Gifted classes/school --- why the overwhelming demand?

[The Mystery Machine]

It's so frustrating to see so many people so against other people's children succeeding in school and receiving any recognition or advantage for that fact.

And you wonder why are school's are failing.

Every kid should have the opportunity to take an advanced class WITHOUT the STUPID IQ TEST. That is my pet peeve.

If a kid wants to work hard and can pass the classes with A'/B's, the option to take a higher level class should be on the table for ALL kids.

I freaking HATE HATE HATE HATE the fact we do not allow kids to take higher level classes because of an IQ test when they belong in higher level classes.

And that is my rant...

 

[okeydokey]

I am not saying it is not socially acceptable to be proud of a good student-around here the good students are more highly praised than the outstanding athletes-who get their fair share of praise to but academics are stressed. The question was "Why the overwhelming demand" the answer is "because it is a status symbol for many parents". It has nothing to do with kids that really ARE gifted but even you have to admit that MOST kids in your G/T program are really just good students-not really GIFTED.

I don't admit that at all. In my area, they are not admitted unless they are actually gifted. My daughter is a good student, she is not in the program. There are very few students in the program, I think 12 out 500 in my son's school.

 

[A_Princess'_Daddy]

I am not saying it is not socially acceptable to be proud of a good student-around here the good students are more highly praised than the outstanding athletes-who get their fair share of praise to but academics are stressed. The question was "Why the overwhelming demand" the answer is "because it is a status symbol for many parents". It has nothing to do with kids that really ARE gifted but even you have to admit that MOST kids in your G/T program are really just good students-not really GIFTED.

But according to you, TAG has nothing to do with IQ, but rather has to do with the way children "think". Is it not possible that 10% of children "think differently" even if they do not have IQs of 130+? Especially in wealthier districts, where highly performing children are more likely to be concentrated because of the demonstrated data that wealthier parents are more likely to expose their children to more conversation, more opportunities for learning, etc.?* Therefore, I believe that we are dealing with a correlation that is not actually caused by your central thesis. It's even possible, in fact it's likely, that there are shallow parents out there who do see these programs as a status symbol, but by your own admission that isn't enough to get unwarranted children into the program, which it bolsters my opinion that the programs are added because there is a demonstrated need for them.

*I don't like this fact, by the way, as it strikes me as tragic that by virtue of the genetic lottery my DD6 started out her life years ahead of a child who has just as much promise but had less access to opportunities for enrichment and therefore will never actualize her potential.

Obviously we disagree that the programs are being added as a status symbol, but let me add that if that's truly how your district operates, i.e. adding unneeded programs because parents want their children to match their car, house and country club in prestige, then you have larger problems on your hands.

 

[Mkrop]

There is so much talk on this board about having gifted children.
I don't really get it...I'm just happy if my stepson does his best and doesn't get bad grades. More important than that is if he's a good kid- kind, responsible, generous etc.
Although I'll admit this...even though I'm not too into if he can be gifted, I am into being popular. It's important to me that he has the right clothes and is good looking and all that, because I care more about popularity than about getting the best grades. (People here have told me that's because I'm still young and when I'm older I'll feel differently.)Maybe I'll understand all this gifted stuff someday if I have a baby of my own. Maybe I'll feel differently then, who knows. Maybe I'll want my baby to be gifted too!

You did not really type that did you???? Holy mackeral. That is what you deem important

I was popular in high school and I think you have a lot more fun in high school if youre popular, which is why I think it's important. High school years are tough on every kid but if you're unpopular, it would just make it so much harder. Wanting popularity for my kid and being glad that he's popular isn't about being vain or shallow, it's about wanting him to have the best high school experience he can and be in all the social stuff. I'm not saying that is more important than grades, but I do think he social part of high school is very important.
And FYI i didn't say your child makes me sick. I said i get sick of hearing the word "gifted" used so much. That word is thrown around so much that i don't think it really means all that much anymore.

High school is what you make of it. Popularity in the long run matters so little.

DH was one of the most popular kids in his HS, captain of the baseball team, lead chair for violin, and one of the smartest kids in his class. He moved away from his hometown so his popularity with a bunch of HSers got him no where. But his smarts, his work ethic etc make him the successful man he is today.

Where I went to HS, we had all the typical cliques, and in the Honors and AP classes, there were tons of "popular" kids from all the cliques. Being smart did not exclude you from being popular.


Kids should strive to do their best whatever that is (being stron acdemically, being strong in art etc), find a good group of friends, who are true and loyal, and not worry about being popular.

It's so frustrating to see so many people so against other people's children succeeding in school and receiving any recognition or advantage for that fact.Wonder how many people would raise an eye at a football coach spending any of his spare time working w/ a group of kids he felt had raw talent & could achieve much, much more putting in some extra work to develop it? (Aside from any parents/athletes bitter because they haven't been identified as especially talented by the coach of course.)

Of course I'm the whackadoodle that believes schools are for education & should focus on education. Particularly in these times of very challenging finances for education, I think academics should be the purview of schools. I'm sure there are other avenues that would open up for athletics if schools decided to stick with the business at hand.

I totally agree.

It is ok not to list Honor Rolls or other academic achievements because someone's feelings get hurt, but we can still mention the winning touchdown throw and celebrate that victory bc there may not be a kid out there who may be hurt about not making the team It is riduclous.

We need to celebrate all our strengths.


And the OP lives in NY, which I think is just a different animal and so uber competitive that unless we live there it is hard to comprehend the emphasis put on certain things.

 

[A_Princess'_Daddy]

And you wonder why are school's are failing.

