Gifted Ed in PWC schools (Jefferson, Fairfax: house, magnet schools, to live in)

[littlewmn]

I have been learning about the gifted program in Fairfax (gifted centers) but wanted to know about gifted programs in PWC. Are there magnet schools? Class pull-outs? Tracking?
Also what is IB? I know what AP is, but have never heard of IB before.
Of course, I come from Arizona so there are an awful lot of good school programs you can bet I've never heard of!
Thanks!

[claremarie]

Most schools have given up tracking, unfortunately, even though it is often the most effective way to teach diverse groups of students.
No first-hand knowledge of the PWC gifted programs -- have you checked the school system website? That would be the best place to start. You should focus especially on the process for evaluating students who are new to the system. It's my understanding that eligibility standards for gifted programs vary considerably from one school system to another.

As for IB -- here's more information than you probably want. International Baccalaureate

[littlewmn]

Students identified as potentially gifted in an academic area in grades one through three are provided with appropriate instruction in each elementary school.
[LEFT]At the end of third grade, students are formally identified in the category of intellectual aptitude and specific academic aptitude. Such students receive additional services during both fourth and fifth grades in a school-based program or in a gifted education center.
No mention of magnets. Appears to be a 1 hour a week pullout?
To me, a 1 hour a week pullout does not a gifted program make! I find "appropriate instruction" to be suitably vague![/LEFT]

[KathyR]

PWC Gifted program pulls out students for instruction once a week. It starts at 45 minutes a week at the 1st grade level and goes up as the grades go up. I have a 1st and 3rd grader in the program...the 3rd goes for 1.5 hr per week. No magnet schools in the county as far as I know. The county clearly gives much more priority ($$) to the lower-end (special ed) students then gifted. The amount of resourses and staff for special ed is unbelievable. Of course this may be the case nationwide.

[littlewmn]

Thanks KathyR! I was unsure what mention of the "center" was, but i guess it is just a building to ship 'em off to for their hour?
Unfortunately, this does seem to be the case everywhere-- the smarter kids just get bored or are asked to become tutors to other kids.
In Loudon it seems they have a GT person who wanders amongst the classes and helps occasionally within the classroom. Their explanation of the program reads like an apology to other parents that they even have a gifted program at all.
Seems like Fairfax is the only one who really puts some dough toward the GT crowd, but I don't think I can afford to live in Fairfax county.
Are your kids benefitting form the pullout or are they feeling like it just makes it harder to keep up with what is expected of them in the regular classroom? I used to hate pullouts when I was growin gup in NY. I learned how to make my name appear on a computer screen an infinite amount of times, and an hour a week was not enough time to really make friends in that class. It felt like a holding tank. Hopefully they are doing great things with their hour a week. We sure didn't.
Do they go to honors level classes once junior high/middle school hits?
Claremarie: Is IB instead of AP then? They can take the AP exam , I assume , since it seems like IB classes are tougher than AP-- or are they not tougher but just with a different focus?
Thanks for eveyone's help here!
My son is still young, but I am so upside down on my house that I really want this next move to be the last. I am trying to get as clear a picture as I can about what happens down the line.

[knopfler]

Originally Posted by littlewmn

Thanks KathyR! I was unsure what mention of the "center" was, but i guess it is just a building to ship 'em off to for their hour?
Unfortunately, this does seem to be the case everywhere-- the smarter kids just get bored or are asked to become tutors to other kids.
In Loudon it seems they have a GT person who wanders amongst the classes and helps occasionally within the classroom. Their explanation of the program reads like an apology to other parents that they even have a gifted program at all.
Seems like Fairfax is the only one who really puts some dough toward the GT crowd, but I don't think I can afford to live in Fairfax county.
Are your kids benefitting form the pullout or are they feeling like it just makes it harder to keep up with what is expected of them in the regular classroom? I used to hate pullouts when I was growin gup in NY. I learned how to make my name appear on a computer screen an infinite amount of times, and an hour a week was not enough time to really make friends in that class. It felt like a holding tank. Hopefully they are doing great things with their hour a week. We sure didn't.
Do they go to honors level classes once junior high/middle school hits?
Claremarie: Is IB instead of AP then? They can take the AP exam , I assume , since it seems like IB classes are tougher than AP-- or are they not tougher but just with a different focus?
Thanks for eveyone's help here!
My son is still young, but I am so upside down on my house that I really want this next move to be the last. I am trying to get as clear a picture as I can about what happens down the line.

The strongest IB program in Prince William County, from what I've heard, is at Stonewall Jackson HS.

There is only one "magnet" school in Northern Virginia: TJ TJHSST News - Main which is consistently ranked as one of the top dozen high schools in the entire country. Prince William residents are eligible for enrollment at Thomas Jefferson (assuming their child qualifies, of course).

Plans are afoot to open up a second Thomas Jefferson-type magnet school, this time in Prince William: Second magnet school slated for Northern Va. (http://www.wtopnews.com/?sid=1403694&nid=25 - broken link).

[littlewmn]

Thx Knopfler! I was wondering mostly about elementary school level magnets. So far I have only found then in Fairfax (Bailey's and Hunter's Woods). Arizona has tons of charters and magnets but not VA- probably because they overall quality of VA schools is better so there is no drive to do more charters!
Good to know that if he is a science geek he has the TJ option if he is really good and really lucky... I suspect he will be a wordboy like his dad.
I am also noticing an elementary level IB at Randolph Elementary but can't find any comments on greatschools.net Anyone know about it?

[claremarie]

You should be aware that, in Fairfax County at least, magnets and IB programs tend to be located in areas with under-performing schools, as a way to entice middle and upper middle class families to enroll their children.
Our experience with GT pull-out programs at the elementary level in Fairfax was that they were a complete waste of time.
Your best bet is to find a house you can afford in the elementary school with the highest possible test scores. You cannot count on magnet and GT programs to "rescue" you from a school with mediocre scores -- admission is not guaranteed, and such programs are often among the first victims of budget cuts. And some magnet programs have inconvenient locations that require long bus (or parent) rides.
As for IB/AP -- most schools have one or the other.

[sundevil85]

Most of the elementary "gifted" students are actually just average kids. The schools do this to appease the parents, and to make them feel better about the large number of ESL students at the schools. IMHO, 95% of these "gifted" kids will not be able to get into UVa.

[littlewmn]

I agree that most gifted students aren't gifted at all, but just kinda bright. That being said, my son is stil in preschool and readig at a second grade level and I am petrified he will be bored to death and get his fidgety self into trouble.
In Arizona, lower test scores were often an indication of many ESL students, but they were also an indication that the school was trying new instruction methods instead of "sit in your desk and be quiet" learning and were a bit more focused on educating the kids than on getting them to pass the standardized tests. This emphasis on testing truly worries me. At least at the elementary level. My enemy is boredom, so I tend to look at schools that try new techniques and may not have the highest scores. I am pretty confident that he will do just fine on tests without all the schools' efforts being directed at improving test scores. We had magnets in poorer schools and minority schools too. My rationale for a gifted program or a magnet is so he will have something to do besides scribble on the paper after he has circled every "A" on the page. I dunno. Maybe I am on the wrong track with gifted ed, but it seems to me that a school with a 4 on test scores that is trying to entice me with new techniques, technology, and more art and music is far better for an elementary school student than one where it is 3 Rs and lectures and teaching to the test.
Claremarie- you mad ean excellent point about budget cuts. Guess the program could be dropped and then I am stuck in a poorly performing school minus the progressive philosophy.