Reply to APS: G&T program ?

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Reply to "APS: G&T program ?"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]NP here. I think the label itself is the lightning rod for APS-- it means some kids get services, and some kids don't based on two tests (NNAT and Cogat). And you are bound to miss some kids with the current identification process (for example, military kids moving into APS don't get automatically tested for gifted eligibility upon school registration). Also, the NNAT and Cogat aren't great at picking up 2e kids (e.g., gifted kids with dyslexia).

What if you replaced the labeling process with a system where there is a pre-test before every unit (math or LA) and every kid had a chance to "test out" of that unit and get more advanced instruction? You could mix up the classes within a grade for math and LA content, to minimize the workload on the teachers to develop differential instruction. That's the way my elementary school worked growing up-- we didn't have a gifted program or gifted tag, but we were clustered based on pre-testing.

Personally, I think tagging for social studies and science is a complete waste of time and resources. All the kids need to learn/memorize the facts needed to pass the SOL, and a "gifted kid" isn't necessarily going to know his Virginia history going into 4th grade anymore than a kid who wasn't tagged in social studies. Same with art and music-- there is literally no additional benefit to kids being tagged in those subjects. In fact, by middle school, the most art that any kid can take is 1/2 a year in 7th and 8th grade. Art isn't even offered again as a full-year elective until high school. And anyone can take Band and Choir. APS should just focus gifted resources on providing meaningful differentiated content in math and language arts in elementary school, and not worry about everything else- especially now with intensified classes being offered in middle school. [/quote]
The NNAT and Cogat are only one source of information.  There are also teacher and parent referrals.  Any kid who wants to be considered can be.  As others have said, it's far from exclusive in APS.

I think what parents are scoffing at is that APS now considers that it doesn't have to do any differentiation.  It's only job is to teach SOL standards (likely reinforced with the move to standards based grading).  And, as of this year, the "Advanced Academic Coach" is no longer seeking to differentiate for kids that need it, but instead tasked with enrichment for all.

The concept of the gifted label in science and social studies is that some kids absorb all of the mandatory content almost instantly, and can do so by independently by reading source materials. These kids have time to learn all of the SOL standard requirements while also doing more challenging work like writing a research paper, essay or presentation on the topic.  Other kids in the class need more repetition to absorb the same content to pass the SOL.  [/quote]

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