Get Schooled

By TheOne

February 7, 2007 08:18 AM | Link to this

Now with all of the advanced programs-Challenge in elementary school, TAG (Talented & Gifted) in middle school, Dual Magnet/Magnet, TAG & Honors claases in high school-I don’t think that moving a child a grade ahead is as necessary as it was before these programs. Most kids can get accelerated/advanced classes and stay at their current grade level…..notice I said most.

By Lee

February 7, 2007 08:20 AM | Link to this

“So what do you do with a child whose skills are above grade level”

Wrong question.

The question should be “Why do we insist on perpetuating these arcane age/grade groupings?” Much better to place the student in an environment with other students of similar aptitude / abilities, IMHO.

The schools have made a vain attempt to do so by implementing Gifted, Honors, College Prep, and other “tracks.”

Bottom line, the schools are designed to herd the masses through. They are ill equipped to handle the gifted and the dull.

By KA

February 7, 2007 08:31 AM | Link to this

If only one student moves ahead I think he or she would feel out of step socially. However, if schools had ability grouping within 3-4 chronological age/grade increments, ex. K-3, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12 I think the age difference wouldn’t be such a problem. Ability grouping would allow the bright students who are ready and willing to learn to be taught on pace with their abilities, and the students who need more time or are not ready would be in classes that allow a more measured progress. Two of my kids have July birthdays and were the younger ones in their classes, but it never bothered them, and they would have been bored if they had been held back. I think you have to know your child’s readiness to mix with older kids, but IMO the bright students will generally thrive in an environment of other bright students.

By holdingAJCaccountable

February 7, 2007 08:51 AM | Link to this

Who gives a d-mn about a kid moving ahead? The law is called No Child Left Behind. Let ‘em watch the History Channel if you want the to learn something.

That’s not the way teachers are; it’s the way education is under George Bush. Thank you NCLB

By a high school mom

February 7, 2007 08:53 AM | Link to this

A child may be ready to enter school at a younger age, but maturity issues can arise in the older grades. Grade skipping is not something I would promote.

My son has a January b’day, so he falls in the middle of the class, age-wise. He has always been an advanced student. A sophomore in high school, he takes AP and honors classes and is in the TAG program. He has always been challenged in the classroom.

Part of the high school experience, hopefully, is to participate in extracurricular activities. Had he advanced a grade, he would never have been able to compete physically. Plus, he would have been far less mature starting high school as a 13 year old.

By Molly

February 7, 2007 08:58 AM | Link to this

I am the mother referred to in the article. Before I made the request to have my child accelerated, I did an enormous amount of research. I suggest that anyone who is interested in this topic read the Templeton National Report on Acceleration (www.nationdeceived.org)

The research clearly favors acceleration for gifted children. A careful, objective evaluation of the child’s academic, social and emotional maturity will help determine whether or not a child is a good candidate for acceleration. The Iowa Acceleration Scale was developed for precisely this purpose.

Many educators and parents are biased against grade skipping because they fear it will harm a child socially or emotional. Spending all of your elementary school years being bored and unchallenged can do a great deal of harm.

On a personal level, I can tell you my daughter has thrived since she skipped a grade. Academically, she is at the top of her new class. The curriculum challenges her (sometimes) and she has learned that she won’t always be able to skate by without effort. She is far happier and much more confident socially now that she has been placed with children whose abilities are more closely matched to her own. Yes, she will be the last in her class to get her driver’s license, but that is a very small price to pay for an appropriate education.

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 09:21 AM | Link to this

Question:

What do you do about kids with Asperger’s Syndrome or other socially developmental delays? (For those that don’t know, AS is a high functioning form of autism) The reason I ask this: AS kids are normally HIGHLY advanced, at least in certain subjects. At the same time, however, they may be very behind socially. Theoretically you could have a 6 year old 1st grader out performing 15 year old “average” freshmen. Yet socially this same 6 year old is much closer to a 3 year old. Do you put him in Freshman classes simply because he can do the work?

Another point: “Advanced” kids generally take care of themselves if they have parental support. History Channel, Discovery channel, Military channel, and a few others are AMAZING things, but even before them an advanced child would generally find things to interest them, with or without teacher support. (For example, I began studying Ebola virus in 7th grade social studies after seeing an article about a recent outbreak in US News and World Report. My youngest bro - a diagnosed AS kid - can do sports stats or any geography you ask him and knows it INSTANTANEOUSLY.)

So as to what to do I say this: Parents be supportive. Teachers be encouraging, but focus your time on the ones that NEED the time focused on them. Students persue your interests, even if you have to do it after school.

By KA

February 7, 2007 09:36 AM | Link to this

Jeff, NO, you do not put that child in a HS class! I would educate that child at home. It seems very cruel to me to place a profoundly socially handicapped but bright child in a setting that will further challenge his social interactions.

By Molly

February 7, 2007 09:47 AM | Link to this

Jeff -
Contrary to popular belief, gifted children also NEED time focused on them. It isn’t fair or appropriate to ask the gifted child to “take care of themselves.” Advanced students deserve a curriculum that is appropriately paced for their abilities, and deserve teachers who will help them reach their full potential.

A decision to accelerate a child is based on the child’s individual needs - academic, social and emotional. A child with Asperger’s syndrome obviously has unique needs both academically and socially that need to be addressed on a case by case basis.

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 09:50 AM | Link to this

KA:

I don’t know how any other “advanced” students feel, but I ALWAYS felt - particularly when hitting adolescence - that I had three different ages: an emotional one, a physical one, and a mental one. The mental one was always far BEYOND the physical one, and the emotional one was almost always way BEHIND the physical one. This conundrum enabled me to talk intelligently about academic subjects with adults when I was as young as 3rd grade, yet I still had the emotions of a pre-schooler. (As noticed by one memorable episode in particular following a loss in the 5th grade spelling bee!)

Sorry y’all…. personally interesting topic for me today!

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 09:55 AM | Link to this

Molly:

I’m telling you what I experienced. And I was always FINE when left alone. Give me a book, I’llr ead it and learn it. I’ll ask questions if I have any problems. But overall, the teacher did NOT have to worry about me learning the material… I simply got bored if FORCED to pay attention to (what I felt to be) MULTIPLE redundant explanations.

From what I have seen, the belief that “gifted children NEED time focused on them” is HOGWASH that PARENTS insist on… not the kids. It is a selfish attitude that not only overworks the teacher, but also takes away from the people that truly need the extra time.

By KA

February 7, 2007 09:58 AM | Link to this

Jeff, And you also have AS?

