Anonymous wrote:
I don't see the difference between switching for classes to be in the upper/lower reading group or upper/lower math group. Yes kids are aware, but if it's not talked about too much, it becomes less of a concern.

+ 1. There's also less stigma since it isn't always the same kids in the top or bottom groups. AAP vs. not AAP is a pretty clear line. Top math + middle reading vs. top reading + middle math vs. top everything vs. middle everything isn't as clear of a line. Even kids in the top groups in everything don't self-identify as "top everything" kids, whereas AAP kids most certainly do identify as "AAP kids".

I’m the poster who kept DD out of the AAP Center. I know that my daughter is smart, but brilliant or exceptional - no. She is organized, kind, mature for her age, a hard worker and people-pleaser. Does that make her “gifted”? I don’t think so.
After talking to DD and her teachers, I am confident that she will be properly challenged at her base school. I support my decision not to send her to the center because she has an older sibling who attended for a while. I was not impressed with the high level of stress and competition among the students, or the attitude fostered by the school that AAP students were treated as “special”. Personally, I thought DD would burn out. She is happy, well-adjusted, and excelling at her base school and I feel I made the right decision for her. Each family is entitled to their own opinion.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At our LLIV school, no one talks about AAP. Kids are mixed for half the day and after 2nd grade it is never brought up. The LLIII kids get to be mixed in with the LLIV kids when they qualify on specific subjects. The only parents who are upset are the ones that don't have their kids in any enrichment and think they deserve to be there but they would be upset regardless of what program there would be at the school. I would just stop bringing this up with anyone.

Do you think kids are really that unaware? They know they are in different levels whether they talk about it in AAP terms or not. Silence on the subject seems a little condescending. I see nothing wrong with having an open dialog when appropriate.

I don't see the difference between switching for classes to be in the upper/lower reading group or upper/lower math group. Yes kids are aware, but if it's not talked about too much, it becomes less of a concern.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Do you think kids are really that unaware? They know they are in different levels whether they talk about it in AAP terms or not. Silence on the subject seems a little condescending. I see nothing wrong with having an open dialog when appropriate.

Yes, the systems where students are explicitly ranked by number are much better and less condescending. Except for the suicides, I guess.

???

Anonymous wrote:
Do you think kids are really that unaware? They know they are in different levels whether they talk about it in AAP terms or not. Silence on the subject seems a little condescending. I see nothing wrong with having an open dialog when appropriate.

Yes, the systems where students are explicitly ranked by number are much better and less condescending. Except for the suicides, I guess.

Anonymous wrote:At our LLIV school, no one talks about AAP. Kids are mixed for half the day and after 2nd grade it is never brought up. The LLIII kids get to be mixed in with the LLIV kids when they qualify on specific subjects. The only parents who are upset are the ones that don't have their kids in any enrichment and think they deserve to be there but they would be upset regardless of what program there would be at the school. I would just stop bringing this up with anyone.

Do you think kids are really that unaware? They know they are in different levels whether they talk about it in AAP terms or not. Silence on the subject seems a little condescending. I see nothing wrong with having an open dialog when appropriate.

At our LLIV school, no one talks about AAP. Kids are mixed for half the day and after 2nd grade it is never brought up. The LLIII kids get to be mixed in with the LLIV kids when they qualify on specific subjects. The only parents who are upset are the ones that don't have their kids in any enrichment and think they deserve to be there but they would be upset regardless of what program there would be at the school. I would just stop bringing this up with anyone.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the problem is that AAP is so big that people think if their kid doesnt get in it means their kid looks dumb.

AAP is so big that even the kids who don't get in feel like they must not be smart, and the kids who get in feel like the gen ed kids are dumb. I fully understand why parents of smart kids would worry about their kids not landing in the top 20%. I also understand why parents freak out if their kids are gifted or very smart in one area, but are not well rounded enough to get in. Gen ed kids who are very smart or advanced in language arts will mostly be stuck doing things on the computer or independently reading, rather than receiving attention from the teacher. Gen ed kids who are very smart or advanced in math have no guarantees at all that advanced math will be available to them.

Part of the difference I see between AAP and non-aap classes are expectations. For example, there is more emphasis on proper punctuation, capitalization, spelling in aap for my aap 3rd grader than for my genEd 4th grader. AAP expects kids to do the fundamentals expected of all kids in the past. If you're in a school with a wide range of abilities in GenEd and it is Title I, then it gets more complicated, so bright, highly motivated kids there aren't pushed. They see their peers struggling and think they are doing well -- though they shouldn't compare themselves. What I'm getting at is that GenEd has become more remedial especially if you aren't at a LLIV or AAP center.

