Hmmm, it sure would be interesting to see the IP addresses of the posts about "Americans and cultures."

They did not originate from this poster and never would.

The sad commentary is that it comes back to this:

FCPS staff members chose to administer the custom form of the CogAT this year after it came to our attention that some students, in previous years, had prepared for the CogAT using the exact form of the CogAT being administered in FCPS.

Parents may read this statement and question the acceptability or worth of CogAT test materials.

LOTS of dust being thrown in the air.
Let's try to distract people from the topic of CogAT test prep!

You should have stayed on tract before you slipped and purged your guts out about other Americans and cultures. But, I'm sure you are feeling a littel better now that you got that off your chest. You can now stop twisting and turning. It was painful to watch and read.

Remenber the A in SAT = aptitude

The sad commentary is changing the exam every year will still yield the same result. The entitled can't even figure out the root cause of their problem.

It has nothing to do with exact form, format, or test questions!

LOTS of dust being thrown in the air.
Let's try to distract people from the topic of CogAT test prep!

And that is why some on this forum perversely opine that Asians don't (or shouldn't) "count" as minorities for the purpose of any affirmative action points.

In a fit of paroxysmal emotional purging the hidden plain truth emerges. The entitled culture feels vulnerable and threatened by the new culture defined by preparation and hard work.

In every zip code in America the children of recent immigrants are outperforming children of the entitled culture. This has created an ever expanding performance and acheivement gap in education as the entitled culture witnesses in every zip code these children taking their self anointed spots in every AAP, gifted program, IB, AP and Honors program in the land.

This is the root cause of this furor. And the entitled culture will go to any unethical length to disrupt this trend -- including voter fraud and suppression.

I agree that teacher observation should be a minimal part of this--although it should be included.

As a teacher in a different system, I always liked looking at the results of standardized tests. When I taught a child who did well in class, but did poorly on a test, I usually figured that the child tested poorly.
However, when a child who was not performing well in class scored high on a test, it was a red flag to me that I needed to do something different.

I do think the standardized tests are good indicators. It bothers me that parents are sending first graders to prep for them. This really does invalidate the tests. We always gave some kind of practice test in the classroom so the kids would understand and be comfortable with the testing procedure. But prepping for the CogAt?--this is just wrong.

One problem I have with the AAP program is that once kids get in it, they are safe. If FCPS is aware that kids are prepping, then they should carefully reevaluate the students every year.

Anonymous wrote:
I just don't believe that there are cultures that teach that it is okay to cheat or scam to get ahead.

I do think that in every culture there are individuals who will cheat or scam to get ahead and will rationalize to justify their activities.

I believe that most people in every culture are mostly honest and good.
Sadly, there exists those who are only out for themselves who will take advantage of the honesty and good will of others.

Yes, those who like to throw a lot of dust in the air in the effort to confuse.

Grades are not reported on the GBRS. The GBRS is about getting a more complete picture of the child's learning style and is used along with test scores. Here are some of the specific characteristics the committee is looking at when completing the form:

1. Exceptional Ability to Learn
?????Exhibits exceptional memory ?????Demonstrates in-depth knowledge ?????Displays persistent, intense focus on one or more topics ?????Is highly reflective and/or sensitive to his/her environment ?????Learns and adapts readily to new cultures ?????Learns quickly and easily ?????Acquires language at a rapid pace ?????Learns skills independently and makes connections without formal instruction

Here's a link to the rest of the form:

http://www.fcps.edu/is/aap/packet/Fillable_AAPGBRSwithCommentary.pdf

As you can see, many different characteristics are noted in terms of frequency of exhibition.

Many of these qualities are not measurable with a standardized test.

Multiple choice question (format and form)

Which culture just crashed the global economy and brought the world down to its knees by way of an in-bred culture of lying, deception and cheating?

A. Western culture
B. America
C. Nigeria
D. Mitt Romney
E. Ireland

WISC score is used nationwide for selecting gifted students.
Teachers opinions(recommendations) play small role.

For exameple,
http://www.davidsongifted.org/youngscholars/Article/Davidson_Young_Scholars___Qualification_Criteria_384.aspx

Honestly, I think in some cultures it is more OK to cheat/scam to get ahead.

Good point. I wonder which culture the experts and historians will claim just crashed the golbal economy. This poster is so daft she has not checked out the mirror as of yet.

The system is imperfect. Einstein would have been assigned a GBRS of 1. He probably would have over-analyzed the FAT similarity questions, or gotten bored and stopped after the third question. Relegated to the unwashed masses in general ed.

Nigeria comes to mind.

You have a very small mind if you have to cross the Atlantic.

You only need to go down K street or travel to Wall Street for the cheaters in the Guiness Book for the world record in cheating.