Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hope most people in AAP do not make a big deal of TJ, as then 80-90% of the AAP kids will be dissapointed. (2500 AAP / grade vs. 480 TJ per class).

Frankly, I do not know what my DD will be interested in when she hits HS, and I do not want her going to TJ. I do not want her spending over an hour per day in transit, vs walking to Madison HS.

This is a question of interests and priorities. If you DD turns out to be interested in math or science and had an opportunity to attend TJ, and is okay with sitting in the bus for two hours a day (by the way, some kids get their homework done on the bus), you probably will change your mind.

Maybe it is because I am not ethnically korean or indian. I am 3rd generation american, and know that what happens in high school really does not matter. Because, the community colleges have open enrollment....and from there, you can transfer into a good school, and go to a great career.

TJ is a great school, but it does not matter after finishing HS.

I am ethnically Korean but most of my friends are not. I don't think race has anything to do with it. All my third generation American friends would not be ok with sending their children to community college. You are setting up such low academic expectations for your daughter. If you are ok with your child going to community college, that is your prerogative.

Anonymous wrote:Scoring well in the second grade may mean intelligence.

But prepping does not help intelligence (it may help the score though).

Of course if you train your child hard to get good scores, then the results are skewed, and it may not mean much.

Anonymous wrote:For those who think that behavior problems do not exist in the AAP classes, just wait. Or better yet, just read through some of the fairly recent and very long threads on the issue.

True. Because what people often forget is the gifted programs often have childrens with SNs in them. Sometimes those SNs come with behaviors that are disruptive. Not all of them, mind you, but some.

Scoring well in the second grade may mean intelligence.

But prepping does not help intelligence (it may help the score though).

Anonymous wrote:Not race, but many first generation americans from countries where kids have one chance to excel push their kids harder at younger ages. Scoring well to get into AAP does not impact long term success....Not getting into TJ does not equate failure, even if you want to be a physicist.

Scoring well likely means intelligence/smartness. It can impact long term success.

Not race, but many first generation americans from countries where kids have one chance to excel push their kids harder at younger ages. Scoring well to get into AAP does not impact long term success....Not getting into TJ does not equate failure, even if you want to be a physicist.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hope most people in AAP do not make a big deal of TJ, as then 80-90% of the AAP kids will be dissapointed. (2500 AAP / grade vs. 480 TJ per class).

Frankly, I do not know what my DD will be interested in when she hits HS, and I do not want her going to TJ. I do not want her spending over an hour per day in transit, vs walking to Madison HS.

This is a question of interests and priorities. If you DD turns out to be interested in math or science and had an opportunity to attend TJ, and is okay with sitting in the bus for two hours a day (by the way, some kids get their homework done on the bus), you probably will change your mind.

Maybe it is because I am not ethnically korean or indian. I am 3rd generation american, and know that what happens in high school really does not matter. Because, the community colleges have open enrollment....and from there, you can transfer into a good school, and go to a great career.

TJ is a great school, but it does not matter after finishing HS.

1. This has nothing to do with ethnicity.
2. I went to high school in US, too. It may or may not matter. It's part of life just like everything else.
Yes community college is an option and often good option depends on situations. Heck you can skip attending high school and just get GED.
Anyways irrelevant to the discussion.
3. Why are you already deciding something for your DD?? Your DD may turn out to be great in math/science, wish to be a scientist/engineer, want to attend TJ.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hope most people in AAP do not make a big deal of TJ, as then 80-90% of the AAP kids will be dissapointed. (2500 AAP / grade vs. 480 TJ per class).

Frankly, I do not know what my DD will be interested in when she hits HS, and I do not want her going to TJ. I do not want her spending over an hour per day in transit, vs walking to Madison HS.

This is a question of interests and priorities. If you DD turns out to be interested in math or science and had an opportunity to attend TJ, and is okay with sitting in the bus for two hours a day (by the way, some kids get their homework done on the bus), you probably will change your mind.

Maybe it is because I am not ethnically korean or indian. I am 3rd generation american, and know that what happens in high school really does not matter. Because, the community colleges have open enrollment....and from there, you can transfer into a good school, and go to a great career.

TJ is a great school, but it does not matter after finishing HS.

Race has nothing to do with it. Yes, kids always have options. But, to deny them an excellent education in high school for wrong reasons does not make much sense. Further, the quality of education matters at any level.

Anonymous wrote:I would expect that those people with clearly average children do it for status and because their children are accessories, not full human beings.

I can imagine the parent of a highly gifted child being pretty obsessed because very gifted children can have serious problems if they aren't challenged and properly supported.

Giftedness is a risk factor. My daughter is not highly gifted, but she is at the level where she is unlikely to have cognitive peers in her class, and that's been the reality the last few years. The other kids can't always relate, and in the past, adults responded to her verbal ability as though her emotional age were equivalent.

The result can be never feeling heard or understood, and I worry about social issues and depression. She clearly feels much freer and happier around other kids who get her, and there are more of those in the gifted program. Also, the lack of challenge can cause her to disengage and fall behind, and that's been a struggle. It's sadly familiar - I spent most of my school years painfully bored and never learned to work as hard as I needed to because the material came to me quickly and apparently by osmosis.

