Are GATE programs really meaningful in a serious way? We have no experience of them in our house, not having sent our kids to public schools until the eldest reached high school and joined a wonderful dual enrollment program.
That said, most of what I've read here and heard locally about these programs is that they're pullouts that run for a couple to a few hours per week, with content that's mainly extra stuff, rather than a focused program that's moving in a cohesive way, such as, "We're going to read books like Robinson Crusoe and The Arabian Nights. We'll discuss them in class and you'll learn how to write a short paper."
So if my information is correct, how well do these programs actually serve very intelligent children, compared to a program that moves more quickly or delves deeper? Or one for older kids that allows access to college classes?
I'm not saying that it's a good thing that California is dumping gifted programs. I'm just questioning the way the current ones are structured.
Last edited by Val; 10/03/16 04:45 PM.
