Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don't be too confident with DCPS. Seeing will be believing, and I hold little hope that they can ever get it right. DCPS is the biggest obstacle to economic development in this city.

Have you been asleep since 2000 or so? Do you live in Ward 8 and never leave the neighborhood?

Bad schools are mutually exclusive of DC economic development. Period.

Anonymous wrote:These programs sound like fun but they are not the way to provide services to intellectually gifted childre. They are gifted every day - not just for a couple of weeks a year. These children learn faster and in different ways than their pears and should be provided instruction that meets their needs. DC Public Schools doesn't appear to be interested in these kids. I guess the assumption is that their parents can afford private schools?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Former SEM teacher here. SEM teachers are trained every summer at UConn and receive extensive coaching from the UConn outreach staff during the year. Training are also given directly by DCPS. I was very proud of the work that I did with students and was able to recruit law students from Georgetown School of Law to teach a cybersecurity cluster. We had a partnership with the Folger theater and were the only DCPS middle school during my year to present during the Didden Festival. Lastly, interested journalism cluster students were able to be mini reporters for the Washington Informer and interview civil rights giant, Congressman John Lewis. The SEM model allowed us the freedom to explore all of these opportunities. Some of the students were who we would call "gifted" others had strong connections to certain topics or subjects and were able to dive deeply into them. SEM, when implemented properly, works, and can be a great conduit of opportunity for experiential learning.

This is all sounds great and good educational practice, I still have issues with calling it "gifted" that doesn't make any sense to me, how are these children "gifted"? It is such a loaded term and an outdated concept, what does "gifted" even really mean in this day and age when we now recognize that IQ tests are an inaccurate measure of a child's, children learn best when they are "inspired" or "interested in a topic", hands on learning is a great tool, all children learn differently, etc, etc.

I don't know about other schools, but ours does not use the word "gifted" in the context of SEM, nor did the PP SEM teacher above.

In any case, I also think a lot of people on here are confusing 'gifted and talented' programs with magnet academics or AAP-type advanced academics. IME they are very different creatures.

As the heading in the Washington Post is "District introduces gifted programs to push talented students, keep families" you can't blame the readers for being confused as to what exactly the DCPS's model program is.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/district-introduces-gifted-programs-to-push-talented-students-keep-families/2015/06/06/4132f25e-ffc8-11e4-833c-a2de05b6b2a4_story.html?hpid=z3

and the

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Former SEM teacher here. SEM teachers are trained every summer at UConn and receive extensive coaching from the UConn outreach staff during the year. Training are also given directly by DCPS. I was very proud of the work that I did with students and was able to recruit law students from Georgetown School of Law to teach a cybersecurity cluster. We had a partnership with the Folger theater and were the only DCPS middle school during my year to present during the Didden Festival. Lastly, interested journalism cluster students were able to be mini reporters for the Washington Informer and interview civil rights giant, Congressman John Lewis. The SEM model allowed us the freedom to explore all of these opportunities. Some of the students were who we would call "gifted" others had strong connections to certain topics or subjects and were able to dive deeply into them. SEM, when implemented properly, works, and can be a great conduit of opportunity for experiential learning.

This is all sounds great and good educational practice, I still have issues with calling it "gifted" that doesn't make any sense to me, how are these children "gifted"? It is such a loaded term and an outdated concept, what does "gifted" even really mean in this day and age when we now recognize that IQ tests are an inaccurate measure of a child's, children learn best when they are "inspired" or "interested in a topic", hands on learning is a great tool, all children learn differently, etc, etc.

I don't know about other schools, but ours does not use the word "gifted" in the context of SEM, nor did the PP SEM teacher above.

In any case, I also think a lot of people on here are confusing 'gifted and talented' programs with magnet academics or AAP-type advanced academics. IME they are very different creatures.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Former SEM teacher here. SEM teachers are trained every summer at UConn and receive extensive coaching from the UConn outreach staff during the year. Training are also given directly by DCPS. I was very proud of the work that I did with students and was able to recruit law students from Georgetown School of Law to teach a cybersecurity cluster. We had a partnership with the Folger theater and were the only DCPS middle school during my year to present during the Didden Festival. Lastly, interested journalism cluster students were able to be mini reporters for the Washington Informer and interview civil rights giant, Congressman John Lewis. The SEM model allowed us the freedom to explore all of these opportunities. Some of the students were who we would call "gifted" others had strong connections to certain topics or subjects and were able to dive deeply into them. SEM, when implemented properly, works, and can be a great conduit of opportunity for experiential learning.

This is all sounds great and good educational practice, I still have issues with calling it "gifted" that doesn't make any sense to me, how are these children "gifted"? It is such a loaded term and an outdated concept, what does "gifted" even really mean in this day and age when we now recognize that IQ tests are an inaccurate measure of a child's, children learn best when they are "inspired" or "interested in a topic", hands on learning is a great tool, all children learn differently, etc, etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Former SEM teacher here. SEM teachers are trained every summer at UConn and receive extensive coaching from the UConn outreach staff during the year. Training are also given directly by DCPS. I was very proud of the work that I did with students and was able to recruit law students from Georgetown School of Law to teach a cybersecurity cluster. We had a partnership with the Folger theater and were the only DCPS middle school during my year to present during the Didden Festival. Lastly, interested journalism cluster students were able to be mini reporters for the Washington Informer and interview civil rights giant, Congressman John Lewis. The SEM model allowed us the freedom to explore all of these opportunities. Some of the students were who we would call "gifted" others had strong connections to certain topics or subjects and were able to dive deeply into them. SEM, when implemented properly, works, and can be a great conduit of opportunity for experiential learning.

This is all sounds great and good educational practice, I still have issues with calling it "gifted" that doesn't make any sense to me, how are these children "gifted"? It is such a loaded term and an outdated concept, what does "gifted" even really mean in this day and age when we now recognize that IQ tests are an inaccurate measure of a child's, children learn best when they are "inspired" or "interested in a topic", hands on learning is a great tool, all children learn differently, etc, etc.