snip -
Maybe in answer to my own question about where do all our tax dollars go; doesn�t it seem that the administrative staffs are at least twice as big as they were a decade ago? Example, we have a superintendent and an assistant superintendent (in addition to an administrative staff) for a district of 6 schools. Each of these schools just gained an assistant principle as well!
-snip
Ouch! That sounds like a harsh generalization.
As for Identification - it's a tricky subject. Personally I strongly feel that the best way is for students to be able to move fluidly from subject to subject. That way if a child is best suited for advanced Math at a normal pace, she could take a regular Math class with older kids. If a child needs a fast paced math, she could take Math with Mr. Z who teachs it really fast.
In other words, let the kids self select into classes that suit them, with some thoughful guidance. Maybe the teachers would sit down and interview each kid at the begining so that they would set appropriate goals and measures of success. So that the child could change groups if one was too hard, too fast, too slow, etc. Maybe we'll call it the Goldilocks Approach?
That will mean more inservices on the social and emotional needs of Gifted Kids. Honestly, before my son, I thought that the only difference between gifted kids and regular kids was that gifted kids were smarter. Not that they had different learning and environmental needs. Not the affect of asynchronous development. Things were easier for me in that I had watched my son slowly develop for his whole life, but when the bottom came, I got a crash course! I'm so grateful for the Davidsons being a crutial resource in that.
STBmom - sorry your son missed the cutoff. Ouch!
Love and More Love,
Trinity
