I'm not surprised that the school would equate acceleration with anxiety. The school has a very hostile attitude toward gifted children (have I mentioned what board members have said about gifted children?).
Might there be an opportunity to make a brief presentation to the board, about giftedness? There are resources like "A Nation Deceived" and many more.
DS teacher last year accused us of all sorts of things to "get" DS to want to excel in math. This aide's comments just fit in with the general attitude with the school.
Many are more familiar with "hothousing" by Tiger Moms, or "myths" of giftedness... and not gifted kids for whom learning is like breathing.
Teachers typically receive little or no training about gifted as they complete their education degrees, advanced degrees and ongoing professional development. School board members may likewise be uninformed about giftedness as they may come from every walk of life, not necessarily a child development background. Aides may have very little training or qualifications (often just a high school diploma is required). Aides may earn very little money, may have little authority or autonomy, but remain successful by following orders. While a teacher, board member or aide may disappoint us by the things they may say and the lack of knowledge it may reveal, they may actually be competent with regard to their assigned duties. To the degree we can use our disappointment to leverage opportunities to help enlighten them regarding gifted issues, kids may benefit greatly.
In some areas, parents of gifted children have come together to elect a parent of a gifted child to the school board, or supported each other in obtaining various volunteer positions of influence. Parents can then use these platforms to help raise awareness.
