NOT a self-nomination but hopefully some encouragement to keep pushing for what you think is best for you children:
At the end of 1st grade, and without me knowing, the school tested dd (then 6) for the GT program at school. She came home crying because she said she had a test and got everything wrong on it. (the tester was marking things down on the paper, which is what dd said her teacher did when she got wrong answers). After speaking with the school they informed me that she did not qualify for GT and that her IQ came in at 106!
Well I KNEW this was not right, that she emotionally crumbled during the test and asked if they would retest her. I was told it was the districts policy to test only once a year and that she would have to wait until the end of 2nd grade to try again. I requested a meeting with the psychologist and we talked about her test. After speaking with him it was obvious that dd had had a horrible day (ended up getting really sick a day after the test) and insisted that the test did not reflect dd's abilities. Well, they agreed to retest her at the beginning of the 2nd grade year. I sensed that they werent convinced it would make a difference since her original IQ score was 24 points away from qualifiying. Well, I knew better. Her 2nd test showed an full IQ of 140 (with a verbal 150)!
Now she is in the GT class and after just one month she has caught up and passed the other children who have been in for 4 months.
I'm glad I didn't sit back. We know our kids..and we have to always fight for what we think is best for them.
