If your mind is too open, your brain will fall out. Warning: Names, identities, descriptions, and pictures have been changed and/or used to protect the innocent as well as the guilty. PollyPeoria should not be used or quoted as a source for your senior college thesis.

Saturday, May 20

An Exceedingly Long Post Regarding Washington Gifted (Puke) School.

My neighbor's fourth grade son recently found out that he got into Washington Gifted Middle School. Jordan and his parents have been graciously low key about it. I wouldn't have known had I not noticed that Jordan has taken on the appearance of a true tween as of late, no longer willing to wear the well coordinated and clean attire that his mother previously picked for him. Lately, I would guess that Jordan picks his clothes out of the garbage dumpster located behind Goodwill. Poor hygiene and tattered clothes... key ingredients of a healthy heterosexual American male. Jordan is only ten, and thus a bit ahead of schedule.

Anyhoo, a couple of weeks back I was pulling weeds in my yard and watching Jordan shooting baskets in his driveway. It dawned on me that Jordie was no longer a cute puffy cheek little kid that could be bought off with a slightly burnt chocolate chip cookie. Instead, Jordan has become a sloppy, slouchy, sullen pre-teen. Angst without a cause. Cool without a clue. What fond memories. My mother is still in therapy.

"Hey Jordy!" I say with a smile and the sin of enthusiasm.

"Um, Ms. Polly? Like, nobody calls me that."

"They don't? Not even your mom?"

"Especially not my mom. Jeeze!"

"So, what do you go by these days?"

Ew. Polly made the mistake of trying too hard with a tween. I am screwed. This kid will definitely be throwing reams of toilet paper in my trees sooner rather than later. It was an honest mistake. I really thought the boy was going to tell me he had a street name to accessorize his recently acquired swagger.

The boy tilted his head back, sighs as if the world's problems rested on his shoulders alone, and gave me an eye roll before muttering a disgusted reply. "My name, Ms Polly. I go by my name. You know, Jordan?"

Polly can speak tween. Really, I can. One merely need to pretend that enunciating and projecting one's voice in a polite manner is as irritating and inconvenient as, say, plucking one's nose hairs.

"Yeah. Right. Jordan. Whatever. Middle school next year?"

"Yup."

"Which one?"

"Washington."

Polly is able to stop herself before saying something tragically uncool. You know, something to the effect of a perky "Congratulations!" or worse, "Your parents must be so proud!"

Instead, I opted for, "No surprise there." Perfect. Now the pre-pube has no idea how to respond in a hip manner.

After a brief pause Jordan shrugs and mutters, "Guess."

"Christy going too?" Christy is Jordan's twin sister who recently fell in love with her hair. Every time I see her, Christy has a hair brush in hand, pulling it through her mane. Yesterday I witnessed Christy brushing her hair while dragging a bag of garbage to the curb.

"Nope. Chris wouldn't even take the tests. She says Washington is a dank nerd hole."

"Is it?"

"I dunno. Orientation is tonight."

"Going?"

"I dunno. My dad's plane got delayed in Chicago. Mom has to work."

Polly has deep sympathy for anyone who must travel for a living. Lately, airports have come to resemble corporate cattle ranches. Substitute cattle for exhausted ticket holding business travelers and ranchers for airline employees who couldn't give a rat's ass about the people they are paid to serve and you'll get the picture. Except that I imagine ranchers actually care more about the well being of cows they are about to kill. But I digress...

"I could drop you off if your Dad doesn't get back in time."

"Um. That'd be okay."

Polly's good deed was really just an excuse to give up on exterminating my dandelions, plus I saw a rare opportunity to actually acquire a little knowledge on a topic -Peoria Public Schools- that I blog about rather often.

Say what you will about District 150. Poor schools, poor test scores, under achieving students, dilapidated buildings, etc. The very best middle school in the state is a District 150 school. Right here in little old Piddly Peoria. Washington Gifted Middle School. This fact made me proud until I attended to the orientation.

