Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Why not just fund small class sizes of 15-20 ish for all students? That way every class can be mixed ability and teachers will have a manageable enough load to differentiate effectively.

Kids aren’t robots who all learn at the same pace for all topics and all subjects. One kids might “get” the Pythagorean theory immediately but take a bit long to pass fractional indices. Mixed ability classes are much more flexible, allowing kids to go at their own pace.

This would be the right thing to do.

Unfortunately, FCPS is a massive factory-style school system. Kids are widgets to move along the line as efficiently as possible.

And that would require better funding the schools/teachers.

Ignoring the fact that we have a Teacher shortage at this time, are you willing to pay more in taxes to build new schools and to double the staff size across the county?

Absolutely!

x1 billion

I always push to put more money into education - just like the successful areas do. Raise taxes, fund schools.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Why not just fund small class sizes of 15-20 ish for all students? That way every class can be mixed ability and teachers will have a manageable enough load to differentiate effectively.

Kids aren’t robots who all learn at the same pace for all topics and all subjects. One kids might “get” the Pythagorean theory immediately but take a bit long to pass fractional indices. Mixed ability classes are much more flexible, allowing kids to go at their own pace.

This would be the right thing to do.

Unfortunately, FCPS is a massive factory-style school system. Kids are widgets to move along the line as efficiently as possible.

And that would require better funding the schools/teachers.

Ignoring the fact that we have a Teacher shortage at this time, are you willing to pay more in taxes to build new schools and to double the staff size across the county?

Absolutely!

I suspect your attitude would change when your tax bill doubles or more. This is why public education remains underfunded.

Yup. People in the US complain about taxes and then want what most European Countries have in terms of education and services. You point out the tax rate difference and people go “nope”

Fire the overpaid, underworked administrator earning 120k a year and hire 2 front line teachers for 60k!

Done, problem solved, you are welcome !

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Why not just fund small class sizes of 15-20 ish for all students? That way every class can be mixed ability and teachers will have a manageable enough load to differentiate effectively.

Kids aren’t robots who all learn at the same pace for all topics and all subjects. One kids might “get” the Pythagorean theory immediately but take a bit long to pass fractional indices. Mixed ability classes are much more flexible, allowing kids to go at their own pace.

This would be the right thing to do.

Unfortunately, FCPS is a massive factory-style school system. Kids are widgets to move along the line as efficiently as possible.

And that would require better funding the schools/teachers.

Ignoring the fact that we have a Teacher shortage at this time, are you willing to pay more in taxes to build new schools and to double the staff size across the county?

Absolutely!

I suspect your attitude would change when your tax bill doubles or more. This is why public education remains underfunded.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Why not just fund small class sizes of 15-20 ish for all students? That way every class can be mixed ability and teachers will have a manageable enough load to differentiate effectively.

Kids aren’t robots who all learn at the same pace for all topics and all subjects. One kids might “get” the Pythagorean theory immediately but take a bit long to pass fractional indices. Mixed ability classes are much more flexible, allowing kids to go at their own pace.

This would be the right thing to do.

Unfortunately, FCPS is a massive factory-style school system. Kids are widgets to move along the line as efficiently as possible.

And that would require better funding the schools/teachers.

Ignoring the fact that we have a Teacher shortage at this time, are you willing to pay more in taxes to build new schools and to double the staff size across the county?

Absolutely!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Why not just fund small class sizes of 15-20 ish for all students? That way every class can be mixed ability and teachers will have a manageable enough load to differentiate effectively.

Kids aren’t robots who all learn at the same pace for all topics and all subjects. One kids might “get” the Pythagorean theory immediately but take a bit long to pass fractional indices. Mixed ability classes are much more flexible, allowing kids to go at their own pace.

Except even with 20 kids you can have 100 different levels. I am hoping we will start seeing some change with the new reading curriculum being pushed out at the younger grades but you still have Level 1 and 2 ESOL kids in 6th grade who cannot read. I really don’t understand why in middle school these students have specialized ESOL classes for all subjects, but they have 15-20 mins of ESOl instruction in ES.

