking need for general education teachers) - many of them do not have the certification and are given the usual amount of time to get the certification. What I'm telling you all is that this is not a new thing and should not be a major concern for parents of AAP students. Hopefully this eases some concerns.

Highly qualified teachers are but one element of the Readiness Checklist. The other elements include a critical mass of students identified for Level IV services, a school plan for Level IV services & extracurricular activities (e.g., Math Counts, Science Olympiad etc.), facility readiness, and transportation.

Understood. I just wanted to address the qualifications of the teachers. I don't really think that part is a concern.

I do not think FCPS has enough AAP certified or currently-underway-for-AAP-certification teachers now. However, if the proposal were not fast-tracked and - in conjunction with grandfathering -- teachers were identified to begin the process for their certification, this would be a good strategy to address the issue of not-enough current AAP certified teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Jackson will lose out. Thoreau will have the programs, as the programs will follow the Vienna kids who will attend thoreau

A good chunk of Jackson feeds into Oakton. It will be fine either way.

[Anonymous]

A good chunk of Jacson feeds into Oakton? How much? Oakton has about 4 different middle school feeders and who knows where they'd all end up anyway with all this redistribution. Unless these middle schools can all have at least 150 AAP students each to start it seems pointless to be separating all the AAP students up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A good chunk of Jacson feeds into Oakton? How much? Oakton has about 4 different middle school feeders and who knows where they'd all end up anyway with all this redistribution. Unless these middle schools can all have at least 150 AAP students each to start it seems pointless to be separating all the AAP students up.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So why are some proposing AAP centers in current office buildings instead of schools or arguing about commute times to new centers? You can't always have everything and still have all these different school options for your kids to attend.

Because people are trying to think of better and more workable solutions. Why is that a bad thing? Are you suggesting that we just go along with staff when they make a suggestion that we can tell at the outset will just move overcrowding instead of solving it? If we do that, we'll all be back here again in a few years when another school is overcrowded and another school community is blaming our children. We're trying to solve the problem instead of putting a band aid on it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So why are some proposing AAP centers in current office buildings instead of schools or arguing about commute times to new centers? You can't always have everything and still have all these different school options for your kids to attend.

Because people are trying to think of better and more workable solutions. Why is that a bad thing? Are you suggesting that we just go along with staff when they make a suggestion that we can tell at the outset will just move overcrowding instead of solving it? If we do that, we'll all be back here again in a few years when another school is overcrowded and another school community is blaming our children. We're trying to solve the problem instead of putting a band aid on it.

Why would you resort to using logic? Why would you think that you, as a parent, have any say at all in a proposal that came down from the top of the FCPS mountain where all the experts work?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Thoreau is a very nice school which would greatly benefit from Level IV AAP. There are plenty of students there in Honors who could easily qualify for AAP, or already have.

Quite a few students from Archer AAP declined the Jackson offer. AAP Archer to Jackson= 1/2 of the sixth grade: 4 classes.

If those students from Archer AAP declined the Jackson offer and are happy at Thoreau, then let them continue to attend Thoreau. Don't take the freedom of choice from those who want to attend a bigger and better AAP Center at Luther Jackson. Luther Jackson has enjoyed a bigger AAP Center the last couple of years and have enjoyed a success for their enrichment activities such as Science Olympiad and Mathcount programs. They've done very well at Science Olympiad the last couple of years coming in 4th place behind the power houses of Longfellow, Kilmer, and Lake Braddock last year. If you can draw from a bigger pool of AAP students then you can have successful enrichment programs. I noticed that not many non AAP kids were interested in joining enrichment activities. Science Olympiad only had 1 non-AAP student in the Science Olympiad team last year. AAP kids will lose out if they make every middle schools an AAP Center! If AAP kids are happy at Thoreau then let them stay there. Don't take the choice away from other AAP kids!

Jackson will lose out. Thoreau will have the programs, as the programs will follow the Vienna kids who will attend thoreau

Yes Jackson will lose out . The school is doing great since becoming an AAP Center. Don't let it fall back into a mediocre school. FCPS only needs to solve the ES overcrowding issues and don't need to touch MS AAP Center. Leave MS AAP Center the way it is.

[Anonymous]

Six years in FCPS AAP program. 2 kids. Just did not see all those "disturbed" and socially awkward kids in AAP, only a couple. Most of them were just smarter and worked harder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've seen this sentiment a lot in recent threads on this topic. DH is an AAP teacher in Fairfax County. When he first started the job, he wasn't a certified AAP teacher. He had a certain amount of years (maybe it was 5, I forget) to complete the training and earn the special certification. Right now at the center where he teaches, each year existing teachers are reassigned to fill needs for more AAP teachers (and the shrinking need for general education teachers) - many of them do not have the certification and are given the usual amount of time to get the certification. What I'm telling you all is that this is not a new thing and should not be a major concern for parents of AAP students. Hopefully this eases some concerns.

No disrespect intended to your DH, but I bet he was a much better AAP teacher AFTER having the training than he was before. And he likely had other experienced AAP teachers on his team to help him as he learned new teaching skills in those first few years.

What many of us envision -- and dread -- are 20 brand new centers full of uncertified, unexperienced teachers hurridly tossed together at schools that have never had a center before. Yes, in 5 years they will all be thriving and wonderful, but my child will be long gone by the time these new centers and teachers are solid. I don't want my daughter to be a guinea pig. I want her to have a teacher who has already begun the training and certification process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've seen this sentiment a lot in recent threads on this topic. DH is an AAP teacher in Fairfax County. When he first started the job, he wasn't a certified AAP teacher. He had a certain amount of years (maybe it was 5, I forget) to complete the training and earn the special certification. Right now at the center where he teaches, each year existing teachers are reassigned to fill needs for more AAP teachers (and the shrinking need for general education teachers) - many of them do not have the certification and are given the usual amount of time to get the certification. What I'm telling you all is that this is not a new thing and should not be a major concern for parents of AAP students. Hopefully this eases some concerns.

No disrespect intended to your DH, but I bet he was a much better AAP teacher AFTER having the training than he was before. And he likely had other experienced AAP teachers on his team to help him as he learned new teaching skills in those first few years.

What many of us envision -- and dread -- are 20 brand new centers full of uncertified, unexperienced teachers hurridly tossed together at schools that have never had a center before. Yes, in 5 years they will all be thriving and wonderful, but my child will be long gone by the time these new centers and teachers are solid. I don't want my daughter to be a guinea pig. I want her to have a teacher who has already begun the training and certification process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A good chunk of Jacson feeds into Oakton? How much? Oakton has about 4 different middle school feeders and who knows where they'd all end up anyway with all this redistribution. Unless these middle schools can all have at least 150 AAP students each to start it seems pointless to be separating all the AAP students up.

+1