I imagined that Washington would consist of students that lived throughout the City, including the Southside and East Bluff of every color and socio-economic level. Ha! I saw two black kids in attendance. There were no kids from Loucks or Harrison. One from Whittier. Just about every kid hailed from Kellar, Charter Oak, or Northmoor Edison. It would seem that Washington Gifted could be more aptly named NORTH Peoria Gifted.

I learned that a combination of scores and factors are used to deem a child worthy of acceptance to Washington Gifted. The ITBS (Iowa Test of Basic Skills), Cognitive Abilities Test, as well as the Weschler Intelligence Scale test (an I.Q. test) as well as grades and teacher recommendation are required. I find it odd that one needs to do well on an I.Q. test to get into Washington, but not to get into Harvard University. It would seem District 150 doesn't just want hard working, high achieving performers, but those who are organically intelligent as well. In other words, DNA gets the nod. Puke.

Think I'm over blowing it? Consider this. Principal Joan Wojcikewych opening remarks included the statement, "Children, you should thank your parents for being here and admitted to Washington. Studies have proven time and again that gifted children come from gifted parents." I thought this was a joke, until I noticed that I was the only one in the room chuckling. Why would it be a joke? Ms. Wojcikewych felt the need to inform us that she had birthed and raised five gifted children herself. Puke.

It was an evening of gifted this and gifted that. Gifted. Gifted. Gifted. Got really sick of the word after about five minutes. I imagined that Washington would be the a place where kids who loved school and academics would have a place to shine and pursue their interests. More experiments and projects instead of pop quizzes and tests. Less need for discipline and greater freedom to explore. Forget that.

We were informed that a Washington eighth grader received one point short of a perfect score on the ACT test this year. ACT test? The scores used when applying for college? Why would an eight grader be taking the ACTs?! We heard how well Washington prepares kids for honors high school courses, ACTs, SATs and college. High school? College? Hello! THESE KIDS ARE TEN!!! Let them be kids for Pete's sake!

As for discipline, we were informed that five students were boot kicked out of Washington for poor performance last year. Not even a veiled threat. Gosh, so if your DNA doesn't live up to expectations they remove you from the better stock? THESE KIDS ARE TEN!!! Why would anyone want to put that kind of pressure on fifth graders? Puke. Puke. Puke.

Think I'm misinterpreting? Consider the following handout that was included in the orientation packet. Remember, this handout was given to those who had already been ACCEPTED to Washington Gifted.

HOW CAN YOU IDENTIFY A GIFTED CHILD? (Note: The Principal called special attention to this flyer. She wanted us to know that there is a difference between being gifted and "just being bright." Puke.)

The Bright Child...........................................The Gifted Child

Knows the answers.................................................Asks the questions.
Is interested......................................................Is highly curious.
Is attentive.....................................Is mentally and physically involved.
Has good ideas.................................................Has wild, silly ideas.
Works hard..............................................Plays around, yet tests well.
Answers the questions................................Discusses in detail, elaborates.
Is in top group..................................................Is beyond the group.
Listens with interest.............................Shows strong feelings and opinions.
Learns with ease.......................................................Already knows.
Needs 6-8 repetitions for mastery................Needs 1-2 repetitions for mastery.
Understands ideas............................................Constructs abstractions.
Enjoys peers..........................................................Prefers adults.
Grasps the meaning..................................................Draws inferences.
Completes assignments.............................................Initiates projects.
Is receptive..............................................................Is intense.
Copies accurately...............................................Creates a new design.
Enjoys school........................................................Enjoys learning.
Absorbs information..........................................Manipulates information.
Is a technician.......................................................Is an inventor.
Is a good memorizer................................................Is a good guesser.
Enjoys straightforward sequential presentation.............Thrives on complexity.
Is alert.........................................................Is keenly observant.
Is pleased with own learning.................................Is highly self-critical.

If you believe the above and your child is hard working, well adjusted, has good sense of self worth and is a top student... well, your offspring is simply not good enough for Washington Gifted.

On the other hand, if your kid is a genius due to biology, is socially retarded and highly self critical, and is one who "plays around, yet tests well...." Your kid is in the right place.

