Anonymous wrote:Yes, they are getting some acceleration. You stated the last month of first grade, they are some second grade math materials. That is not enough acceleration for truly advanced kids. My children are older and I have watched my friends kids in other counties/states/countries learning math at a more accerated level. Also, I have witnessed first hand in my own neighborhood whenever a new family moved here from another state they are placed in the compacted math, the HGC centers and the middle school magnets. Not one kid, not one family, I know at least 6 kids where this happened. In first grade it's not apparent, but those next few years 2-3-4 where MCPS starts the tracking, it's clear.

On track math in MCPS is Algebra in 8th grade. That is pretty advanced by most school districts' standards. That's more advanced than pre 2.0.

Perhaps, the kids moving into your area are just smart. I don't know. Just coincidence? Hard to say. But, there are plenty of kids that move in from non MCPS schools that aren't getting into HGC either. My kid got in. But, I knew from early on that DC was pretty bright. It's actually one of the reasons we moved to MCPS. Dc's preschool teachers and daycare provider kept telling me DC was gifted or advanced or whatever. Our old district didn't have great gifted services. We moved to MCPS the year it started 2.0 for that grade, so my DC was a guinea pig.

I agree the elementary school HGC is somewhat murky in how acceptances are decided, but the middle school magnets really focus on the exam score. The exam score is the best way to compare students coming from different schools.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Look the whole application process for the HGC is a sham. Did you know parents are buying old versions of the test so they can prep their child? Also, children accepted do not have to have the top scores in their school, they just need the school team to rank them at the top of their recommendation list. There are ways that the politically connected can get their children into these programs and the system will do their best to deny transparency to cover up these problems.

You sound crazy.

There is no evidence for your claims. The home schools don't have much say about who gets in.

Anonymous wrote:Look the whole application process for the HGC is a sham. Did you know parents are buying old versions of the test so they can prep their child? Also, children accepted do not have to have the top scores in their school, they just need the school team to rank them at the top of their recommendation list. There are ways that the politically connected can get their children into these programs and the system will do their best to deny transparency to cover up these problems.

You sound crazy.

Yes, they are getting some acceleration. You stated the last month of first grade, they are some second grade math materials. That is not enough acceleration for truly advanced kids. My children are older and I have watched my friends kids in other counties/states/countries learning math at a more accerated level. Also, I have witnessed first hand in my own neighborhood whenever a new family moved here from another state they are placed in the compacted math, the HGC centers and the middle school magnets. Not one kid, not one family, I know at least 6 kids where this happened. In first grade it's not apparent, but those next few years 2-3-4 where MCPS starts the tracking, it's clear.

Anonymous wrote:The fact that you were new to MCPS was a huge advantage. Your child learned more in k-2 then the kids at learned in school at MCPS (note I am not including parent/prep classes outside of school) because MCPS teaches everyone the same thing at the same time which results in the advanced and smarter MCPS kids following behind similar kids at schools in any other county/state/country.

Do people get that not all schools/teachers are doing the exact same thing? My 1st grader is getting math acceleration; started getting some 2nd grade math worksheets this past month. DC's friend is getting some 3rd grade math work. We are not in a W cluster.

Anonymous wrote:The fact that you were new to MCPS was a huge advantage. Your child learned more in k-2 then the kids at learned in school at MCPS (note I am not including parent/prep classes outside of school) because MCPS teaches everyone the same thing at the same time which results in the advanced and smarter MCPS kids following behind similar kids at schools in any other county/state/country.

No, we came to MCPS when DC was in 2nd. I was confused by the 2.0 math at first, too. Made me question my sanity. I get it now. Prior to this, our school didn't differentiate much for math for K/1 either. DC was using Everyday Math workbook (which I didn't like, either).

The fact that you were new to MCPS was a huge advantage. Your child learned more in k-2 then the kids at learned in school at MCPS (note I am not including parent/prep classes outside of school) because MCPS teaches everyone the same thing at the same time which results in the advanced and smarter MCPS kids following behind similar kids at schools in any other county/state/country.

Anonymous wrote:According to my child's third grade teacher, the school doesn't have much say in who gets in. She said that there was a child that the school strongly advocated for and he was not accepted. She also mentioned that students who had identical teacher checklists, one got in and one didn't and she didn't think the scores were that different (though I wonder about that- it seems that what seems like a small difference could make a difference in admissions).

The selection committee must look at other things than just pure test scores. School grades, parental/staff input?

My DC got in. We have absolutely zero political clout, not rich by DCUM standards, and did not prep. We were somewhat new to MCPS. That other PP really does have sour grapes.

Sometimes, what the parent thinks of a child's academic capability does not always mirror the teacher's, and that can go both ways. I was kind of surprised when my DC got into compacted math because DC's HGC quantitative test scores were below the median. DC's MAP scores were always high, but I figured to get into compacted math, the kid would have to score really high on all the math-y type tests. But, DC is getting ESs in compacted math and finds it kind of easy. DC also got a perfect 50 in the UCARE assessment. So, what I thought DC was capable of didn't mirror reality, I guess.

According to my child's third grade teacher, the school doesn't have much say in who gets in. She said that there was a child that the school strongly advocated for and he was not accepted. She also mentioned that students who had identical teacher checklists, one got in and one didn't and she didn't think the scores were that different (though I wonder about that- it seems that what seems like a small difference could make a difference in admissions).

Sour grapes.... Its all about the test. My son scored so well on the test there was no way he wasn't getting in no matter where the school ranked him. Truly gifted kids are going to do well on the test.

Parents who know what test it is can buy a practice test. But most parents are not aware of the test used and very few prep.

Anonymous wrote:Look the whole application process for the HGC is a sham. Did you know parents are buying old versions of the test so they can prep their child? Also, children accepted do not have to have the top scores in their school, they just need the school team to rank them at the top of their recommendation list. There are ways that the politically connected can get their children into these programs and the system will do their best to deny transparency to cover up these problems.

Where are parents buying old versions of the test? Who is selling these old versions, and where did they get them from?

Also, how do you know who had the top scores in a school?

Anonymous wrote:Look the whole application process for the HGC is a sham. Did you know parents are buying old versions of the test so they can prep their child? Also, children accepted do not have to have the top scores in their school, they just need the school team to rank them at the top of their recommendation list. There are ways that the politically connected can get their children into these programs and the system will do their best to deny transparency to cover up these problems.

Your rant sounds like a severe case of sour grapes. Without links and data, your post comes across as mean-spirited and jealous.

Most of the times the only reason the smartest kid in school did not get in HGC is because they bombed in the test (ie - did not score better than the kids who did make it!).

In my DC's HGC class, there is not one kid who does not belong there.

Look the whole application process for the HGC is a sham. Did you know parents are buying old versions of the test so they can prep their child? Also, children accepted do not have to have the top scores in their school, they just need the school team to rank them at the top of their recommendation list. There are ways that the politically connected can get their children into these programs and the system will do their best to deny transparency to cover up these problems.