By pjj3

February 7, 2007 10:00 AM | Link to this

Molly - thank you for sharing this information re: nationdeceived.org and the Iowa Acceleration Scale. Acceleration can be a wonderful solution for advanced/gifted students. We live in a rural county in N. Georgia and my son was the first to be evaluated with this scale. He skipped 4th grade and is thriving in 5th grade. I was extremely impressed with the process that our system went through to find a more appropriate place for my son. I hope that others will follow our lead in the quest to craft educational plans for gifted learner.

By KA

February 7, 2007 10:07 AM | Link to this

I have three very bright kids, who I sent to public school, mostly for socialization, because they are motivated learners and soaked up learning at school and home, and have done very well in college, too. Jeff, there are not many kids in school who are perfectly or even well suited academically, emotionally and socially for the grade or group they are associated with. That’s LIFE!!! Who on this blog did not feel out of step in school at one time, or ALL the time? Or for that matter who feels perfectly placed in their jobs, with friends or family? I would guess that most of us have experienced that you may have success in your career but hate your job occasionally, that through life you go in and out of freindships and that family, well you can’t pick your family members and they just are what they are…. IMO life is just one big balancing act.

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 10:09 AM | Link to this

It was never diagnosed, and by the time my parents had heard of it - in regards to my youngest bro - I was too old for a diagnosis of it. That said, since he is SOOOOO similar to me, we are pretty sure I do, but like I said, it was never officially diagnosed.

By wwww

February 7, 2007 10:10 AM | Link to this

Jeff:

Huh? Gifted kids don’t need time spent on them in the classroom? Surely you can’t be for real.

It seems that, when you refer to your personal experiences, you are pretty much always the exception to every rule. Maybe you should stop using your experiences as suggestions for how to treat others.

Gifted students are STILL students, and still need to be challenged and guided just like any other student.

By Molly

February 7, 2007 10:11 AM | Link to this

Jeff, you seem to miss the point. When the gifted child is accelerated, the teacher is no longer overworked trying to focus attention on that child. That child can happily fit in with the rest of the class, once they are appropriately placed. Acceleration makes the teacher’s job easier, because they no longer have to spend as much time differentiating instruction to keep the gifted child working productively.

By Lee

February 7, 2007 10:17 AM | Link to this

Here’s an example of ability grouping:

When I placed my youngest daughter in private school in the 7th grade, she never had taken a foreign language. So, in her Spanish 1 class, there were 6th, 7th, and 8th graders in the same class. The more advanced 8th graders were “sent up the hill” to the high school to attend specific classes in which they were advanced.

By Kelly

February 7, 2007 10:19 AM | Link to this

Jeff brings up a common misconception that society (and many teachers/administrators) have about gifted kids; that they are going to be just fine on their own. Twenty percent of the students who drop out of high school test in the gifted range. Considering the percentage of people who are gifted in the general population, dropout rates for gifted kids are much, much higher than they should be.

My son Blake is the child photographed for the article, and I’ve been advocating to have him accelerated. I’m also a certified teacher. I’ve done the research on gifted education and learned that the National Association for Gifted Children considers acceleration the be the most effective intervention for gifted children. I’ve also read the Templeton Report on Acceleration and, from my research, concluded that acceleration was our best chance for Blake get what all children need; an appropriate education, one which will allow him to be challenged in the classroom and to learn the frustration tolerance and work ethic he will need if he is to reach his full potential.

I moved my son to Laurel Ridge Elementary School after watching what can happen to advanced kids who don’t receive an appropriately challenging curriculum at school. Blake went from being a happy and interested child to pleading with me to homeschool him, not wanting to go to school and being extremely frustrated. My daughter went from loving school to dreading it when she was forced by an inflexible 2nd grade teacher to do work that she already knew and was not allowed to substitute a more challenging curriculum, even when I was willng to provide that curriculum. I’ve been to half-day workshops where I’ve already known all of the material being taught, and the waste of my time was maddening. Before we changed schools my kids literally went weeks without learning anything new at school. Things are better now, but when Blake gets 100% on most of his work, he isn’t being challenged enough. This is not the fault of his teacher, who is wonderful and does what she can to challenge Blake, nor does it mean the curriculum is too easy. We don’t blame the JV coach if a kid plays basketball so well that he is moved up to the varsity team. The problem is simply that Blake is capable of work on a 3rd grade level and stuck in a 1st grade classroom. His teacher can not and should not be expected to write an entirely new curriculum for him. Acceleration also helps mitigate the effects having a teacher who is unwilling or unable to let children work at their own pace. Blake’s teacher now is very willing to be flexible, but we haven’t always been so lucky.

DeKalb County is worried about letting kids move ahead because of concerns about social and emotional consequences of acceleration. There is no peer-reviewed research that supports this (and actually research suggests that in addition to the great strides made academically, acceleration results in improvement socially and emotionally as well), and Blake is doing fine in his subject-matter acceleration with the 2nd grade.

Policy decisions need to be informed by research and not based in myths and misconceptions. What we really should be worried about is the negative consequences of not accelerating, both for the children who are not allowed to learn at their own pace, but also for society at large. As things stand, the kids most likely to learn the least in school are those who are most capable of learning.

By ECLB

February 7, 2007 10:20 AM | Link to this

As parents of 2 gifted (one is PG, the other as yet, untested) we have struggled as a family for years to have our children receive an appropriate education for them. I suppose that for a great many bright, high achieving kids, they will be fine, left to their own devices and with parents who can help to support their extra curricular interests.

With attitudes such as Jeff’s, it’s no wonder gifted education in the US has declined. I suppose you would also like for the sports prodigies to be left playing with their age peers, simply because if they are so great, they will always be that way, regardless of appropriate team placement. Oh wait, that’s right—in sports you have U-(insert age) teams, so that a gifted baseball player is able to play with kids several years ahead because that’s where his talents lie. Just as their is a spectrum of learning disabled kids (degrees of disability), there is a spectrum of gifted kids. The article that was mentioned is referring to kids who are not just bright, high achieving, low- to moderate gifted kids. Highly and profoundly gifted kids are working several years ahead, and often feel isolated from their age peers because they are so different. The IOWA acceleration scale uses objective measurements to determine if a child is a good candidate for acceleration. IMO, reading two grade levels ahead (or even more) is not necessarily reason enough to move a child ahead. However, if they are performing across all subjects 3+ years ahead, perhaps their time would be better spent a year or two ahead? For kids gifted in one area, subject acceleration can work wonderfully. With gifted education being eliminated from budgets because of NCLB and the pressure to focus on the low performing kids, more and more parents are opting out of the public system to give their children the appropriate education they deserve. With judicious use of the IOWA acceleration scale, perhaps more highly gifted and profoundly gifted kids would be able to have their needs met, and if warranted, move ahead to an appropriate placement.