Puke. Puke. Puke. Biology over hard work? What are these people thinking?! Eugenics? Moreover, in this era of Bush's No Child Left Behind, how is it fair to take the best and the brightest out of schools like Lindberg and Mark Bills and place them in Washington? Doesn't that hurt "regular" schools which must show improvement every year on test scores in order to remain off the watch list?

I was a proud fan of Washington Gifted before I went to the orientation. Now I'm rather horrified. We don't live in a gifted world. Are we doing these kids any favors by having them off by themselves, alone with their "own kind" for four years? If these kids "prefer adults to peers" and spend their days with those who do as well, don't they run the risk of being social outcasts when they reach high school? Using these standards to determine who is and isn't gifted might really be setting these kids up for a lot of pain and disappointment rather than providing an enlightened education.

The orientation packet contained an enrollment form. The very first word on the form in uppercase bold letters "Washington", followed by the words "State" and "Background" were all spelled incorrectly. No. I'm not kidding. Apparently District 150's spellcheck isn't gifted.

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hmm, well you got Washington a little bit wrong. Mind you, my experience with Washington Gifted (WGS)goes back to circa 1990. Here's how it worked or didn't work for my 5th grade son. He tested for the school at Bradley, passed, had all the atributes except my son didn't really want to go to WGS. Anyway, we were told that 60 slots were open and we were 61 which meant that unless a student died or moved, he wasn't going. Our friends who's kid didn't test nor had even a B average but was having trouble with kids in his current class, like fights, got their kid to go to Washington that same year. How? It is who you know and they knew some Admin people at Dist150. It seems that after checking the backround of some of these kids, we found that many were kids of 150 staff, friends of Staff, and anyone elses kid that "knew" someone in postion, even City Hall. After all, these people didn't want their kids slumming with the regular kids in regular middle school. To keep my friends kid in the school, (remember barely B average), he was tutored and things were made "easy" for him. So, IMO, the school is about politics and not so much gifted. Today? This B student might have changed your oil in your car, he has worked at most of those places. My kid, is teaching History at an area high school.

Anonymous said...

If Peoria had a school for the athletically gifted there would be no controversy. Banner would be hung in the school and signs posted on their outstanding achievements. People at the meetings would chant "were number one". Blogs and newspapers would list their names for all to see and congratulate. Placement for Academics tends to upset parents and brings out a different reaction. Gifted academic students (2% ?) are not usually paraded or honored due to the reactions of the other parents & students. For the gifted 8th grader, taking the ACT test is equivalent to a track athlete doing a practice 1 mile run. A bit of a work out but not a big deal. If an 8th grade athlete ran the mile in 4 minutes I'm sure you would congratulate the runner (post the their name). Notice the 8th grade student with almost perfect ACT had a different reaction in your blog.

Laura Petelle said...

There's so much to comment on here (including that I'm glad you're back!) but I just wanted to pull out three particular points that caught my eye:

"Enjoys straightforward sequential presentation.............Thrives on complexity."

So linear thinkers aren't gifted? I actually went through much of life - particular law school - feeling like a squared gifted peg in a round gifted hole because of the emphasis on logic and linear thinking and I'm a very lateral thinker. Yes, I would thrive on the complexity. But a lot of my classmates in various gifted programs would have seriously struggled under that regime - as much as I stuggled under the linear regime, or perhaps moreso, since even if you're a lateral thinker, there are advantages to a straightfoward, well-organized presentation rather than a scattered "complex" one.

(Moreover, any lateral thinker who belives they can function in the world without learning to present their thoughts linearly is crazy. I've known a few linear thinkers who can get away without any lateralism, but they're virtually all computer programmers.)

+++Is pleased with own learning.................................Is highly self-critical.+++

And THAT is why I had a nervous breakdown at 16. Those horrible, horrible A-s on my high school transcripts. I shudder when I see gifted children who are "highly self-critical." There are shrinks who do nothing but treat imploding gifted adolescents who are "highly self-critical." That's just plain unhealthy.

"Are we doing these kids any favors by having them off by themselves, alone with their "own kind" for four years?"

