I think the big problem with our current school system is that it simply CAN'T work for gifted kids. I refer to the system as "industrialized education" because it tries to put a maximum number of bodies through the system as efficiently as possible.
This approach doesn't really work for anyone, but it's especially disastrous for the ones on the high-ability side of the curve, and the more able the child, the less the system can meet his/her needs in individual subjects.
Any kid getting As in, say, 2nd grade math could perform at a much higher level, yet this concept doesn't even occur to a lot of teachers. It happened with my 2nd grader. They offered him a grade skip for next year and then tossed him some 3rd grade books. One of the teachers was pretty suprised when he just started blasting through the 3rd grade math book with no instruction from her. It was trivial for him!
The worst part is the continual dumbing-down of the curricula, which must be mind-numbing for the brightest kids. The facile work may contribute to a hurried approach to work, to not reading problems carefully, and may hinder the development of study skills. All of these things create serious problems down the line, and schools likely have no clue that *they* are creating them by ignoring the needs of bright kids. After all, he's bright and he'll be okay, right?
It's no wonder that graduate programs have trouble finding US students to fill their slots; we don't bother with the bright ones and many probably lose their way long before grad school.
Val