By Janine

February 7, 2007 10:33 AM | Link to this

Molly…After more than 30 years in elementary and middle school classroom it is my feeling that “differentiating instruction” which has forced teachers to be all things to all students has caused many of the problems we have today in our schools. It is inefficient and ineffective and is as destructive as having a teacher giving instruction outside his/her field of training and expertise. As many of the posters above have said, ability grouping is the most effective and efficient way to educate our students. However, since that is not the PC way of today, I agree with your way.

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 10:38 AM | Link to this

Kelly:

Your children MAY be ready for it academically. I’m not saying kids aren’t. (Matter of fact, I’m saying quite the opposite: Academically, they are often COMPLETELY ready and COMPLETELY able to handle the requirements.)

What I AM saying is this: When you accelerate a student, you are putting them with students at least a year ahead of them physically. Which means that when these kids start hitting the various life changes, you child will still be a year from it. This produces IMMENSE psychological and emotional turmoil. And it CAN destroy your child.

Let me give an example: You break your ankle. Doc puts you in a cast for 6 weeks and on crutches for 9, then an air brace for 3 more weeks. Total of 18 weeks spent with some kind of assistive device. The Doc knows your body because he’s studied all the various academic disciplines and he’s dealt with other people’s bodies for 20 years. But you say “I know my own body. I know what I can handle.” So 2 weeks after he takes the cast off, you’re walking around without any assistive devices. 2 weeks after that, you’re now running and doing everything you did before you broke your ankle. You’re a full 8 weeks ahead of schedule. And you’re GREAT. Man, you’re ankle has never felt better! 15 years pass. You’re in a minor accident that hurts your ankle, feels like a minor sprain. But you’re old now, so you decide to go to the Doc just to make sure. He looks at the X-ray. He’s surprised you’re able to walk at all, because your ankle is a complete mess of scar tissue, bone fragments, and torn ligaments. You tell him “But it was just a minor accident. How did all that happen?” Remember 15 years ago when you thought everything was so great with your ankle? You didn’t see the inside. You couldn’t feel the processes that take time to make a true heal. So while you THOUGHT you were ready, you really weren’t.

Even though a child may show every outward sign of being ready, we MUST give them the TIME to mature. Pushing them hard and fast… it could lead to far more damage than we will EVER know.

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 10:45 AM | Link to this

ECLB:

Sports prodigies also don’t spend 8 hours of their day around these older kids.

By Janine

February 7, 2007 10:47 AM | Link to this

With Dekalb and other districts now mainstreaming ESOL and Special Ed. students, it is an unavoidable certainty that instruction for even the well behaved, academically average students will be diminished. Through no fault of the teacher, not only will the bright and gifted students in the classroom be set aside so that the teacher can deal with the monumental needs of the special needs and limited English proficient students, but also the average hard working student will be on the back burner.

By Stacey

February 7, 2007 10:48 AM | Link to this

My son is now being tested for Challenge in his school (he’s in Kindergarten). My husband and I started reading to him (literally) before he was born and we turn everything into a learning experience.

KA…I agree with your concept of ability grouping. While my child excels in most areas, in others, he is clearly 6 years old. He’s getting to the point where he clams up around other kids because they think he’s “weird” because he sounds like Jimmy Neutron (Boy Genius) half the time.

Jeff…Thank you for offering insight on your condition. You’ve mentioned it before but I’m really not familiar with it. I can actually see a lot of my son in your description (I’m not trying to diagnose him) so I am particularly interested in your posts today.

By Zoe

February 7, 2007 10:49 AM | Link to this

I currently teach several students that were skipped in elementary and middle school. They are now in high school (I teach multiple grades) Every student I teach that was skipped a grade at some point is currently in the top 10 (top 10, not top 10%) of his or her class. Skipping a grade is a viable option, it allows a student to function at an appropriate level. I have noticed that many people that are bitter about gifted programs were usually tested, but did not qualify. Gifted kids do need to be treated differently since they function differently. As a previous blogger mentioned, a huge number of dropouts are gifted. So many people have the attitude “the kid is gifted, he doesn’t need help, he’ll get it on his own.” That is not true. Jeff, I suggest you take the gifted endorsement classes and learn what giftedness trully is before you comment about gifted children. They are considered special education, just on the right side of the bell curve, not the left.

By Zoe

February 7, 2007 10:51 AM | Link to this

I should also mention the students I currently teach that skipped a grade are all athletes, class officers and leaders of various student organizations. I highly doubt that your theory that skipping a grade stunts their emotion growth. Skipping isn’t for everyone, that is why they are trying to create a uniform policy. But in some cases, it is warrented.

By Janine

February 7, 2007 10:52 AM | Link to this

Jeff I am familiar with all of the harmful, but perhaps stereotypical, results of acceleration that you mention. However, would you not agree that the psychological aspects of acceleration are best left to the parent and not the government? [Even if the parent does not meet our own personal description of a “good ” parent.]

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 10:54 AM | Link to this

Zoe:

I was tested AND IDENTIFIED as Gifted long before the current watered down standards were implemented. (If you’ve been teaching for a while, go back and look the the standards for the 91-92 school year, which is when I was identified.)

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 11:00 AM | Link to this

Janine:

In my example of the broken ankle, the parent IS “you”, the child is “your body”, and the “Doc” is a team of a counselor, a psychiatrist and all of your child’s teachers.

It is my FIRM belief that parents push their children FAR beyond what the child is truly ready for, simply because the child is capable of doing it. (Though I must admit that in my own case, when everything happened my parents in fact did everything they could to shield me from it. I just know my mom does in fact read this blog, and I don’t want her to get the sense that I am blaming her for anything!)

By Kelly

February 7, 2007 11:30 AM | Link to this

It really is a matter of not holding kids back rather than pushing them forward. These kids crave challenge and learning. They want to spend hours doing puzzles, reading, math, etc. My son taught himself to read because he wanted to, or rather, he just picked it up from being read to. When I brought home a Greg Tang book on multiplication for his older sister he asked me to read it to him and from it learned to do multiplication before starting kindergarten. It seemed silly to say “Oh no you don’t. I won’t allow multiplication till you are at least 7!” I’ve let him lead the way and tried not to get in his way.