Agree!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the problem is that AAP is so big that people think if their kid doesnt get in it means their kid looks dumb.

AAP is so big that even the kids who don't get in feel like they must not be smart, and the kids who get in feel like the gen ed kids are dumb. I fully understand why parents of smart kids would worry about their kids not landing in the top 20%. I also understand why parents freak out if their kids are gifted or very smart in one area, but are not well rounded enough to get in. Gen ed kids who are very smart or advanced in language arts will mostly be stuck doing things on the computer or independently reading, rather than receiving attention from the teacher. Gen ed kids who are very smart or advanced in math have no guarantees at all that advanced math will be available to them.

Part of the difference I see between AAP and non-aap classes are expectations. For example, there is more emphasis on proper punctuation, capitalization, spelling in aap for my aap 3rd grader than for my genEd 4th grader. AAP expects kids to do the fundamentals expected of all kids in the past. If you're in a school with a wide range of abilities in GenEd and it is Title I, then it gets more complicated, so bright, highly motivated kids there aren't pushed. They see their peers struggling and think they are doing well -- though they shouldn't compare themselves. What I'm getting at is that GenEd has become more remedial especially if you aren't at a LLIV or AAP center.

Anonymous wrote:I have a kid who's is in pool and likely to get in. I am dreading this because I have a second child who's in K. After having them in two different places, we only got a year before I know have kids in different schools again.

I am also dreading it because my kids are in before and after care SACC. I think if we go into the center, we're back in waitlist hell.

I hate that our current school doesn't have local level IV. We'd stay, happily. Both the center and the school perform similarly on the SOL.

Our base school does not have Level IV. The center bus picks up and drops off at our base ES and center kids keep doing SACC at the base school.

Anonymous wrote:I think the problem is that AAP is so big that people think if their kid doesnt get in it means their kid looks dumb.

AAP is so big that even the kids who don't get in feel like they must not be smart, and the kids who get in feel like the gen ed kids are dumb. I fully understand why parents of smart kids would worry about their kids not landing in the top 20%. I also understand why parents freak out if their kids are gifted or very smart in one area, but are not well rounded enough to get in. Gen ed kids who are very smart or advanced in language arts will mostly be stuck doing things on the computer or independently reading, rather than receiving attention from the teacher. Gen ed kids who are very smart or advanced in math have no guarantees at all that advanced math will be available to them.

I have a kid who's is in pool and likely to get in. I am dreading this because I have a second child who's in K. After having them in two different places, we only got a year before I know have kids in different schools again.

I am also dreading it because my kids are in before and after care SACC. I think if we go into the center, we're back in waitlist hell.

I hate that our current school doesn't have local level IV. We'd stay, happily. Both the center and the school perform similarly on the SOL.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter was accepted into the AAP Center and we chose not to send her. Kids should be kept in their base schools unless they are truly brilliant and performing multiple grade levels ahead of their peers. Only then should they be educated in a separate setting.

Your kid is brilliant. Recognize that.

Part of the problem is that people really think that being accepted into AAP means their kids are gifted or brilliant. Most kids in AAP are just regular smart kids.

I think most people know their kids well enough to know being found eligible for AAP doesn't mean your kid is gifted. I think the problem is that AAP is so big that people think if their kid doesnt get in it means their kid looks dumb. I'm sure there are a few (especially on DCUM) who actually buy into the whole gifted malarkey, but I think more people care about their kids looking not smart than actually think their kid is gifted. By the way, I don't think kids who aren't found eligible are not smart, it's just my opinion as to the fear that makes so many care about whether their kid is found eligible. Also, I say gifted malarkey to refer to the 15 or so percent of kids who aren't gifted--I know there is a small percent of eligible kids who actually are gifted.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughter was accepted into the AAP Center and we chose not to send her. Kids should be kept in their base schools unless they are truly brilliant and performing multiple grade levels ahead of their peers. Only then should they be educated in a separate setting.

Your kid is brilliant. Recognize that.

Part of the problem is that people really think that being accepted into AAP means their kids are gifted or brilliant. Most kids in AAP are just regular smart kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Right, I mean I just say the same as anything - in school you take to see what you know, what you need to learn, etc.

DD: But it doesn't test anything we've been taught in school.
Me: It's testing to see how you think, how you problem solve.
DD: Is it an IQ test? That's what they do in IQ tests.

Right, sometimes they want to see how you do with material you haven't seen before.
No, it's not an IQ test. They don't give IQ tests in school these days.