School misunderstands PG kids

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Re: School misunderstands PG kids Willsher21 #229451 04/12/16 08:38 AM
Joined: Mar 2013 Posts: 1,489 B bluemagic Member
bluemagic Member B Joined: Mar 2013 Posts: 1,489	Originally Posted by Willsher21 I am grateful for all of you who share your struggles as I am also in a very difficult situation in regards to my DD8 school situation. We were able to see a ray of light last school year when we enrolled her in a ver well known gifted school; to our surprise, the emphasis of the school has been changing and they are more interested in high achievers and pay little to no attention to gifted kids, let alone a PG one. We have met several times with the school principal and the teachers to find a way to help my child stay motivated and just make her feel she belongs ( raises her hand to participate in class, and has never been called in 2 years!, she has never been chosen to present in front of her class or any event, talent show and she played a very, very difficult Bach piece on the piano in her effort to be noticed by her room teachers...no comments were made whatsoever, and the list goes on and on..) and this is supposed to be a "school for the gifted" where we pay 23,000 a year for each of our 2 kids. Last meeting I had, we asked for math acceleration of my DD and the teachers reply that the groups needed to have a certain amount of students and they could just not move students to cram the next group up. In the meantime my DD tells me she wishes she could fall asleep during class like one of her friends.... My daughter is competitive but is highly creative, she has the need to create and explore new ideas and new different ways to do things, all these is a priority for her. Is she is given the freedom to explore, create and contribute, she could care less about being "the best" or the "winner". Sadly in her classroom there is a very high achiever who does what she is told when she is told and does not give any extra work to the teacher. My heart goes to the 2e kids in the classroom whose need are not addressed either. Needles to say we are looking for a new school and are planning to make the change. Unbelievably the neighborhood public school offers grade acceleration if we need it and offers math acceleration as well, the principal told us they have a few kids who go to middle school for math classes and then they drive them back to the elementary school for their regular day of classes. Who would've thought we were going to find more support at a public school than a "gifted" school! BTW did I mentioned that in the current "gifted" school they do not like girls in math classes? the girls are assigned to science because "they don't want them to feel uncomfortable in an all male classroom".....too bad the founder of the school passed away already, she would have been heartbroken to see the direction her school has taken... Ugg.. I had been directed away from our local 'gifted' school for similar reasons. That it was more a school for rich high achievers. I was told by friends that my local public school had the best gifted program around and would be a better fit. That turned out OK 4th & 5th but a disaster in 6th grade. I hope you find a program you like.

Re: School misunderstands PG kids Willsher21 #229456 04/12/16 09:33 AM
Joined: Feb 2015 Posts: 266 L longcut Member
longcut Member L Joined: Feb 2015 Posts: 266	Originally Posted by Willsher21 Unbelievably the neighborhood public school offers grade acceleration if we need it and offers math acceleration as well, the principal told us they have a few kids who go to middle school for math classes and then they drive them back to the elementary school for their regular day of classes. While our school was not as welcoming of grade acceleration, they do bus a few kids to middle school for math. However, I think the timing was such that sometimes kids missed a few minutes of some things, and it had other cons (or so they say -- for all I know, it's just budget reasons). Now they're saying they will accommodate those working 1 year ahead within their current class ("high quality differentiation"), so only those 2 years ahead would go up (to pre-Algebra). I'm not impressed with this idea, as my DS has been grade-skipped, but he's not getting sufficient math extension in the new class (hearing complaints about already knowing things), but I don't know that he's ready to be 2 years ahead, due to exposure to terminology and such. I don't know that his teacher gets how quickly he 'gets' things once he's had it taught.

