Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion economy and education

Thought about this for a while now and some of you might have had the same observations... As the economy going down, there seems to be a trend to emphasize education. Not just the stimulus package for schools, but I see an increasing amount of media coverage on quality of education. I also see parents in our area sending kids to more academic programs, our school's enrichment programs in the spring had record turnouts (the parent volunteers were shocked when the signup forms poured in). It also seems that more parents are putting emphasis on hard work now. I hope this would have a positive effect on gifted education somehow...

Emphasis on education, IMHO, seems to always focus on the non-proficient learners. It seems like tons of money is thrown into teacher training/prof dev and kids are still handed worksheets. There is still not enough help/encouragement/opportunities for highly able kids. Our district made big hoopla about offering online courses, but there are too many grad requirements in the state to let anyone vary from required courses. Also, I think schools are still very poor and basic operating expenses are not assisted by any focus on education. Still very frustrating.

I had not noticed anything, but that's not to say it's not happening. If people are placing more importance on education maybe it's because they see education as the way to higher pay and a more secure job?

Oh well, maybe you are right, cym. The old mentality is still there, more of the same is not going to help us.

OHGrandma, yes, I think higher pay and more secure job is a big motivation. But that's good. At least kids will be required to put in more effort. I think the expectations from teachers and parents have been too low for both schools and for kids.