This is something my husband and I have debated endlessly (although in the abstract as we currently only have fur-babies). I went to public schools until college, and was in "gifted" or honors programs within those public schools (granted, in north suburban Chicago, so more of a Dunlap setting than a Central). My husband attended private schools for gifted children until high school, and then a public magnet school for gifted children. The transition to college for him (to an Ivy-equivalent, so he wasn't exactly suddenly thrust into the unwashed masses) was more difficult for him than for me because of socialization issues. We discuss constantly whether our hypothetical and hypothetically gifted children would be better off in an honors program within a wider setting where they could become more socialized with a wider variety of people, or whether they'd be better off in a smaller, nuturing, restricted environment for only gifted students.

I imagine it varies somewhat from student to student, as well, based on personality and so forth.

Oh, and one more: "Studies have proven time and again that gifted children come from gifted parents."

Haven't studies proven time and again that gifted children - at least those recognized as such by the school system - come from ECONOMICALLY ADVANTAGED parents?

Mahkno said...

The problem with a 'gifted' school... is if they are all gifted.. not all will shine in the pond. If the school is run right... not everyone is going to get an 'A' average. So imagine the psychological stress that a 'gifted' kid gets if his average is a 'B' or a 'C'. In any other school he would be at the top of his class. When you apply for college, no one really cares what school you went to. They just look at the metrics... C average? 'B' average? move along. No ivy for you. If you are not in the top 10% or even the top 25%, many 'top' schools won't even look at you.

I know... Washington MIDDLE school is just that a middle school. But they will likely all end up at the same highschool. I pity the 'average' gifted kid.

Laura Petelle said...

"When you apply for college, no one really cares what school you went to. They just look at the metrics... C average? B average? move along. No ivy for you."

I actually sat on undergrad admissions committees both in undergrad and in grad school, in two top-25 US News & World Report schools. They MOST DEFINITELY look at what school you went to. An A average at Manual is NOT worth the same as an A average at Dunlap. I do not know (I cannot make an apostrophe on this computer without it freaking out) exactly what they use, but they certainly know regional top schools vs. average schools or bad schools, and the two I did admissions for had systems for looking at the top high schools nationwide and knew which ones the top high schools were. It was definitely worth "points" in their systems.

I was told quite often that "only valedictorians can get into Notre Dame" but I did not even graduate in the top 5% of my high school class .... but Notre Dame knew what a challenging high school it was. Frankly a top 10% from Dunlap probably has a better chance at the Ivys than a #2 at Manual.

If you are looking to give your kid an admission advantage, move out to Princeville or Roanoke-Benson -- suburban super-achievers are a dime a dozen for Ivies and Ivy-equivalents. And they have a nice choice of urban kids. But rural students? They are in HIGH demand.

Mahkno said...

There are some high profile high schools.. especially if they show up in some best 100 sort of survey. I really find it hard to believe they track and follow every high school, let alone asess accurately which school is more challenging. You can also have anomolies within a given class year too.

Rural in high demand? Didn't make a rats assed difference for the wife. Might actually have harmed her as no one really knew where the hell the school was.

Laura Petelle said...

"let alone asess accurately which school is more challenging."

Well, whether they accurately assess anything is a whole different question. :) I didn't say it was an ACCURATE system, but they do have knowledge of the high schools they most typically draw from (be they regional, or a top 100 national thing) and they have ways of investigating schools they're not familiar with. I didn't deal a whole lot with this, since typically this was done when they were looking at GPAs and test scores to sort numerically the "possibles" from the "nos" (I was involved in the reading of student essays and so forth), but I was aware the process occurred.

"Rural in high demand? Didn't make a rats assed difference for the wife. Might actually have harmed her as no one really knew where the hell the school was."

I'm sure it depended on when she went to school and where. (University of North Dakota probably has a less-difficult time coming up with rural kids than, say, UCLA.) Because of the current college mania for "diversity," schools are really going after rural students; it's such a smaller pool than urban or suburban, so there's more demand for the qualified rural kids, and a couple admissions people told me they'd prefer (numerically qualified) urban or rural kids over cookie-cutter suburban kids any day because the urban and rural kids are typically more interesting and have a greater sense of self. I don't know if that's true, but that was the perception.

