Reply to s/o "if you kid doesn't go to AAP 3-8 is he doomed?"

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Reply to "s/o "if you kid doesn't go to AAP 3-8 is he doomed?" - what is the point of AAP?"

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[quote=Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][b]There are a lot of parents on this board who are trying to make themselves feel ok about the fact that their kids were not accepted into AAP. [/b] The fact is that the AAP curriculum is superior (which I why non-AAP parents keep saying their kids sHould have access to it), the peer group is stronger academically and more motivated, without ESOL kids, etc being pushed in and the strongest teachers tend to get AAp certified. The vast majority of the kids accepted to TJ, the NMSFs, etc. will be kids coming out of the AAP centers. Can you get a good education in FCPS in GE?  Of course.  But in most schools, the education is better in AAP-- just ask parents whose kids were GE until AAP selection in 3rd-- it's a huge difference. [/quote]

I completely disagree.  I see a lot of parents on this board trying to justify the existence of AAP by telling themselves and anyone gullible enough to believe them that the AAP curriculum is "superior," that the peer group is "more motivated" (??), that kids are more prepared in high school if they've been in AAP, and that the strongest teachers tend to be AAP certified.  [i]None[/i] of this has been true in our experience.  Yes, most TJ accepted kids come from the AAP crowd, but then TJ isn't the goal for many of us - not by a long shot.  As a parent with both AAP and GE kids, the only notable difference I've observed is the amount of homework and silly projects my AAP kid had.  My GE kids learned exactly the same things as the one in AAP, but had a much less stressful time doing it and enjoyed school far more.

I think the many parents advocating for the AAP curriculum to be the "regular" curriculum (for all) do so because it's widely known that AAP can be done by the majority of students, whether or not they're AAP-identified, and the vast majority of AAP-identified kids are indistinguishable from the vast majority of GE kids - so why have a different curriculum in the first place.  The fact is, this curriculum isn't especially difficult, as parents of highly gifted children have been saying.  They're the ones asking for a far more challenging curriculum than AAP for their kids.[/quote]

Then why don't you pull you DC out of AAP, if you are getting silly projects and no value added?  For us, 3rd grade AAP was a night and day difference, and the teachers have been top notch. For the first time, DC became engaged in school and stopped getting bored and acting out. He could certainly handle an even more rigorous curriculum, but AAP is certainly a step up from GE.  But I'm sure different school implement differently.  [/quote]

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