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[quote=Anonymous]All I see in terms of difference is that the aap kids get to learn through projects -- more or less interesting and fun -- while the ge kids mostly cram from their "study guides". Uneven learning is expected and managed in AAP, while the GE program drills for SOL perfection across all skills, before moving on to the next topic. So AAP seems to be just a way to dispense a better quality instruction -- of the same kind that many private schools rely on, without the AAP labels, but with the hefty tuition. Add the subjective admission process (largely based on GBRS, for most kids in the program), and you get a 2-tier education system, with the district using the program to invest in quality education only for a few.

Math is a moving a bit faster, and with more interesting problems, while in GE, kids spend most of their time reviewing last year's info. The proportion of new vs review is just different, allowing AAP kids to move forward faster. This works well for some kids in AAP, and poorly for some -- just like the fast pace may actually work better for some of the kids n GE but not so well for others. It has little to do with AAP, and a whole lot to do with learning style.

An advanced ability in language arts is so common n FCPS, that it does not even count as a factor towards AAP -- even though it goes a long way towards supporting the kind of learning AAP is all about.

All in all -- AAP is simply a way for schools to decide who they focus resources on. Many kids in GE would do wonderfully with the AAP structure.

Many kids in both AAP and GE would do better with an advanced program that simply caters more to the quiet types -- usually kids with lower GBRS. But they would be harder to work with -- so many just stay in the GE program, twiddling their thumbs through one more review.

It's all a congeniality contest, sadly-- the price being access to a decent education.

What really matters is the individual teacher, and their ability to inspire and motivate the kids. A GE teacher who regularly expects their kid to turn in notes about additional facts they learned, a science resource teacher offering interesting experiments for all, leaving room for open-ended discussions, the well-stoked library with a helpful and informed librarian, the teacher who is not afraid of math -- all doable from either one of these programs. Just expected in AAP and exceptional in GE...[/quote]

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