I also do believe that the majority of GT classes aren't designed for gifted kids but rather hard working kids. Then again, if these other kids with whom we were hanging out last night are PG or close, maybe I'm just judging GT classes off of my oldest who I've never considered more than slightly HG and maybe I'm wrong with her. She seemed pretty similar to these other teens. The GT classes she's been in are not designed for her by a long shot and she stands out like a sore thumb.
I understand how a person could feel that way, but I very much believe that if a school decides to create experiences for the top 10% or 5% or 3% and call that gifted, then gifted it is.
Remember my definition of gifted is 'having special educational needs that are unlikely to be addressed in the regular classroom' and I do believe that the kids in any of those percentage groups do have special educational needs - just not as intense as the needs of kids in the top 1% or part of a percent.
BTW, your story is perfect illustration of my 'seat of the pants' definition for HG (hey, there isn't any standard, so I invite everyone to make up their own!) - that one starnds out like a sore thumb in the classes designated for gifted kids. That feeling of looking out at the kids who are designated as MG (or OG) and thinking 'all give these kids props for their work ethic, but they just don't know much' is a hallmark of the HG kid in a fairly heterogeneous environment.
As for your DD being 'slightly HG' well, remember that the majority of HG is going to be right at the cut off - so she should be in very good company amoung HG kids - the shape of the right tail really precludes anyone from being slightly anything.
Until they start coming up with classroom fulls of HG kids for PG kids to stick out like a sore thumb from, it is going to be very difficult to get a feel for the difference between HG and PG. For now it really depends on every program to know itself for what it wants to deliver and draw it's own lines.
Which is also why I don't get any more fine grained than OG/HG/PG although some people do - I know that there is wild diversity even after the PG cut off.
Hope that helps and super glad you and your daughter had the experience of being with a good fit group!
Smiles,
Grinity
