Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion What is giftedness?

All are welcome!

It has been stated by several posters that one need not be PG to benefit from the forums... however embellishing one's intellectual gifts or level of gifted (LOG) may not be helpful, especially in the context of giving BTDT advice to others.

personally, it does not matter to me if the child in question is PG or HG or HG+ or EG or any other shade of gifted. it does not matter too much to me if there is embellishment or not either. people are generally aware that they are taking advise from total strangers on the internet on these forums ... so, they are also aware that they need to take internet forum advise with a huge pinch of salt. If they are not, it is advisable to learn how to use the internet safely before frequenting any forum.

It is always best to consult professionals if parents have issues that are big or considered serious. But, for general issues like how to help my gifted child remember their daily schedules, what reading list is great for a PG kid with certain interests, how to word a conversation with a school admin, Talent Search information etc, certainly use the internet forums because they are a goldmine for such information.

cricket3, I am really sorry that you feel that way about the forum. I've gotten so much insight from other people here, everything from how to best advocate for DS to how to help me interpret test results. While I can't speak from the same position as you (I came here because I received test results), it saddens me to think you don't feel as welcome as someone who has had their DC tested.

This whole emphasis that some may put on identifying a child with a particular LOG is, in my opinion, a distraction. Really, the only important thing to know about LOG is that it is essentially a graph. Generally, as IQ increases along one axis, educational needs increase along the other. Where exactly you put the hash marks along the IQ axis (i.e., MG, HG, EG, PG) is far less important than realizing that someone far down the IQ axis is much more likely to have greater needs.

But even then, it's only so useful, as it's only one model and certainly not the only factor that determines needs. There the "2e" factor as well, which is not really a single dimension unto itself but multiple. And then there is the fact that every child has his/her own strengths and weaknesses, some of which may be reflected in test scores but others may be hidden.

With all of that said, it's complicated and only limited in value. Meanwhile, can we please, please focus on being accepting of one another, listening to each other, and creating a safe space? Thanks.

cricket3, I want you to feel welcome and not feel afraid to post. What can we do to help increase your confidence in this online community?

There is a difference between stating that all are welcome and actually going the extra mile (or kilometer) to make people feel welcome. I think that's the disconnect.

Read my many posts, and the many times people have thanked me.

The fact I did not back down when you stated HG/HG+ was synonymous with PG seems to have not set well with you. As stated previously, let's move on...

indigo, it seems that I'm not the only one who feels somewhat unwelcome by comments such as the above. For reasons I won't get into at this point, I am rather convinced that DS6's test results do not necessarily accurately reflect his LOG. I would be interested in starting a post on that topic because I'm a bit flummoxed by what's going on with him. But when folks make statements like the above, it makes me want to leave the forum altogether.

Why would it matter so much whether anyone is embellishing theirs or their child's LOG anyway? Everyone knows that they can't take advice proffered on here as gospel, so why worry so much about this particular issue?

You have contributed lots of good advice here, without question. That doesn't mean that you haven't also inadvertently made people feel unwelcome from time to time.

You initially asked me why I thought that the YS program was targeting HG+ kids instead of PG kids, and I thought that was a strange question. Now that we've discussed it a bit, I think I understand where you are coming from. I think of HG/HG+ as 99.9th percentile (per some definitions, like Hoagies) and you don't. I am not misinformed; we simply have differing opinions.

Keep in mind that "Hoagies HG" (99.9th percentile) and "Davidson PG" (99.9th percentile) are essentially synonymous. So if a parent here on the forum refers to their child, in isolation, as "my HG DC"...which "HG" are they referring to? And, more importantly, does it really matter?

I don't really understand this need to label someone as PG. There is way more to people than IQ test results: an IQ test measures a limited set of g-loaded abilities, and provides information that can be very useful for understanding a small subset of person's cognitive strengths and weaknesses. That's it. A person is not defined by a WISC-V or an SB5, and yes, I see people doing that, in spite of lip service to the contrary.

Unfortunately, I've seen a trend here to extend subtest results or GAIs or FSIQs to what could be called the whole child. My child is PG! IMO, this isn't a good idea. Defining a child with such a loaded term can create all kinds of secondary psychological effects in the child. A parent may contribute to them, especially by sending messages that tell the child, "you are incredibly different by virtue of a standardized test that took a couple hours to administer."

Kids with high IQs still have to learn to tie their shoes and change their socks and be polite and fit in and a thousand other things that aren't relevant to how quickly they can learn multiplication tables. My interpretation of many messages on this board (an on email lists I'm on) is that "PG" kids stand apart and must be treated as though they are just so different from other kids. Again IMO, this is a really bad idea that tends to isolate a child rather than help him see common ground with the rest of humanity, of whom he is a member.

My kids are very bright and I understand that getting a good education for them is difficult. I had the same problem myself until college. But, honestly, in an age of high stakes testing, this is a problem for everyone, regardless of IQ.

I'll add that in recent years I've begun to question the lengths that parents go to regarding gifted education. A decade-ish ago, multiple grade skips and homeschooling were generally seen as "least-worst options." I don't see that term as much as I used to here. Instead, I see radical acceleration being promoted as a generally wonderful thing with a bit of lip service about how ymmv, but it sure did work around here!! How much of this is a status thing? How much is a result of getting caught up in what others are doing? Is this a good idea? Does a PG! label based on a subtest, GAI, or FSIQ really help a child? Or is it better to use an IQ test as a single tool that helps identify areas of relative strength and weakness?

Can't like this enough.

Thanks, Val. I agree 100 percent.