As for Jeff’s comment on the horrible mistake I’m making. Well, some of the administrators in DeKalb have similar concerns. However, as I said in my previous post, there is no credible research that support this notion, and indeed, research suggests we should be worried about not letting kids move at the pace they are capable of. I’m going to make decision in the best interest of my children based upon my knowledge of my kids and their needs and on the unequivical findings of the research on acceleration, and not based upon warnings from those unfamilar with the research or stories about people who knew someone once who was accelerated and they had problems. And we tend to blame any problems someone who is accelerated has on the acceleration, but don’t consider failure to accelerate the problem when our most able students drop out of school, become depressed, etc.

BTW, others who are concerned about this issue may contact me at kelsoren@gmail.com. We have a group of parents whose goal is advocacy for gifted kids.

Kelly

By Ernest

February 7, 2007 11:48 AM | Link to this

I see this simply as a choice that should be available to the parents and the child. I agree with Janine’s comment @ 10:52. One size does not fit all. I believe this could result in more parents supporting the school, especially if they believe their child is being challenged academically.

As long as the parent’s are making an informed decision, one would hope the school system would provide the accomodations. If it turns out not to be in the best interest of the child, the parents can make their decison accordingly.

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 11:50 AM | Link to this

Kelly:

I’m not saying what I’m saying based on me KNOWING another person. I’m saying what I’m saying as ONE OF THE KIDS AFFECTED. Research is just like statistics: it can be made to tell you anything you want it to. I’m not saying that ALL kids go through the crap I went through. But I’m saying that enough of them do to make it a valid issue. Adults tend to look at things “in the big picture”. Well, your forget about the HADES your child lives through day to day!

One of the saddest speeches I ever heard was the valedictorian’s speech at my middle bro’s HS graduation. In it, she says “Amidst all the clubs and activities, the classes and the games, the teachers, the administrators, the part time jobs and full time boyfriends…” and continues: “I did All of that, but I forgot to do the one thing you are supposed to do in high school: have fun being a teenager.”

Ya know, the movie Ghostrider is coming out soon. One of the early taglines for it (and a modified version is currently used) is “His Curse will become His Power” For many years I thought of my vivid memories of my childhood as a curse - and in some cases, still do. But it is DIRECTLY BECAUSE of the vividness of those memories that I have been able to help the kids that I have helped. In my one year of teaching, I made a lot of mistakes. I ain’t gonna deny that. But I also reached a LOT of kids that teachers like you, Kelly, will NEVER be able to get NEAR, let alone impact.

By JustMe

February 7, 2007 11:56 AM | Link to this

The real question, IMHO, is…. how can we serve students with extreme diversities? Do we still toot the inclusion horn? Do we toot the tracking horn?

What is the best answer for our students?

By Homeschool Mom

February 7, 2007 11:57 AM | Link to this

I homeschool my daughter after the schools (she’s been to five of them now) refused to provide any acceleration of any kind. By her 7th birthday, she had completed a sixth grade math course through Johns Hopkins (EPGY). *I never pushed or pulled my daughter to do this level of math…in fact, I tried everything to actually slow her down.

The schools chose to ignore my daughter’s IQ score, standardized test scores, portfolio of work. The schools told me to homeschool as they could offer nothing to my kid.

Long story short, we homeschool now and we’ve never been happier. I wish my child had never set foot in a traditional mind-numbing school environment. My daughter puts it best, “I get to use my brain at home!!”

HM

By decaturparent

February 7, 2007 12:11 PM | Link to this

Just me, the best answer for the gifted kids is tracking. The best answer for the average and below kids is inclusion. Public schools, especially under NCLB, exist only to serve the average and below average, although they will tell you otherwise all day long.

Therefore, we will never get away from inclusion absent some sort of very creative class lawsuit.

By SET

February 7, 2007 12:14 PM | Link to this

This is an interesting problem that the public schools cannot handle.

We seem to have a very bright kid - if we move that kid to classes with older students - especially if the child is a girl - we risk a possibly dangerous social miss-match. There are usually not enough very bright kids to give them a classroom of their own with similar age students.

One thing to do is to remove this bright child from the public school and get her into a more exclusive school where the baseline IQs are higher. So she will not be as far off the norms even if she is still higher.

This is the most common solution especially for bright black children who are so much in demand in the exclusive schools here in CA that they are often given full scholarships in order to acquire them for that particular school. “Ordinary” black children don’t fare well in the exclusive schools and the schools for political reasons have to have some black kids.

I have seen child prodigys wind up at places like UC Berkeley and (I think) Stanford Univ - as young as 14?? I seem to remember such a case at Berkeley where the parent accompanied the child to classes. It’s an extreme solution.

Dr. Edward Teller (father of the Atom Bomb), until his death at a very old age, taught a physics (and his view of the world?) to a group of select high school students every semester. The kids were picked from across Northern CA each year. Lucky Kids…

By JustMe

February 7, 2007 12:35 PM | Link to this

decaturparent -

I understand your answers. The problem is then that we cannot have the “best answer” for all kids. Which should we chose?

NCLB favors the average and below average student over the high-achiever.

For me, I think that tracking is the way to go. By “tracking”, I would even follow a similar path of the Chinese…. have some way to determine a students strengths/weakness and likes/dislikes in middle school. Then, provide a path to suit that student.

For example, a student may love to work with their hands and also be great in math but really hates school and isn’t a good test taker - so maybe that student would make a great carpenter. Why not then provide an educational path to teach that child the trade of carpentry (math classes, english classes, shop classes, etc.)? By the time the child completes high school, the student would be well qualified for a great carpentry job. Would this disqualify them for college? NO! Would this force that child into carpentry? NO! All this does is produce a student with a high school diploma that is ready for the work force, immediatly, if they so chose.

This is my pipe dream of a public educational system.

By catlady

February 7, 2007 01:23 PM | Link to this

My experience: I was bored out of my mind until college, when I could take more advanced courses.

My children: all 3 were years above grade average. The oldest 2 (both September birthdays) should have been advanced, but there was no provision for it unless I took them out of state or to a private school (not available). They would have been fine in all ways, and would have been at the top of their classes. The youngest, an August birthday, would have been fine academically but, as the youngest already, did not need the additional burden of being two years younger than her classmates, so I just tried to provide the most opportunities outside the classroom. In middle school there was more diferentiation so she could go on, and high school was ideal because she could choose classes that challenged her.

So saying, I don’t think it should be an automatic thing when a parent says, “He is bored” that we accelerate the child. Many kids claiming “boredom” cannot do the grade level work. But it certainly should be an option. In our drive for mediocrity, accelerated by NCLB, the most advanced students are really, really penalized. Let’s face it, many of these kids will be the intellectual leaders of tomorrow, but they don’t get much of any educational advantages. It makes me sick. The loss to our country is tremendous. I fear for us.