(And I CAN definitely say that there are a WHOLE LOT of suburban kids out there who basically have counselors or consultants or parents prepare their applications and write their essays and they are BOR. ING. and don't stand out; that's not nearly as common in urban/rural apps. The "boring" kids were typically more interesting in their interviews, but they were SO overpackaged that I'm sure a lot of bright, interesting kids got passed over just because their apps made them appear to be the velveeta of college applicants next to artisanal brie.)

Then again, suburban students are more likely to pay full tuition or qualify for less financial aid, so when it comes to the $$ (and that's a big motivating factor for the "uni-business" in the US), there was a certain sense of "qualified, incredibly dull suburban kid whose parents will pay full tuition costs. fine, whatever, let him in."

Laura Petelle said...

Incidentally (and since I've already written a novel on the topic here!) one of the things that MOST bothered me about doing this admissions stuff was the randomness, stereotypes, baseless assumptions, and skewed weighting of variables of the entire process. It was more than a little appalling. I sort-of understand why parents hire expensive consultants to help their kids deal with capriciousness of the system, but they really don't help.

Some kids were real standouts, and that shone through. But the "run-of-the-mill" valedictorian athlete tuba-playing poet from Good Suburban School X really got lost in the shuffle and was treated as an interchangeable part.

And really, how many of us were "standouts" at 18? I wasn't.

Mahkno said...

I guess... the point that really needs to be made comes down to the expression: Do you want to be a big fish in a small pond or a little fish in a big pond? People are more likely to notice a big fish, rather than a little one.

That said.. schools should be providing opportunities for all types of kids in all the schools. No doubt Washington has some resources that simply don't exist at the other schools. Schools should not be teaching to the 'average' student or the 'slowest' student, but rather to the 'individual' student. It can be done. I was fortunate to experience that in my middle school years. Of course when I got to high school it was back to the 'average' student again, which made high school that much more unbearable.

Anonymous said...

Maybe times have changed, I went to Washington in the mid seventies when it was on Moss. Back then it was new enough to not be a big deal esp. with parents. I had no idea why we stopped at Bradley one afternoon for some tests, the tests were fun and I never heard about the school until the letter came regarding acceptance. A short discussion at dinner and I agreed to give this school a shot the next year ( I was in third grade, washington started at fourth back then). Great school, great teachers and college like freedom for a ten year old. We had different teachers for different subjects, we could leave for lunch and walk up to Main street, we learned and had fun. Every kid I went to school with went to college. We were not the typical nerd type kids, this was the seventies and the kids had long hair and we were into the same stuff as kids at any other school in town. In high school we all did well, we also drank beer and smoked pot, just like 90% of the kids back then. And when it came time to go on to college after high school most of the kids from Washington once again tested well as we had done years earlier and so it was easy to get into a decent school. I am not sure that washington school had much to do with how well the kids did later on or if it was just the fact that the school district had identified a group of kids that tested well and that attribute held on through the college entrance exams ( ACT SAT ).

pollypeoria said...

Darling Anonymous,
There is a reason that there are no schools for the athletically gifted. Schools are first and foremost to provide an education. Running the mile in four minutes is an achievement to be sure, but not a life skill that would promise society an educated voter, and employed tax payer in the future. So, YES, there would most definitely be an outcry if there was a public school for the athletically gifted. I have no problem with an eighth grader running a four minute mile, as long as the achievement did not cost the child his or her childhood - which is more and more common among child athletes these days. Think of parents screaming on the sidelines for Junior to score, counting on an athletic scholarship to pay college tuition. How about young female gymnasts starving themselves, causing their bodies great harm with eating disorders for the very slim chance of an olympic future. Perhaps you've heard of steroid abuse common among some young athletes driven for an advantage in their sport.

To me, an 8th grader taking the ACT is equal to a toddler running a four minute mile. What business does a toddler have training that hard at that age? It is too young. The toddler should be playing, discovering the world, drooling, watching Sesame Street, etc. Yes, the 8th grader should be academically driven. But said 8th grader should also gabbing on the phone to friends, going to the mall, playing sports, you know... being a kid! Why is this KID being exposed to college pressures this early?

