Should schools offer special classes for gifted kids?
By tutor1235
@tutor1235 (113)
United States
September 18, 2007 12:20pm CST
My girls are gifted, and I say yes. Look at the Bell curve of IQs and see how differently people think and learn when their IQs are on the low end. Put the gifted child's IQ on the same curve and they are just as far away from normal. I know it costs extra for the special classes, but I feel these children have so much to offer society that it's criminal not to help them learn to the best of their ability. These kids are our future, and many classes as they currently exist in the mainstream do them little good. In fact, I think they may be harmful because of the messages the gifted kids take away from them: don't try hard, creativity is punishable by law, and your place is to help less able children.
What do you think? Are classes for the gifted important, or do they create an unacceptable elitism?
2 responses
@Wasgilykitten (161)
• United States
18 Sep 07
They system that we have was simple (was key word).
If you're child was doing great in 1st grade they would bump them up to the 2nd grade etc.
They canceled that system because they said after they skipped a grade the child felt over whelmed with all the work, and failed that grade.
Just something to think about. Push them, but don't over whelm them
Good Luck
@tutor1235 (113)
• United States
18 Sep 07
Advancement was also suggested for mine, but we declined-concern about social skills. Since they were in multi-graded classrooms anyway, they just went tothe top groups and sort of stayed there while hte rest caught up. It came back to bite all three of htem in math-they were "skipped" over grades 2-4 and did fine until high school when I realized no one had ever taught them how to use fractions or do long division! It was pretty easy to teach them on the spot, but eldest is still concerned that she will have difficulty on her GREs over simple math things, in spite of doing well in college calc and so forth.
@bowtieguy (5915)
• United States
25 Sep 07
Some schools already do, my youngest son is in the 8th grade and for his math and science he and a few other students take advanced classes over at the high school, it is a lot more challenging I think but he seems to like it just fine.