By catlady

February 7, 2007 01:27 PM | Link to this

One more note: in my 33 years of teaching, I have had less than a dozen students for whom I think acceleration was appropriate. Please remember that I teach in a generally lower SES, rural area, and the incidence of advanced students is probably lower here than many other places.

By Sandy M

February 7, 2007 02:08 PM | Link to this

No one argues that a child with an IQ 40+ points below ‘average’ has special needs, so why is it so hard for so many people to understand that the same is true for those who are 40+ points above average??? The original writer showed typical prejudice by labeling her sister a ‘smarty pants’ and a ‘bookworm’ and lack of research by assuming her sister’s ‘peers’ were her own age. My son - who skipped 3 grades (4th, 6th, 8th) did not find peace and lack of bullying until he entered high school. Closer peers were found when he entered college fulltime at 15, but his truest peers are his classmates in a highly specialized tech school he is now completing in the Air Force - which he entered last summer at age 18.

As a 25 year teaching veteran who taught gifted classes, I found some of the most ignorant and prejudiced opponents to my son’s educational needs to be my own professional ‘peers’. They made many assumptions based not on research or related professional experience, but on past prejudices from their own school days. While bright high achievers need and benefit from advanced classes, highly gifted learners need the opportunity to move at a pace in accordance with their own unique needs. Our nation is losing a valuable human resource by holding back these children.

As to social issues - ever wonder why so many highly gifted kids are so socially inept? It’s because they are often socially ostracized by jealous classmates and teachers who can’t deal with the differences and often resort to bullying. If you can’t associate with true peers at least some of the time, it’s pretty frustrating to be your own island. Which brings up another documented reason to get highly gifted children to an appropriate level as soon as possible - there is a disproportionate rate of suicide among the highly gifted young people as they slowly realize the futility and prejudice they face…

Appropriate education isn’t elitism - it’s a guarantee that every child has the opportunity to do his or her very best… Shouldn’t that be everyone’s goal?

For information on a case study of acceleration, please check: http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/portfolio.htm

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 02:16 PM | Link to this

Sandy:

So who were my “true” peers when I was physically 12, emotionally 6, and mentally 18?

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 02:26 PM | Link to this

Look y’all, I finally figured out a way to make sense of my point (and maybe y’all can understand it better this way):

A person (anyone) has three ages. Mental, Physical, and Emotional. MOST people operate with some level of “normalcy”, ie all three ages are close to each other. For me to accept that a child should be moved up any number of grades, BOTH the emotional and mental ages would have to be higher than the physical age, and higher to the same degree.

For example: Let’s say you have two 12 year old kids, A and B. A is extremely bright, but is emotionally normal. A’s mental age is 18, yet A’s emotional age is 13. I would argue that A should NOT be moved. On the other hand, take B. B is also extremely bright. B’s mental age is 19. B is also very mature for B’s physical age, and B’s emotional age is 15. I would allow B to move to 9th grade, where “normal” is 15.

By Joy in Teaching

February 7, 2007 03:09 PM | Link to this

I just clicked on here for the first time today. Jeff, how on earth does a teacher find time during the school day to post on a blog TEN times?

Sheesh.

Perhaps if you spent a little more time with your students and less time responding to a blog, you’d have a little more success in your classroom.

By Sandy M

February 7, 2007 03:17 PM | Link to this

If I could tell all parents one thing to help any child at any level, it would be this: You care more about your child than anyone else in the world, so do what you feel is in their best interest - regardless of the challenge!

However, the caveat is - don’t make plans without making a painfully accurate assessment of exactly what is is that your child needs. Many bright high achievers are put in ‘gifted’ classes solely for enrichment at the expense of a sound education because educators and parents assume they have, or can, pick up what they miss on their own. Realistically, it just doesn’t happen. Bright high achievers deserve to be challenged with advanced classes and do well with their age peers.

Truly highly gifted students need and deserve the same consideration with serious differentiation in their education.

Jeff - you seem to have had a miserable experience… I’m really sorry for that, but the fact remains that the majority of students who are appropriately placed/challenged are happier in the short and the long run. Those of us who have watched our happy, motivated, alert children turn sullen and unmotivated - even combative - as a result of stupefying boredom (and often physical and verbal abuse), have also seen a major improvement with appropriate placement.

It remains for parents to provide whatever activities are necessary - particularly in the social realm as a child cannot be expected to take himself away from the home or school to place himself in appropriate activities.

If I could make one change in education today - I would push for flexible pacing which allows for multi-age grouping with placement at appropriate skill levels and progression to the next skill level as soon mastery is determined.

By stephendecatur

February 7, 2007 03:25 PM | Link to this

I have two kids who are gifted though not highly gifted (both about 125-130 IQ). What has worked so far for us is being in a system where a large number of kids are gifted and a significant number below that are high achievers. Our system is about 1/4 to 1/3 gifted ID’d and probably at least 50% high achieving.

If a kid is way over the top (over 150 IQ), even this might not work.

Expectations still vary a bit from school to school here, but by and large, the situation forces the teacher and the administration to deal with gifted kids. If you have a class of 25, you can’t leave 8 to 12 of the gifted/high achievers to fend for themselves while you deal with the “NCLB bubble kids.” You will have absolute chaos in your class if you leave that many gifted kids to themselves.

I think the best situation would be broader grade spans, especially in a district where you have a lot of gifted and a good amount of special ed, but not much in between. That way, you could have your “balanced classes,” you could include your special ed and you could move a large chunk of high achievers up as necessary.

But that would mess up the NCLB dogs because the idiots wouldn’t be able to figure out how to test a kid if they couln’t assign a number to him. We will never see a meaningful education reform until NCLB is dumped.

See www.educatorroundtable.com

By JustMe

February 7, 2007 03:59 PM | Link to this

Jeff,

I believe that the issue most have with your approach is that you divide your 3 areas equally. Most think/hope that the school is primarily concerned with the academic/mental part of the child’s development, and this is what most believe should be the determining factor in if a student should be moved ahead.

The question many have asked is: why should a child that is bored because they already know the content be forced to sit there for a year before they advance?

By ECLB

February 7, 2007 04:10 PM | Link to this

Actually Jeff, I doubt many of the posters on the blog missed your point. Perhaps you are missing many of ours, however. No one is disputing that one can look at development with multiple criteria, and come to a multiple ages conclusion for each person. But for a school system to deny all students the opportunity to learn at the level appropriate for them is ridiculous. Coming up with a set of procedures to follow in order to determine whether or not a child should be grade accelerated should take into account all of those factors, and weigh them accordingly. Perhaps some of those “social misfits” from our youth wouldn’t have been so maligned by their peers if they felt they had true peers. And, if you have a separate diagnosis, like AS, obviously, that should be taken into account.

