To me, it makes sense that the gifted children are pulled into classes together that can move at the speed and/or depth needed to make sure they are challenged. However there are parents of the children not in the gifted classes complaining because they say it means their children are grouped with more of the children who need a slower pace than normal, so their child is not being educated at the appropriate level.
So, do these parents think that their kids benefitted from being with the gifted kids? does it seem more like resentment that their kids weren't identified as gifted? Do they want ability tracking for their kids too?
I haven't heard this complaint in my personal experience. I've heard other parents complain that the gt program is elitist but a lot of them are relieved that their kids don't have to compete against my kid. DD13 is in a gifted middle school program. She has all of her core classes with the gt kids and is mixed with the traditional population for electives/specials. This set up has worked very well for her. The program is big enough that she doesn't have exactly the same people in all of her core classes. The sentiment that the gt kids tend to get from the traditional kids is pity, i.e. oh, you poor gt kids, you have to do more work or I'm so glad that I'm not in that program with all of those people. Whether this reflects their true feelings or their need to the gt program down, it's unclear, probably a little of both. None of them seem to be clamoring to have the gt kids in their classes.
Has anyone had experience where their gifted children are in a mixed-ability classroom and still get an challenging, appropriate level instruction? How the teacher make this work?
DD has friends who were in her gt elementary program who chose to go the traditional route for middle school. The middle school offers an honors program in a heterogeneous classroom. The honors kids get different work while being in a classroom with all of the other kids. It has worked "ok" for the one self-motivated, introverted kid who doesn't care what other kids think and prefers working on her own or with one or two other kids. For the less self-driven and/or more extroverted kids, it hasn't worked as well.
The biggest problem with this model seems to be the social dynamics of middle school itself. The kids don't want to appear different and they want to be part of a group. For example, one mom said that her son sees no reason why he should have to do anything more difficult than his friend across the aisle. He is much happier coasting and sees the differentiated curriculum as a punishment. She also said that he has been subjected to verbal bullying for being one of the smart kids. Another mom complained that her daughter felt isolated from her friends in language arts because they weren't reading the same material at the same time. The girl had read the book that they were discussing a couple years ago but her comments were not welcome at the lunch table. The girl also missed having a bigger group to discuss her book.