People buy into the studies about immersion programs and assume that those programs work for all kids at all income levels and not just individual kids in a class or kids with invested parents. They don’t understand that when a significant portion of the class is in the native tongue that the immersion effect decreases and you need a different approach. Immersion programs n FCPS intentionally limit the number of native language speakers to something like 10-20% of the class with the other kids speaking English for a reason. And the parents in those schools are invested parents who are believe that their child can handle the rigor of learning in two languages at the same time. The parents can afford tutors for classes if a child falls behind or move the child into a non-immersion program, that is not the case for ESOL kids.

And then there is the optics, ESOL only classes in ES look like we are trying to separate the white kids out from other kids and it looks like segregation. And that is bad. And segregation is bad but the way we are teaching ESOL in ES is not working for the kids who need to learn English and it is not helping the kids in the class who speak English. Everyone is hurt. A solid ESOL program would move more ESOL kids into the mainstream classroom more quickly with a far better chance of success but it would look bad.

Anonymous wrote:
Why not just fund small class sizes of 15-20 ish for all students? That way every class can be mixed ability and teachers will have a manageable enough load to differentiate effectively.

Kids aren’t robots who all learn at the same pace for all topics and all subjects. One kids might “get” the Pythagorean theory immediately but take a bit long to pass fractional indices. Mixed ability classes are much more flexible, allowing kids to go at their own pace.

Except even with 20 kids you can have 100 different levels. I am hoping we will start seeing some change with the new reading curriculum being pushed out at the younger grades but you still have Level 1 and 2 ESOL kids in 6th grade who cannot read. I really don’t understand why in middle school these students have specialized ESOL classes for all subjects, but they have 15-20 mins of ESOl instruction in ES.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Why not just fund small class sizes of 15-20 ish for all students? That way every class can be mixed ability and teachers will have a manageable enough load to differentiate effectively.

Kids aren’t robots who all learn at the same pace for all topics and all subjects. One kids might “get” the Pythagorean theory immediately but take a bit long to pass fractional indices. Mixed ability classes are much more flexible, allowing kids to go at their own pace.

This would be the right thing to do.

Unfortunately, FCPS is a massive factory-style school system. Kids are widgets to move along the line as efficiently as possible.

And that would require better funding the schools/teachers.

Ignoring the fact that we have a Teacher shortage at this time, are you willing to pay more in taxes to build new schools and to double the staff size across the county?

Anonymous wrote:
Why not just fund small class sizes of 15-20 ish for all students? That way every class can be mixed ability and teachers will have a manageable enough load to differentiate effectively.

Kids aren’t robots who all learn at the same pace for all topics and all subjects. One kids might “get” the Pythagorean theory immediately but take a bit long to pass fractional indices. Mixed ability classes are much more flexible, allowing kids to go at their own pace.

This would be the right thing to do.

Unfortunately, FCPS is a massive factory-style school system. Kids are widgets to move along the line as efficiently as possible.

And that would require better funding the schools/teachers.

Anonymous wrote:
Why not just fund small class sizes of 15-20 ish for all students? That way every class can be mixed ability and teachers will have a manageable enough load to differentiate effectively.

Kids aren’t robots who all learn at the same pace for all topics and all subjects. One kids might “get” the Pythagorean theory immediately but take a bit long to pass fractional indices. Mixed ability classes are much more flexible, allowing kids to go at their own pace.

Fairfax can't hire enough teachers as it is. Plus, name an ES with room for double the class space.

Why not just fund small class sizes of 15-20 ish for all students? That way every class can be mixed ability and teachers will have a manageable enough load to differentiate effectively.

Kids aren’t robots who all learn at the same pace for all topics and all subjects. One kids might “get” the Pythagorean theory immediately but take a bit long to pass fractional indices. Mixed ability classes are much more flexible, allowing kids to go at their own pace.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread confirms yet again that parents the worst thing about AAP.