There are so many forms of gifted education, and subject acceleration shouldn’t be discounted as an option either, especially when the emotional development doesn’t come close to the level of the social/academic/etc. Jeff, I highly recommend that you find a copy of the IOWA acceleration manual. You will find that it is not just a test score indicator of whether a child should be grade skipped. Many factors are considered, parental involvement, physical and social wellbeing, etc. No one here is advocating that every gifted, or even every highly gifted, child be grade skipped. But that option should exist for the few who will truly benefit from a well-crafted policy that is objective and takes as many aspects of the individual child into account as possible.

By SET

February 7, 2007 04:24 PM | Link to this

Sandy M’s comment made me think about another problem. If the bright child is black - their safety is at risk in a typical urban public school. The black avg IQ is 85. Throw in a black child with an IQ of 115 or higher - 2 std deviations higher than the black norm (but equal to the Asian/Jewish avgs) and there is going to be trouble, especially after puberty.

Yes we do have schools for the retarded so they aren’t preyed upon in regular schools. The brights deserve no less protection. And there are fewer of them.

A very bright Asian child - for example an Asian/White mixed child (I’ve known several) can be accelerated easily with less physical danger.

Black children of all ages don’t like other black children who are “acting white” in their eyes. They will physically attack them given the atmosphere (black dominated schools) to do so. In such an environment the bright child hides themself and their true talent.

On the other hand bright black children dropped into all white schools have a different experience when they perform and behave other than expected by that group. Either way it would help if the adults involved got a clue and understood the dynamics.

And most importantly, stop thinking that all people (ethnics) are the same. People are different.

By 30 Year Teacher

February 7, 2007 05:01 PM | Link to this

Am I the only one who sees abbreviated posts but when I click on the entire post the only thing that comes up is Jeff’s 2:26 post? Would definitely like to read all of the entries!

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 05:14 PM | Link to this

30:

Nope, happening to me too!

By Ernest

February 7, 2007 05:15 PM | Link to this

Glad you mentioned that, 30 Year Teacher. I noticed the same thing and thought is was just a slow day. Maybe they are having server problems at the AJC today.

By catlady

February 7, 2007 05:17 PM | Link to this

Bridgett, what is the matter with the blog? It is not displaying my colleague-bloggers’ most recent entries!

By mmm

February 7, 2007 05:19 PM | Link to this

What else does the IOWA acceleration scale take into account?

I have two 99 percentile composite kids in a Dekalb public school, but I have no desire to push to have them skip a grade.

It is my understanding that for kindergarten and first grade there are specific age requirements. So jumping from 1st to 2nd grade or K to 1st would run afoul of state law. I am aware of a case where a child skipped 2nd, and I am hopeful that it will work in that specific case for the long term.

But I fear that often it is about the cues that the parent give the child about that they shouldn’t fit in, that make is a self-fulfilling emotional mess. I wish that the article could have been researched and presented in a way that recognizes that the parent isn’t the only “expert” here.

By thomas

February 7, 2007 05:51 PM | Link to this

The we should be asking is “what is a gifted student?”

In both my personal experience and professional career as a teacher, working in both low income and upper middle income settings, I have found the term “gifted” to be applied only to high achieving students from middle classed families.

What that previous 39 word sentences means in simpler terms is this— WE ONLY THINK OF GIFTED KIDS AS WHITE CHILDREN FROM THE SUBURBS.

In my life, I have seen giftedness, intelligence, and high achievement from whites, blacks, Asians, Latinos, and other nationalities. But for some reason, we only want to put resources for high achievers in suburban schools.

The longer I live, the more I realize that we as a nation need to cultivate our natural talent. We waste people in this country. We waste talent. We throw people away. Yet we want to turn around and import people and export jobs and work to other peoples.

At this point I am less concerned about stroking Samantha and Todd’s ego in the burbs, than I am about Ronde, Miguel, and Becky. You see, one day Ronde and Miguel may be on the street robbing and stealing and Becky will be popping out welfare babies like Tastee-bread, costing me money.

By Jeff

February 7, 2007 06:17 PM | Link to this

ECLB:

I could actually agree with that. I simply believe that FAR more parents push for it than children would be solid candidates for.

Case in point:

I once taught an Advanced Geometry class. As is the case with “advanced” classes, I had kids in there that really SHOULDN’T have been, but mommy and daddy force the kid in that direction, claiming it is the only way to get into college. I had this one girl in particular, let’s call her Z. Z was one of these kids that stresses out about EVERY LITTLE DETAIL of her grade and HAS to make A’s. When you put that type of student in with a teacher such as myself - who thinks an A means you KNOW YOUR CRAP. not just that you can do the work - the kid is in for a nervous breakdown by the time she’s 18. Anyways, end of the semester comes along, time for me to register these kids for their next Math class. Z has fought ALL SEMESTER to get the 85 or so that she has at this point. It is my call as to place the students in this class in the “Advanced” Algebra 2 class or in the regular Algebra 2 class. My standard was that if they had a 90 or higher in my class, I put them in the Advanced A2 class, and the regular A2 class otherwise. So I put Z in the regular class. She PITCHES A FIT screaming, crying, you name it, she was doing it. Leave my class, FORGES MY SIGNATURE to change her into the Advanced A2 class. Comes to class the next day AND BRAGS ABOUT IT.

My whole thought process? “If she’s going to stress about that freakin’ A so much, let’s make it easier on her.” The school had NO weight for taking “advanced” classes over regular classes. There was NO WAY an A in the regular class was going to look any worse than an A in the advanced class.

THAT is the kind of pressure I try to avoid placing on students. I look at it like this: If they have major physical issues, it is a known fact that they have a harder time learning. I also claim that if they have major psychological/emotional problems, they will have a harder time learning. So I do my best to alleviate BOTH. Because my overall goal is one thing: that my students learn.

By HS Teacher Too

February 7, 2007 06:19 PM | Link to this

Folks, check out this article from today’s NY Times education section:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/07/education/07education.html?_r=1&ref=education&oref=slogin

Pretty timely!

By HSTeacher Too

February 7, 2007 06:21 PM | Link to this

Let me try this again, sorry.

check out this article in today’s NY Times

By catlady

February 7, 2007 06:22 PM | Link to this

thomas, I have been asking for us to find a way to include gifted ELL (English Language Learner) kids in our gifted program. Seems like to me being able to function in 3 or more languages ought to count for something, but our definition of gifted remains (even with the “expansion” of 8 or so years ago) to be very narrowly drawn. Funny how it excludes very bright Latino kids (and others). Haven’t been able to get anywhere on any of it in our county—although we acknowledge the broader guidelines, I’ll be darned if anyone but WMC kids can seem to qualify! I hate wasting talent, and I hate perpetuating stereotypes.

