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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]So, their solution is more bureaucracy, metrics, etc.

You can close an achievement gap from the top or the bottom.  This whole concept should be trashed.

Education should be getting the best from every child.  Quit worrying about the gaps and focus on each student.

Get rid of the AAP program and [b]provide for every child in every class[/b].  [/quote]

Yeah, right.  The whole concept of differentiation is a mirage.  In order for a teacher to teach to five different levels, she has to ignore 4 groups while focusing on one.  In my experience, that meant my child got 15 min. of "small group" reading time with the teacher PER WEEK.  The kids who were not getting any help learning to read at home (probably b/c no one told the parents that they should be coaching their child on reading every day), got small group sessions with the teacher 3-5 times a week.  The rest of the time (which was usually a 90 min. language arts block every day), my child was left to her own devices at "stations" where she was supposed to self entertain.  Newsflash -- kids who can't read won't make use of "read to self station."

[b]I would support getting rid of AAP IF and only IF kids were grouped in classes that were based on their levels.  You can call it tracking -- although I don't think that is an accurate term b/c kids should be allowed to change groups each year.  But, we can't expect ONE teacher to teach five different speeds.  If similar kids are put in classes together, then the teacher can spend 80% of her time teaching the whole group and perhaps 20% (or less) attending to specific needs.  At least in that scenario, each kid would get 80% of the time being TAUGHT something -- as opposed to fiddling about waiting for their one 15-min. session per week when the teacher teaches them something.  [/b]

Also, there is great variation among principals in understanding and/or supporting the needs of advanced learners.  Some principals simply do not believe in advanced learners and would actively work to keep the faster kids back so as not to make the rest of the kids feel bad.  Everyone must be uniformly in the middle so we don't look like we are favoring the smart kids.  Some schools have large groups of AAP kids, but other feeder schools have very few.  There is an advantage in putting advanced kids together.  [/quote]

I teach elementary students and I agree with you. I am stretched thin. It's pretty much impossible to plan quality Reading Workshop, Writing Workshop, and reading groups (in addition to a morning meeting, math workshop, social studies and science) to meet the needs of 25 students in a classroom with DRA instructional levels that fall between 16-40. Having a class of students all at the same (or similar) reading levels would help with planning and instruction. [/quote]

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