Yesterday I discussed the problems that occur when a child is arbitrarily placed in a class more advanced than her ability level. Today, I'd like to discuss the opposite end of that spectrum; arbitrarily placing a child in a class that is below her ability level.
Another of my daughters, Mirinda, was born on September 12, and so the school system here in Utah said she needed to start Kindergarten a year later than we believed she should have started. Mirinda was ready to start school in 1997; she not only could pass all of the Kindergarten readiness tests, but was also starting to read on her own. But the school system wouldn't hear of her starting in 1997 because her birthday was 12 days after the arbitrary cutoff date.
We lived in Bountiful at the time, and the school Mirinda attended was a fairly decent school academically. Nevertheless, Mirinda was always at the top of her class, and demonstrated the ability to do class work above her level. We discussed the possibility of having her skip a grade, but the rules wouldn't permit it until she finished the first grade, and the school discouraged it afterward.
In 2001, we moved to an area with a poorly performing school. This school's average was around the 30th percentile academically. Mirinda was in the third grade at the time, and the course work was not challenging enough to keep her interested. This school "tracked" students roughly by ability. There were three classes, one that was balanced to the more advanced students, one for the average students, and one for the struggling students. Mirinda was in the more advanced class, but was still bored with the work and under challenged.
We discussed the possibility of skipping a grade or enrolling her in a program for gifted children. Skipping a grade was discouraged again, but the school agreed to test Mirinda for a gifted program. Had Mirinda been accepted to this program, it would have required us to drive her about seven miles to and from each day. When her test results came back, Mirinda had scored above the 90th percentile in all but one area of the battery. In that area she had scored near the 80th percentile. These scores were not high enough to qualify her for the gifted program, but they were significantly above the level at which the school she was attending could serve her.
Halfway through the 5th grade, we pulled Mirinda out of this school and began homeschooling her. We didn't do anything unique or special; we most definately didn't push her beyond her native interest. Three years later, Mirinda demonstrated the academic proficiency necessary and was accepted for enrollment in the 9th grade in a new charter school, which placed her in the grade we originally thought she should have been in.
Where Neeva was over placed by the arbitrary age segregation rule, Mirinda was under placed. The arbitrary cutoff date of September 1, which completely ignores the real readiness level of the child, misserved both of these girls. Had their mother and I not taken proactive steps to ensure that the girls were appropriately placed in the grades appropriate to their academic abilities, both girls could have been damaged by this entrenched rule.
Another of my daughters, Mirinda, was born on September 12, and so the school system here in Utah said she needed to start Kindergarten a year later than we believed she should have started. Mirinda was ready to start school in 1997; she not only could pass all of the Kindergarten readiness tests, but was also starting to read on her own. But the school system wouldn't hear of her starting in 1997 because her birthday was 12 days after the arbitrary cutoff date.
We lived in Bountiful at the time, and the school Mirinda attended was a fairly decent school academically. Nevertheless, Mirinda was always at the top of her class, and demonstrated the ability to do class work above her level. We discussed the possibility of having her skip a grade, but the rules wouldn't permit it until she finished the first grade, and the school discouraged it afterward.
In 2001, we moved to an area with a poorly performing school. This school's average was around the 30th percentile academically. Mirinda was in the third grade at the time, and the course work was not challenging enough to keep her interested. This school "tracked" students roughly by ability. There were three classes, one that was balanced to the more advanced students, one for the average students, and one for the struggling students. Mirinda was in the more advanced class, but was still bored with the work and under challenged.
We discussed the possibility of skipping a grade or enrolling her in a program for gifted children. Skipping a grade was discouraged again, but the school agreed to test Mirinda for a gifted program. Had Mirinda been accepted to this program, it would have required us to drive her about seven miles to and from each day. When her test results came back, Mirinda had scored above the 90th percentile in all but one area of the battery. In that area she had scored near the 80th percentile. These scores were not high enough to qualify her for the gifted program, but they were significantly above the level at which the school she was attending could serve her.
Halfway through the 5th grade, we pulled Mirinda out of this school and began homeschooling her. We didn't do anything unique or special; we most definately didn't push her beyond her native interest. Three years later, Mirinda demonstrated the academic proficiency necessary and was accepted for enrollment in the 9th grade in a new charter school, which placed her in the grade we originally thought she should have been in.
Where Neeva was over placed by the arbitrary age segregation rule, Mirinda was under placed. The arbitrary cutoff date of September 1, which completely ignores the real readiness level of the child, misserved both of these girls. Had their mother and I not taken proactive steps to ensure that the girls were appropriately placed in the grades appropriate to their academic abilities, both girls could have been damaged by this entrenched rule.
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