My high school experience was similiar to Eyebrows'. Even the very best and brightest of my rather wealthy high school class -those who attended swank ivy league colleges- worked like mad studying for the ACT and SATs. That kind of academic devotion/pressure is appropriate at the age of 16 or 17. That kind of pressure at 13 or 14 is a crime, IMHO.

Eyebrows' dissertation covers my feelings on all other points brought up regarding my Washington Gifted -puke- post thus far, and far better than I could, by the way. Thanks Eyebrows. Your gifted education clearly paid off!

Love,
Polly

Anonymous said...

"The very first word on the form in uppercase bold letters "Washington", followed by the words "State" and "Background" were all spelled incorrectly. No. I'm not kidding. Apparently District 150's spellcheck isn't gifted."

Thats nothing, Woodruff High School has had a pennant with word "Peoria" spelled wrong hanging in the swimming pool for at least ten years.

Anonymous said...

"Why is this KID being exposed to college pressures this early." The 7th-8th graders that I know that take the ACT/SAT do so since they score 98%-99% on age appropriate standardized tests. These students (if gifted) do not have to study for the test. One point initially may not have been clear, but for gifted children their fun is often academically oriented. My misunderstanding, perhaps this discussion is not on the gifted, but the academic high achiever. The "A" students should not be taking the ACT/SAT, no point in it and it maybe a "crime" in some locations. The initial blog had an issue with the gifted child : "I find it odd that one needs to do well on an I.Q. test to get into Washington, but not to get into Harvard University. It would seem District 150 doesn't just want hard working, high achieving performers, but those who are organically intelligent as well. In other words, DNA gets the nod. Puke." Sounds like they want the gifted not the high achiever and Polly has a problem with this issue (Plus perceived genetic component??). Hence the problem. I do not have the knowledge on genetics and feel the middle/lower economic gifted students are undiscovered. The pressure discussed would be on the high achievers usually not on the gifted in the school. The athletic analogy was more to point out that great athletic performance would be celebrated but the great ACT score indicates a problem

pollypeoria said...

Gentle Anonymous,
I will award you partial credit. I do, most certainly, have a problem with kids being admitted to Washington Gifted based on I.Q. (perceived genetic superiority) rather than performance. The academically gifted child may get a boost from good genes, but biology should not eliminate those kids who love school, work hard, achieve and test well. Merit and high achievement should outweigh DNA. Moreover, a straight A student who scores well on the Iowa Basic Skills tests and receives high praises from his/her grade school teacher IS "gifted" regardless of what an IQ score states. Some gifts are given, some are discovered, some are earned.

Your athletic analogy is still valid and I think is a worthy comparison. If the eighth grader really does not have to study for a near perfect score on the ACT -which I highly doubt - then there is no problem, you win and we should celebrate the achievement just as we would the 8th grader who could run a four minute mile - without much training, which also seem unlikely.

I don't have a problem with gifted children, or even a gifted school per se. I do have a problem with the way District 150 defines "gifted."

Based on the orientation, the packet of information distributed, and the types of tests used to determine who is worthy of Washington, I also fear Washington Gifted might be yet another institution in the business of denying kids a childhood instead providing a unique setting to better serve high achievers.

Anonymous said...

The test scores in grade schools are all but worthless. The Peoria schools focus all their efforts on teaching what is on these tests, the emphasis on schools getting good test scores is absurd, the kids suffer and the tests prove nothing, they certainly should not be used to identify gifted students. Gifted students will score high on a test that have not been preparing for all year, that is why they are gifted, they are learning outside the box.

Anonymous said...

The problem is defined as high achievers should be admitted to the school, not just the gifted. Hey, I would be thrilled just to have such a school in our community. I originally did a google blog search with Washington, gifted, and saw your blog..thought I'd give my comments (again). To state again, these kids do not have to study for the test. I can't figure out how they do so well, yet never had the material in school or home. The academic gap between high achiever and gifted is vast. It is not a matter of grade or trying hard (or genetics?). Perhaps to make the community unified re-define the meaning of gifted or the school's mission. This will solve your problem w/the school as it creates more problems. Good luck

Laura Petelle said...

"To state again, these kids do not have to study for the test. I can't figure out how they do so well, yet never had the material in school or home."