Re: School misunderstands PG kids JonLaw #229642 04/17/16 05:40 PM
Joined: Jan 2016 Posts: 33 T trio Junior Member
trio Junior Member T Joined: Jan 2016 Posts: 33	Originally Posted by JonLaw I'm pretty sure that this is a normal feature of human cognition and psychology. Severe intellectual deficits ----> Relatively easy to understand PG kids ----> Relatively hard to understand So, this problem is not going away and will remain perpetually frustrating. Not to put too fine a point on it, most people can comprehend severe intellectual deficits even if they have not encountered individuals with such deficits before. It may take them a little while to fully grasp a given individual's abilities and boundaries, but they do have an internal frame of reference and thus a mechanism by which to calibrate and understand deficits. In contrast, most don't have that personal frame of reference for PG abilities. It takes imagination and a willingness to be surprised and let go of what is "known" or usually expected. Many parents of PG children struggle to do this when their children are little, and most educators have had far less exposure to PG individuals.

Re: School misunderstands PG kids Willsher21 #229643 04/17/16 05:48 PM
Joined: Jan 2016 Posts: 33 T trio Junior Member
trio Junior Member T Joined: Jan 2016 Posts: 33	Originally Posted by Willsher21 Unbelievably the neighborhood public school offers grade acceleration if we need it and offers math acceleration as well, the principal told us they have a few kids who go to middle school for math classes and then they drive them back to the elementary school for their regular day of classes. Who would've thought we were going to find more support at a public school than a "gifted" school! Depending on where you are, there's a good chance that the local public school sees and serves a lot more neurodiversity than private schools, which are after all primarily in the business of marketing and product management. Originally Posted by Willsher21 BTW did I mentioned that in the current "gifted" school they do not like girls in math classes? the girls are assigned to science because "they don't want them to feel uncomfortable in an all male classroom".... Hmm. That attitude might set them up to be a target for a lawsuit. Besides, you need advanced math for really getting to grips with science.

Re: School misunderstands PG kids howdy #229651 04/18/16 06:23 AM
Joined: Sep 2013 Posts: 6 Texas W Willsher21 Junior Member
Willsher21 Junior Member W Joined: Sep 2013 Posts: 6 Texas	Thank you for your input! It has been a quite difficult school year, and it very frustrating to observe such backward thinking put into place.

Re: School misunderstands PG kids Willsher21 #229652 04/18/16 07:34 AM
Joined: Sep 2011 Posts: 3,363 P polarbear Member
polarbear Member P Joined: Sep 2011 Posts: 3,363	Originally Posted by Willsher21 Who would've thought we were going to find more support at a public school than a "gifted" school! Willsher21, there's no set rule re private school = better school or public school = less flexibility etc - each school, public or private, usually has it's own particular personality and vision. The key is finding out as much information (real information vs advertising) before enrolling, and then remaining flexible yourself in being able to acknowledge if a school is not a good fit and move on when possible, or adapt as much as possible when there is no option to move on. You're looking for a new school for your dd for next year, which is exactly what I'd be doing. The only caveat I'd add is - you mention a lot about how your dd isn't being noticed. What you're looking for is an appropriate education, not necessarily being singled out as amazing. Your dd says she's never called on in class, but do you know that for a fact? I'm not saying it isn't true, just trying to mention be sure you keep focused on a realistic expectation - that your dd is in an environment where there is opportunity to learn at an appropriate level and pace, and hopefully in that environment all students will have an opportunity to be challenged, called on, recognized and shine. Quote BTW did I mentioned that in the current "gifted" school they do not like girls in math classes? the girls are assigned to science because "they don't want them to feel uncomfortable in an all male classroom"..... Aside from the glaring ridiculousness of this concept... it appears from this statement that the school isn't terribly willing to work with you as a parent (and perhaps not with any parents?). The one thing that many private schools offer that's attractive to many of us parents is access to teachers - as well as teachers who are willing to listen to parents and an atmosphere where parent input is valued. Not placing your child appropriately or challenging her appropriately is only one part of the equation here re this school - I'd be concerned about their attitude toward parent input too. And not allowing girls to accelerate in math! Best wishes finding a better school fit for next year, polarbear

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