Good afternoon, all. I'm new here and this looks to be a fabulous, if not overwhelming resource. I'm wondering if anyone has a comment on a situation my son is experiencing in his freshman year of high school.

He is completing AP Geography and is ranked third in a class of juniors and seniors. Next year, he would like to take AP US History and has the recommendation of his current teacher as well as the approval of the History teacher. According to the curriculum catalog, the course pre-requisite is "instructor approval", but also states it's for grades 11 and 12.

When he sought the required signature of the Assistant Principal of Curriculum, he was denied, based on the grade 11/12 issue. I am completely shocked that an administrator would deny him placement because he is one year too young, especially given his established track record as a gifted student. The administrator said that doing otherwise would "open the flood gates for other students" to do the same...as if that's somehow a problem. I really don't see that there's a deluge of sophomores seeking admission to AP courses.

According to the district's own web page on the subject of gifted students:

Arizona State Law:
The governing board of each school district shall provide special education to gifted pupils identified as provided in Section 15-770. Special education for gifted pupils shall only include expanding academic course offerings and supplemental services as may be required to provide an educational program, which is commensurate with the academic abilities and potentials of the gifted pupil.

The problem is...when I looked up this statute, it had been stricken, and replaced with other, less helpful language.

What would be the best way to proceed, given these circumstances. I'd be appreciative of any/all input. Thanks in advance.

Just a follow up on this...

I made an appointment with his secretary to speak to this guy. He called me back to tell me, "You can come in if you want, but my decision is final."

With that, I canceled the appointment and contacted my LegalShield attorney, who wrote a brief letter to the Superintendent for Curriculum explaining the situation. Two days later, I got a call from the school principal, who apologized for the confusion and told me that the paperwork was being processed.

I hate that I had to go that route, but I felt like that the administrator was recklessly keeping my son back, and if I couldn't get him to reason, it would have to get ugly. I wish more parents had the tools to stand up to these... well... ... people.

It's great that your son is handling all the first steps on his own, but I'd probably want to step in and request, in writing, a face to face meeting with the Assistiant Principal of Curriculum. If you happen to be female, I'd arrange to bring a male person wearing a suit to attend the meeting with you.

If you still get turned down at that stage, say - 'Thanks so much for your time. I'm going to need a meeting with the next higher up decision maker - who would that be? What is their contact info?'

Wash, Rinse, Repeat all the way up to the school board.

Best Wishes,
Grinity

In Arizona do they usually do US history or world history in 10th grade? I am wondering if they might be more willing to let him take AP World.

My son was admitted into AP Biology as a freshman only to find that it "did not meet the requirements" for the state for his biology credit. He had a choice of either taking regular biology during the summer to make up the credit to graduate or exit AP Biology and finish out the year with regular biology. He chose the latter.

You might look into whether state requirements for graduation are part of the issue.

Just a thought.

One thing to remember is that it's not necessary to take the official AP class to sit the AP exam. The classes are typically quite helpful, but if your child learns well on their own, I wouldn't worry overmuch about not being allowed to take the school's AP class.

Random AZ district's course guide (page 16) supports this wonder. It shows AP Geography as the 9th grade choice, and AP World History as the 10th grade choice.

My kids aren't far enough along in school to take AP classes yet, so no specific advice there - but fwiw, I second Grinity's advice - that's what we've had to do and what's worked for us in other situations where we've had to advocate for our kids at school.

You also might find it helpful to use some of the terminology that is outlined in the wrightslaw websites and books to prepare for a meeting if you have one. For example, they would recommend (as someone else above mentioned) - put your request for the meeting in writing. I think you could also find the wording there to address the issue of "we can't make an exception for your son because what if a whole bunch of other kids started asking to take AP History in 10th grade"... I am not that great with the words, but you want to reply essentially that "those other 10 million kids aren't relevant to this conversation. We're here to talk about my son and his educational needs."

Another thing you might want to do is see if there are any local parent advocate groups you can use for advice in your situation - we found a local advocate agency through the yellow pages at wrightslaw. The good thing about getting advice locally is that the advocate may have information about the ins and outs of your particular district and perhaps even the administrative staff at your school and they can also help you with advice on how to do/say what you need to in order to negotiate effectively.

Good luck!

polarbear