I think that it's great that the school is doing this. Will it meet your individual child's needs? Who knows!
I would certianly get a copy of that book and read it if you haven't already.
What I like the most is that all the kids will be given the opportunity to test out - so your child might have chances to work on Independent Study project with other kids in small groups, which is totally fun.
A similar type project was set up for my son in 4th grade, and he and the class and the teacher all enjoyed it.
Problems:
1) Actually implimenting the material in the book is a lot of learning for any particular teacher to do. This year's teacher may be willing - that's great, but what about next year's teacher? Can a teacher from the above grade be selected now to work as a team with this year's teacher so that next year the teacher will already have experience with the methods?
2) If a child is moderately gifted, this sort of thing can meet their needs, but realistically, if a child tests out of 90% of the topics, they are going to spend 90% of the school year on Independent Projects. This is great for the independent kid who is self motivated - but for more asynchronous kids who are 'age-appropriate' in their planning and self-motivating skills, it's a lot of time on their hands without much guidance. Don't get me wrong, there were many times in my son's elementary school career, where I would have been happy if the teachers just let him read in the corner - but that doesn't really help a child grow in the areas where effort is required.
But the next years teacher sounds lovely, and it is certianly worth a try.
Best Wishes,
Grinity