By HS Teacher Too

February 7, 2007 06:27 PM | Link to this

Jeff,

I was about to say that the problem you describe is alleviated by having true gifted classes, where kids must test in. Then I thought back to my experiences (both as a student and as a teacher) and realized, that problem even exists with the test-in-only gifted classes. Kids might test in, but maybe their talents aren’t in math. So they test in, struggle (like you, I believe an A means you know it backwards and fowards and can apply concepts, not just regurgitate. Shame on me!), and then one of two things typically happens.

In the meantime, the poor kid is giving him- or herself an ulcer because, although they are gifted, their talent lies in another discipline.

Now as an aside — I happen to disagree with the idea that honors and gifted classes aren’t weighted differently, especially when the content and depth would warrant it. When I was growing up, a B in an upper-level class was by all means equivalent to AT LEAST an A in a regular-level class. But I’m hesitant to fight this battle, because I don’t know that the same is still true.

By HS Teacher Too

February 7, 2007 06:41 PM | Link to this

Catlady,

First, there is definitely a difference between “bright” and being “gifted,” so I wonder if that is part of the problem. But more importantly, are these kids you are referring to tested in their native language? Or is that testing mechanism, even if it is available in their own language, part of the narrow definition you mentioned?

Not trying to be argumentative, just trying to understand better what the issue is. I agree wholeheartedly with the people who lament the fact that “gifted” tends to mean “White middle class,” because the world around us is losing out tremendously by overlooking kids who don’t fit that demographic. I wish there was blanket testing periodically, to try to find the kids who might otherwise slide through the system …

By jim d

February 8, 2007 08:03 AM | Link to this

Sorry I missed the blog yesterday because I do have a possible solution that might inherence the educational experience not just for the gifted but for the kids needing some extra help as well, without creating a reading boot camp. :-) (sorry KA, I just couldn’t resist)

WWJD? (what would jim do)

Institute an “Admission/Placement Exam” and administer it to every Georgia student enrolled in the public school systems at the beginning of every year to determine the appropriate grade level for each and every student and eliminate all other unnecessary testing that students endure every year.

Currently in most cases a child coming from a home school environment or a private school into our public schools must take an admission exam for placement in the proper grade. Why not all students? Why not do it at the beginning of the year? Why not in each core subject?

Just a few of the advantages that might be realized are;

1) Students would be allowed to transition to whatever level they were achieving at in each subject matter. Thus allowing some of the more gifted to advance their education at a faster pace. Students with exceptional abilities would graduate sooner—spending less time in the public school system.

2) Improved learning—-Students needing more attention in a given area of study would be given that time by remaining in a class that is capable of providing for the students needs, assuring the student is prepared for the next level.

3) Eliminating redundant testing would save taxpayers undetermined amounts of funding that could then be used for other educational purposes such as providing raises to teachers, improved insurance benefits or maybe even classroom supplies and books. It would also provide educators more days of actual instructional time (up to 20 days in Gwinnett) without adding more days to the school calendar.

4) Student disciplinary issues may even be reduced.

By KA

February 8, 2007 08:16 AM | Link to this

jim, Devil’s Advocate here; what is the difference between the current tests at the END of the year to advance kids vs. your plan to test them at the beginning of the year? And what would you test, all subject areas, aaaarrrgggghhh! another week of testing? Why not stick to MY suggestion of a 30 minute reading assessment, which would catch the laggers, because most of the poor students are poor readers. And I changed the name to Reading Railroad, to get student ‘back on track.’ ; )

By jim d

February 8, 2007 08:46 AM | Link to this

EOC exams only test what a student has studied in a particular year and is a curriculum based test rather than a test to determine where a student truly is and what their abilities are.

It’s not another week of testing it’s in lieu of the other 20+ days of testing and the 60-80 days of test prep happening now.

As for reading— yes test it. Then use it to place students in your reading railroad program.

My plan wouldn’t only identify students that can’t read. It would identify students with exceptional math apptitudes, students with advanced knowledge of history and science, as well as the ones that could stand a bit of extra help in any of the core subjects.

By Zoe

February 8, 2007 08:51 AM | Link to this

Jeff: to respond to your comment yesterday about being gifted (I teach during the day, occassionally post during planning or lunch and by the time I get home, the blog is usually closed- hence why it is almost 24 hours later) I think that although you were tested and qualified for the gifted program, you were not served correctly. Sometimes kids are thrown into classes in an effort to get extra FTE monies, something that I do not think is fair to the gifted child. Teachers with the gifted endorsement are trained to be aware of the issue you mentioned (emotional, physical and mental age) and should have made efforts to make sure you were adjusting emotionally, not just academically.

Also, skipping a grade is not for everyone. That is why the DOE is trying to come up with a uniform policy, to make sure any student that does skip is prepared in all aspects, not just academically.

I would also like to comment as another poster did on the numerous times a day you post. I know that I rarely use the internet, especially for personal use, during class because my students take any opportunity to get off task and I teach high school. I even avoid reading email during the school day. I can not imagine how you can post as much as you do and still maintain control of 30 middle schoolers. I know you are actively looking for another job, but is it fair to the kids you have right now OR the teachers they will have next year to throw in the towel now? Every school has problems, this is the second school you have had in two years and the exact same problems you had last year, you are having this year. At what point do you take responsibility for your career and stop blaming the administration and the students?

By Jeff

February 8, 2007 08:59 AM | Link to this

For those that don’t know (Zoe and others):

I left teaching several weeks ago. I fly to Phoenix tomorrow for a computing interview (the first face to face I’ve had since my switch). ALL of my job searching has gone into computing. I will continue to fight to bring education back to where it needs to be, but for now the environment is not conducive to how I teach.

By Jeff

February 8, 2007 09:01 AM | Link to this

Zoe:

No, the problems I had at Randolph were FAR worse than the other system. At the first system, I got threatened RARELY and was NEVER physically assaulted. At Randolph, the threats were daily and the assaults were weekly, at least. I have SIX SCARS on my arm that administration there did NOTHING about. I finally got sick and tired of it and left.

By Jeff

February 8, 2007 09:04 AM | Link to this

Zoe:

No, the problems I had at Randolph were FAR worse than the other system. At the first system, I got threatened RARELY and was NEVER physically assaulted. At Randolph, the threats were daily and the assaults were weekly, at least. I have SIX SCARS on my arm that administration there did NOTHING about. I finally got sick and tired of it and left.