We test well.

In sixth grade I had to take the SAT for some part of the honors placement thing in junior high. There was no studying, no preparation. I hadn't had a lot of the math yet (I didn't start alegbra until seventh grade, geometry in 8th). I scored high enough to beat the median at Purdue University. WHEN I WAS ELEVEN.

This is because I perform EXCEEDINGLY well on standardized tests. I didn't prepare for the ACT, SAT, PSAT, LSAT, or GRE. I scored in the 99th percentile on all of them. I scored perfect on some sections. My math scores are stratospheric.

I SUCK at math. I struggled like crazy to get through trigonometry, and I was briefly afraid calculus would make me flunk out of college. But you wouldn't know it from standardized tests. I'm a test savant.

I had a good friend in the "gifted" program with me in high school who standardized tested so poorly that she was actually considered retarded until she was 8 or 9 based on her CTBS scores and kept in remedial classes. She would probably not be able to get into gifted programs here because of the standardized test emphasis.

And when it comes to "naturally gifted" vs. "high achiever from hard work" -- there are loads and loads of "naturally gifted" students out there who dick around their entire lives and never achieve anything because they slide by on being gifted until life smacks them in the face and they decide they'd rather not deal with working at anything. I have a lot more admiration for the student who works hard and achieves than for the student who just shows up and scores brilliantly without bothering to care. I certainly know which one is going farther in life, and which one brings more to the classroom.

Anonymous said...

"eyebrows" your story is the complete opposite of our experience (& logic). The problem of the gifted "sliding" would be very strange, especially if they are in a gifted program. The reason for the program is to increase the challenge to their level & beyond. Not allowing them to slide by (bored). Again this should not be us vs them...but do you offer those gifted an education based on their needs. Sound like no, since there maybe a genetic component or they are not really gifted, they just test well.LOL..May also need to see why those high achievers that work hard at school are not having their needs met.

Laura Petelle said...

Ideally, yes, a "gifted" program does help the gifted learn to work rather than allowing them to slide through. But why should that opportunity be denied to what my mother called "strivers" as well? Which seems to be what the Washington definition of a "high achiever" vs. a "gifted" child is seeking to exclude.

And I was in one of the most challenging high school curricula for gifted students in the state of Illinois, and there was an awful lot of sliding going on. I liked school and generally didn't mind the work, but I was a teenager. I blew off a lot. I still got excellent grades and rave reviews from teachers. I just didn't have to work that hard.

(And I can't say I was BORED in high school - I was bored out of my MIND in junior high - but in high school I was mostly just lazy and I knew I didn't have to work very hard to do well. I was interested, just lazy.)

Anonymous said...

I hate beginnings, so lets start with some background. I graduated from Washington 10 years ago, and like Eyebrows, I test extremely well. I also took the ACT in sixth grade and scored in the same neighborhood as her with no studying or anything, so it doesn't strike me as surprising that an eigth grader was one point away from perfect. And understand that there is a good chance that a gifted student studying for the ACT in eigth grade is doing so as a personal challenge. Granted, there might be parents pushing , but in my experience most of the parents of Washington children aren't like that. It's one of those things that the student did just to see if they could.
The problem of gifted "sliding" would be strange in the context of a gifted program - one where they are being challenged - as was the case during my time as Washington. But, I can say without doubt that my years at Washington were much more challenging than anything in high school and that is where it became a problem for me. I didn't have to do anthing more than show up and go to class in order to do well. Homework was a joke. While i hated writing, I could scribble downa a bunch of crap and get an A. My writing in 6th grade was more comprehesible and organized than a lot of what gets passed in high school. I floated through high school and two years of college before i got a rude awakening and actually had to study to do well, which was a rather hard adjustment.
Also, Polly I take a little offense at your term "socially retarded" I think that "socially awkward" would be a better description. I will be the first to admit that I am not the most social person, but I certainly don't stick out like a sore thumb. And that social awkwardness certainly wouldn't have been solved by attending a different school.
As for the students mostly coming from north Peoria, it was that way 10 years ago - %50 of my class went to Richwoods, %35 to Central, and the remaining %15 to Manual and Woodruff - and will continue to be that way because parents who are economically advantaged are usually more educated and tend to place a strong emphasis on education.
I hope that all makes some sense as I tend to ramble and not connect my thoughts as well as I should

pollypeoria said...

