Giftodd: Being older doesn't help with that "pat on the head" nonsense. There are a number of educators out there who consider themselves subject matter experts, and parents as ignorant, biased observers. Hubris respects no age limits.
Incidentally, the person we get this most from is the principal, just like you. In our case, we reached out to the gifted program coordinator for the school district and got her involved. Suddenly, we were speaking to someone who spoke our language, and the dynamic in the room changed where it became obvious that the principal was the one who had no idea what she was talking about.
The moral of the story is, if the principal doesn't get it, keep looking out for someone who does.