By Jeff

February 8, 2007 09:04 AM | Link to this

Zoe:

No, the problems I had at Randolph were FAR worse than the other system. At the first system, I got threatened RARELY and was NEVER physically assaulted. At Randolph, the threats were daily and the assaults were weekly, at least. I have SIX SCARS on my arm that administration there did NOTHING about. I finally got sick and tired of it and left.

By Jeff

February 8, 2007 09:05 AM | Link to this

OOPS! Sorry for the mutliples!

By jim d

February 8, 2007 09:07 AM | Link to this

Jeff,

In the spirit of freindship let me just say that perhaps your teaching style isn’t conducive to the educational environment and the way students learn.

By Jeff

February 8, 2007 09:16 AM | Link to this

jim:

My teaching style has been used by teachers for GENERATIONS. And many teachers use it right this second. The problem is the PC mindset that currently obsesses the educational system.

By mmm

February 8, 2007 09:17 AM | Link to this

Jeff,

In that same spirit of friendship—I think that all viewpoints add value to the blog AS LONG AS the intent is to explain a world view that grows out of your own lived reality, rather than to diminish the importance of others views.

By Jeff

February 8, 2007 09:22 AM | Link to this

mmm:

Case in point:

The Curriculum Coach I was working with at Randolph. She ran the class with the EXACT same values I did. She was even MORE verbally combative than I was. But the kids did what she said. She had power, and the kids knew it. I did not, and they knew that as well.

By jim d

February 8, 2007 09:25 AM | Link to this

Jeff,

I wasn’t passing judgement, dear freind, Just pointing out another possibility.

BEST OF LUCK on the upcomming interview!

By Jeff

February 8, 2007 09:26 AM | Link to this

mmm:

Also, how do you think this admittedly former neocon came to switch to a Jeffersonian Republican? I finally realized that even the tryanny I happen to agree with is STILL tyranny. And I would rather not have tyranny of ANY form than have your views shoved down my throat.

Vive Le Libere!

By jim d

February 8, 2007 09:27 AM | Link to this

Jeff,

Being the new kid on the block almost always require tact.

By Jeff

February 8, 2007 09:35 AM | Link to this

jim:

TRUE!! :)

Unfortunately, while I have made GREAT strides in other areas (and even quite a few as far as tact goes), it isn’t exactly a great strength of mine! :(

By jim d

February 8, 2007 09:44 AM | Link to this

:-/ Really? I hadn’t noticed.

By Kelly

February 8, 2007 09:52 AM | Link to this

I want to respond to what one poster said about all the gifted kids being white and middle class.

Not all gifted kids are white and middle class. I do think minority kids are under-identified for gifted services, however. Acceleration is considered by the National Association for Gifted Children to be the most effective intervention for gifted kids, and it costs only about $20.00 to administer the Iowa Acceleration Scale. A successful grade-skip saves the school system about $8k, or whatever the current cost per year per student is. So, you have an extra 8k per year that can even be dumped into helping kids who aren’t meeting the minimum standards. And because those kids may be less likely to have parents to advocate for them, the teachers and administrators need to be encouraged and able to recommend that kids be assessed for acceleration. The Iowa Acceleration Scale also takes into account the social and emotional factors and doesn’t solely rely upon standardized test scores, which minority and low SES students perform less well on. This is part of why I hope the county will not set the cutoff for consideration for acceleration too high, and that they will set policy which encourages teacher referalls for acceleration as well, so that these kids as well can benefit from what is generally the most effective intervention for gifted kids.

By 30 Year Teacher

February 8, 2007 11:28 AM | Link to this

Clarification: Jeff you did not choose to leave, you were asked to resign as you said in your post. If you had not resigned I am sure you would have been fired because of your classroom performance. The school board and principal gave you the opportunity not to have dismissal on your resume.

By Jeff

February 8, 2007 12:04 PM | Link to this

30 year:

YES, the Super asked for my resignation. NO, he could NOT have forced it on me. I talked to legal counsel to make SURE of that. I CHOSE to leave because I was tired of administration allowing the threats and assaults that I faced, and that was a decision that, while the Superintendent pushed the time table up on, I had made two months earlier. I said as early as pre-Thanksgiving that I was not coming back at the end of the year. I was simply working to not hurt my students by leaving mid-year, and I was trying to give the system time to change for the better. (Which, for the first couple of weeks this semester, it looked like it had.)

But teaching is BEHIND me. I look forward to flying to PHX tomorrow, landing this job, and beginning the career I should have persued all along: programming. Teaching was a grand experiment borne not necessarily of my strengths, but of my ideals and fears. Programming IS my strength, and one that I am DANG good at.

As David Boreanaz said as the last line of his series Angel: “Let’s get to work!”

By 30 Year teacher

February 8, 2007 12:42 PM | Link to this

Good luck, Jeff. I have noticed that the students I have had that are diagnosed with Asberger’s Syndrome truly shine in computers. Hopefully you will find much success and happiness in this chosen field.

By Alisha

February 8, 2007 07:26 PM | Link to this

Responding to Kelly’s 9:52 post:

I strongly agree with Keely that teachers and administrators need to initiate the provision of acceleration for some children. It is a particular priviledge to be certain about my family’s housing, food, transportation, health care, etc. and to be able to spend time advocating for my children’s education. This priviledge is partially earned through my husband’s and my hard work, but it is also partially unearned through our White skin, his male body, our education-focused childhoods, and our heterosexuality. Admitting that we inherited priviledge and started on the higher side of the playing field does not negate our focus on academics during elementary, middle, high school, college, and graduate school; but is my attempt to humbly recognize the advantage that we have from our background’s congruency with society’s power structure.

I also think that we need to expand the idea of gifted and how it is identified. Research shows there are multiple types of intelligence and multiple types of learning (and therefore demonstrating what one has learned). Although my children are all gifted in ways that the school system rewards, we have brought them up with the concept of multiple intelligences as a way to validate those multiple other intelligences society needs which will not be rewarded as highly in school (such as interpersonal and intrapersonal).

Given that some folks learn best in a kinesthetic way, I hope that testing will one day be more flexible and allow those learners to better demonstrate their skills. As a PhD in engineering, I know how much we need kinesthetic learners in engineering research and development labs, but they often don’t test well on multiple choice exams, without the opportunity to use their bodies, manipulatives, and three (or four) dimensions. Hence, they do not get identified as gifted in math and science (which many (wrongly) think is necessary for being a successful engineer).