Washgrad,

Your gifted education served you well, your thoughts are very well connected.

I did not mean anything negative by the term "socially retarded." I realize that many equate the word "retarded" with stupid or idiot, but Polly regards the term retarded as simply being slower than average. Typically Polly also takes the word "gay" to mean happy. When I was a kid, my dentist told me I was tooth retarded. Meaning that my baby teeth were not falling out on schedule and that the arrival of my adult teeth were way behind the curve. Thus Polly has been the victim of quite a few painful oral surgeries. Ah, but as usual I digress.

I honestly don't have a problem with a gifted school or gifted education. Washington is probably a great place to learn. The orientation was a turn off, but it would be hasty and premature to disregard the school on the basis of one evening.

I am willing to concede that it is possible that an academically gifted 8th grader may well take the ACTs to simply challenge herself and not to pacify over eager parents.

I do have a problem with I.Q. tests being used as a tool to judge who is worthy of a gifted education and who is not. Teacher recommendations, grades, and ITBS Achievement Tests should be accurate enough qualifiers.

Polly is a big believer in nurture over nature, mind over matter, hard work over organic short comings.

Eyebrows mother is right to be concerned about "strivers" being left out. This is America. We are supposed to reward effort and hard work... not pedigree.

Anonymous said...

"Behind, how is it fair to take the best and the brightest out of schools like Lindberg and Mark Bills and place them in Washington? Doesn't that hurt "regular" schools which must show improvement every year on test scores in order to remain off the watch list?"

Would you put 'regular' students into special ed programs to help those programs? I'm not talking mainstreaming. But could you imagine putting one or two 'regular' students in a class full of special ed students.

Anonymous said...

I go to Washington and no one here is Nerdy! No one is Not Social! Most people still come from Kellar though. I know the Jordan you talked about at the beggining of the post.
I am not the anonymous before me. Can u leave Washington Alone?

Anonymous said...

I have heard that Washington is just the opposite of what you are saying here...complaints I have heard is that it is "paper-pushing, task oriented and very structured....not especially gifted education. But what is the alternative. We are at a private school now, which hires low paid teachers and has no plan. We have done the regular 150 thing and found that teachers have an edict to focus on the kids who do not meet or exceed standards, which means the brighter kids are "left behind" to work in a curriculum that is not challenging or exciting to them.

Anonymous said...

I attended Washington Elementary (as it was called then) between 1979 and 1982. The first year was at Moss, the rest at the current location.

The testing process for attendance was much the same as described above, but the most anyone talked about 'giftedness' was at the orientation. The actual year-to-year school experience was really not organized to make it a big deal. The big difference between Washington and other schools in Peoria was that stigma of genetic sorting and the greater freedom and variety of experiences presented.

That, and the mandatory and stressful science fair every year. ;-)

The biggest frustration about Washington was that they used the same school books as the rest of the district, so there was no above-grade material tought, other than the additional enrichment topics such as French and/or Spanish from fourth grade.

Still, it was at Washington that I got early hands on experience with the first personal computer I ever saw, and through my explorations with it at school (and especially with very bright peers) I got an early leg up on computer science.

They say that the very best programmers are those who go through their 'larval phase' pre-adolescence, and Washington made that possible for me.

Socially, I was pretty geeky even for Washington, and I had a hellacious time when my family moved to Alaska and I went from the comparatively sheltered Washington environment to the much rougher and tougher public school junior high environment. Washington didn't provide much of a preparation for that, unfortunately.

My four years at Washington were wonderful, though, and my life is still enriched by what I gained there.

Mark said...

So, most of the class of '71 of WGS will be getting together this year for our 40th reunion. What I remember about leaving Loucks and going to Washington was the relief I felt, due to going to school with people who were like me. I was no longer the oddball 'brainy' kid, and being around other high achievers forced me to 'up my game'. Unless things have really changed, WGS is a savior for a lot of Peoria kids.

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