Correction, the worst thing are the parents whose kids don't get in and then become determined to destroy the program.

My kid got in and I agree with the PP that the parents really are the worst thing about it. I don't want to destroy it. I also think it's become a program for parents to flee gen ed vs. an actual gifted program.

Definitely fleeing gen ed is one of the top reasons IMO. But can you blame people? If your kid has even half a brain at most of these schools, they will just be put in a corner with a computer while the teacher either tries to control the problem kids or tries to teach the kids who probably should have been held back because they're so far behind everyone else.

^ this is exactly why they should kill AAP.

How exactly is that going to help? Do you think some magical tiered system will emerge? Nope. Now everyone loses. Congratulations!

Without AAP, there would be no brain drain and “base” school performance would improve across the board.

You can cluster to differentiate for GT and SN.

Isn't this what Fairfax used to have? It must have changed for a reason.

Parents wanted segregation.

Obviously since that was the point of AAP

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread confirms yet again that parents the worst thing about AAP.

Correction, the worst thing are the parents whose kids don't get in and then become determined to destroy the program.

My kid got in and I agree with the PP that the parents really are the worst thing about it. I don't want to destroy it. I also think it's become a program for parents to flee gen ed vs. an actual gifted program.

Definitely fleeing gen ed is one of the top reasons IMO. But can you blame people? If your kid has even half a brain at most of these schools, they will just be put in a corner with a computer while the teacher either tries to control the problem kids or tries to teach the kids who probably should have been held back because they're so far behind everyone else.

^ this is exactly why they should kill AAP.

How exactly is that going to help? Do you think some magical tiered system will emerge? Nope. Now everyone loses. Congratulations!

Without AAP, there would be no brain drain and “base” school performance would improve across the board.

You can cluster to differentiate for GT and SN.

Isn't this what Fairfax used to have? It must have changed for a reason.

Parents wanted segregation.

Source?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread confirms yet again that parents the worst thing about AAP.

Correction, the worst thing are the parents whose kids don't get in and then become determined to destroy the program.

My kid got in and I agree with the PP that the parents really are the worst thing about it. I don't want to destroy it. I also think it's become a program for parents to flee gen ed vs. an actual gifted program.

Definitely fleeing gen ed is one of the top reasons IMO. But can you blame people? If your kid has even half a brain at most of these schools, they will just be put in a corner with a computer while the teacher either tries to control the problem kids or tries to teach the kids who probably should have been held back because they're so far behind everyone else.

^ this is exactly why they should kill AAP.

How exactly is that going to help? Do you think some magical tiered system will emerge? Nope. Now everyone loses. Congratulations!

Without AAP, there would be no brain drain and “base” school performance would improve across the board.

You can cluster to differentiate for GT and SN.

Isn't this what Fairfax used to have? It must have changed for a reason.

Parents wanted segregation.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread confirms yet again that parents the worst thing about AAP.

Correction, the worst thing are the parents whose kids don't get in and then become determined to destroy the program.

My kid got in and I agree with the PP that the parents really are the worst thing about it. I don't want to destroy it. I also think it's become a program for parents to flee gen ed vs. an actual gifted program.

Definitely fleeing gen ed is one of the top reasons IMO. But can you blame people? If your kid has even half a brain at most of these schools, they will just be put in a corner with a computer while the teacher either tries to control the problem kids or tries to teach the kids who probably should have been held back because they're so far behind everyone else.

^ this is exactly why they should kill AAP.

How exactly is that going to help? Do you think some magical tiered system will emerge? Nope. Now everyone loses. Congratulations!

Without AAP, there would be no brain drain and “base” school performance would improve across the board.

You can cluster to differentiate for GT and SN.

Isn't this what Fairfax used to have? It must have changed for a reason.

They still have it. It’s called AAP and IEP.

They changed it so that parents would have something to complain, I mean, strive for.