It's not a good thing, and ultimately meant hating and resisting the whole process and just not being willing to slog anymore once I didn't have to. I dropped out of college - a lot of gifted kids do - and didn't go back for a long time.

This experience mirrors mine, except I was in several pull-out programs and other gifted programs over the years (we moved a lot as a kid, some programs were better than others). His father was not identified as gifted until middle school and his learning disability was not identified until high school and he had a horrible, horrible time in school. I hope that my kid's experience in school will be better than either of our experiences.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:AAP in ES => Honors Classes in Middle School => More Honors classes in High School and better chance for TJ admission if in Fairfax County.

Huh? Honors is open enrollment in middle school.

Yes, but is everyone equally prepared for them?

And AAP kids are in AAP Centers in middle school - not honors.

Not true. A lot of AAP kids from Vienna chose to go to Thoreau rather than Luthor Jackson

The number of already identified AAP Center eligible students that stay in AAP Centers in middle school is much greater than the number of already identified AAP Center eligible students that simply take honors classes in FCPS.

Here is an analogy that might put it into perspective.

I have a friend whose child is exceptionally gifted in sports, from a very young age. On every team, the leagues would end up making rules for him only, that restricted him from playing even remotely near his full potential.

Rules such as he was not allowed to raise his arms higher than his shoulders (basketball), couldn't hit the ball into the outfield after a certain number of triples/homers per game (baseball), could only play the minimum amount of time required by the league (he got the least amount of field time on the team). he was used as a coaches helper all the time, rather than being coached himself. His ability level was that much higher than everyone else. This was from a very young age (early elementary) and the differences in ability were exceptional. Playing became a drag to him and he would goof off, cause trouble, etc. The parents tried to get him fair opportunities, the same rules and equal playing time within the regular recreational league. But when that didn't work, they had to search for a select team for him. At the select level, he was still one of the best, but he had teammates at or near his ability level and he was able to grow, be challenged, and learn to love sports.

This is no different. Many of us have kids who are the academic version of my friend's little athlete. We just want our kids to have the opportunity to be challenged and learn in the way that the majority of kids are able to in a regular classroom. We don't want them to be used as tutors and teachers aides on a daily basis, to be tucked in a corner doing independent work every day, to feel they must hide or play down their strengths because they are so different from everyone else.

When my child started AAP, I asked him what he thought about the class. His response was he loved it because he was a regular kid doing the same stuff as everyone else in the class. He had never had clssmates at his level. He spent grades doing work on his own or with one other kids, or tutoring others instead of learning himself. He had spent the previous school year asking his teacher to sneak him his different classwork because he was starting to feel self conscious about being different. I am sure if we stayed on that path he would have started to hide his gifts, and eventually become embarrassed by the difference.

With AAP, he is one of dozens. Nothing different, nothing special. And he loves being in a place where he is not a freak or a novelty, just one of the kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:AAP in ES => Honors Classes in Middle School => More Honors classes in High School and better chance for TJ admission if in Fairfax County.

Huh? Honors is open enrollment in middle school.

Yes, but is everyone equally prepared for them?

And AAP kids are in AAP Centers in middle school - not honors.

Not true. A lot of AAP kids from Vienna chose to go to Thoreau rather than Luthor Jackson

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hope most people in AAP do not make a big deal of TJ, as then 80-90% of the AAP kids will be dissapointed. (2500 AAP / grade vs. 480 TJ per class).

Frankly, I do not know what my DD will be interested in when she hits HS, and I do not want her going to TJ. I do not want her spending over an hour per day in transit, vs walking to Madison HS.

This is a question of interests and priorities. If you DD turns out to be interested in math or science and had an opportunity to attend TJ, and is okay with sitting in the bus for two hours a day (by the way, some kids get their homework done on the bus), you probably will change your mind.

Maybe it is because I am not ethnically korean or indian. I am 3rd generation american, and know that what happens in high school really does not matter. Because, the community colleges have open enrollment....and from there, you can transfer into a good school, and go to a great career.

TJ is a great school, but it does not matter after finishing HS.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:AAP in ES => Honors Classes in Middle School => More Honors classes in High School and better chance for TJ admission if in Fairfax County.

Huh? Honors is open enrollment in middle school.

Yes, but is everyone equally prepared for them?

Is everyone ready to take Algebra in 7th grade? No.

SHOULD everyone be ready to take Algebra in 7th grade? No.

I would say YES, for a majority of kids, by the time they get to middle school they need to be prepared to take Algebra.

You are either Jack Dale or a BASIS DC booster.

The only way all 7th graders would/should be ready to take Algebra is if the definition of what constitutes Algebra was seriously changed and dumbed down. It is not as if all high school graduates should be taking Calc BC and beyond in their senior year.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:AAP in ES => Honors Classes in Middle School => More Honors classes in High School and better chance for TJ admission if in Fairfax County.

Huh? Honors is open enrollment in middle school.

Yes, but is everyone equally prepared for them?

Is everyone ready to take Algebra in 7th grade? No.

SHOULD everyone be ready to take Algebra in 7th grade? No.

I would say YES, for a majority of kids, by the time they get to middle school they need to be prepared to take Algebra.