Reply to Come on, tell the truth...AAP related

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]What's the point of the question? With all the digs at AAP on this site, I tend to suspect that this is an attempt to stir the pot and set up yet another "let's bash AAP and those pushy parents" discussion.

Why would it really matter whether a child learns differently or is just ahead of the general education classroom? Wouldn't a child who learned differently possibly be ahead of the general ed curriculum? Wouldn't a child who was ahead also be likely to be one who learns differently? Why try to make the distinction you're setting up here? If a kid qualifies for AAP according to the rules in place, why get into the distinctions you're bringing up?[/quote]

Because, AAP is  supposed to be targeted to kids who can't be taught in the regular classroom.  There are plenty of kids who are just ahead of a general education classroom in general ed right now.  Why does a similarly advanced kid need to go to an AAP center to find peers?[/quote]

"AAP is supposed to be targeted at kids who CAN'T be taught in the regular classroom"? Not even sure what you mean. Of course they CAN be taught there. But they won't work at their full potential. Many kids whom you describe (dismissively) as "just" ahead of their general ed peers also are not served well by general ed.

In general education, teachers just cannot often differentiate effectively enough that kids who are advanced AND kids who need help are all served well. I know from experience that we're told that teachers will differentiate and therefore can challenge the kids who are up for challenges so every child is met at his or her own level. But the truth is that much of the time, with anywhere from 25 to 32 kids in classrooms in schools around us, teachers tend to give the advanced kids more work and harder work and then....leave them to it. The teacher's own attention goes to the kids who need more help, and the teacher is expected by the school to do that because the school wants to see its overall testing scores improve. There's nothing wrong with expecting more independence from the advanced kids and nothing wrong with giving more help where it's needed, of course. But differentiation can't fully provide much real challenge to kids who are advanced (or AAP material or whatever you want to call it.)

You ask "why does a similarly advanced kid need to go to an AAP center to find peers?" Because in a center, the level of all the teaching for every child is different and overall the kids tend to be motivated and interested in what they're doing (sure, some are not, but I've observed that most kids in our center like school and want to be there and engage in the work well).

And again -- how do you know whether a kid "learns differently" or is "just advanced"? I don't. Why treat the kids who are "just" ahead of the general classroom as if they should merely accept whatever challenges the general ed classroom can provide them --which isn't much?

Do you know a child whom you suspect is "just ahead" who ended up in AAP, and you think he or she shouldn't be in AAP? [/quote]

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