Every kid should have the opportunity to take an advanced class WITHOUT the STUPID IQ TEST. That is my pet peeve.
If a kid wants to work hard and can pass the classes with A'/B's, the option to take a higher level class should be on the table for ALL kids.

I freaking HATE HATE HATE HATE the fact we do not allow kids to take higher level classes because of an IQ test when they belong in higher level classes.

And that is my rant...

I completely agree with this. For the record, and while I don't actually know much about the TAG program in my district, I don't think it's based on an IQ or any other test score. I do know, unless they have lied to me and I doubt that, they have not given my daughter an IQ test, and I would not allow them to if they asked. Her little cohort was a result of her Kindergarten teacher's perception that these four children, by sheer coincidence of random class construction, were off the charts and at risk for becoming bored.

My own personal experiences also don't add much value, because my high school did not have a TAG program. It was a prep school, but anybody could enroll in the A/P classes, and enrollment in those classes was huge. They did have honors level classes, but again those were for students who wanted additional enrichment. I think they may have been by invitation, but I do know that there was not a uniform track. I took honors and AP Chemistry, Biology, Physics, American & European History, English, and a few others, but took VERY normal math and foreign languages.

 

[ccgirl]

Statistically 2.275% of children will be "gifted" in the technical, i.e. "genius, 130+ IQ, 2+ standard deviations from the mean," sense of the word. Therefore, presuming that 10% of a class is in the gifted program (called TAG in our district), 22.75% of the students in the average TAG program will have genius IQs (assuming they select the children for inclusion correctly). So the actual number of gifted children in the average TAG class is far more than the 1% in your example (in fact, the "average" classroom will be 2.275% gifted), but you are still correct that not every child in the median TAG program will have an IQ of 130 or above. That, of course, assumes an even distribution of IQs across every school, and unfortunately due to other factors outside of the control of this model, that is generally not accurate.

My DD6 was put into the TAG program midway through her Kindergarten year, along with three of her classmates. I don't know if she's technically a genius, but I do know that she is reading at the fifth grade level, can do advanced math (including the ability to multiply Roman numerals, which I still cannot do easily), understands the fundamentals of chemistry and biology, etc. I do not know whether that's a result of the environment in which she grew up or of a naturally high IQ but I speculate that it's a combination of both. What I do know is that she has loved Kindergarten from the first day, but she's loving it even more with the extra challenges that the school is now providing. We were told that typically the TAG program starts in first grade in our district, but there was this little nexus of four children in her class that the Principal felt needed extra intellectual stimulation so she made it happen. She is also a sweet little girl who loves ballet, show choir, soccer, piano, roller skating, and playing with her friends, so her intelligence is but one factor in what makes her special.As far as college attendance rates, I remember when I found out that in this country still less than 50% of high school seniors go on to a four-year college because at my high school it was never considered an option to not pursue at least a bachelor's degree. 100% of my graduating class went on to college, as well as 100% of the classes on either side of mine. It was, however, a selective prep school, so that is their model and mission.

I disagree with your central premise, because I have acquired plenty of real status symbols and a bright daughter is not something that I would ever hold up as a status symbol. At the same time, let me proffer two questions that have always bothered me:

Why is it socially acceptable for parents to be proud of their children who are fantastic athletes but not of their children who are very intelligent?

Why is is socially unacceptable to say that somebody is, most likely, more intelligent than somebody else, when it's not socially unacceptable to say that somebody is stronger, faster, better looking, wealthier, etc. than somebody else?

You seem to equate being proud with possessing a status symbol, and that implies that you see children, in general, as having potential as status symbols. You say that you have acquired this knowledge from how you perceive and process your friends' concerns with their own children's inclusion in TAG programs, but your acceptance of that perspective implies acceptance of the central premise.

That is sad and demonstrates a very skewed perspective, in my opinion.

Great posts. Sounds like you are raising a very well rounded child.

I am not saying it is not socially acceptable to be proud of a good student-around here the good students are more highly praised than the outstanding athletes-who get their fair share of praise to but academics are stressed. The question was "Why the overwhelming demand" the answer is "because it is a status symbol for many parents". It has nothing to do with kids that really ARE gifted but even you have to admit that MOST kids in your G/T program are really just good students-not really GIFTED.

I disagree with the answer. I think the answer is the public schools are now teaching to the lowest common denominator due to the NCLB.

It's so frustrating to see so many people so against other people's children succeeding in school and receiving any recognition or advantage for that fact.

Wonder how many people would raise an eye at a football coach spending any of his spare time working w/ a group of kids he felt had raw talent & could achieve much, much more putting in some extra work to develop it? (Aside from any parents/athletes bitter because they haven't been identified as especially talented by the coach of course.)

Of course I'm the whackadoodle that believes schools are for education & should focus on education. Particularly in these times of very challenging finances for education, I think academics should be the purview of schools. I'm sure there are other avenues that would open up for athletics if schools decided to stick with the business at hand.

Another great post.

And you wonder why are school's are failing.

Every kid should have the opportunity to take an advanced class WITHOUT the STUPID IQ TEST. That is my pet peeve.If a kid wants to work hard and can pass the classes with A'/B's, the option to take a higher level class should be on the table for ALL kids.

I freaking HATE HATE HATE HATE the fact we do not allow kids to take higher level classes because of an IQ test when they belong in higher level classes. And that is my rant...

First, tell us how you really feel. JK. I think we are getting advanced classes and the gifted/talented confused. Around here, any student can take advanced classes (AP/Honors) IF they can handle the class work. Plain and simple, not all students can handle that level of work. I was in AP English and Physics in my HS. I was in college prep for the rest. There was one student in AP Physics because his parents wanted and fought for him to be there. However, he just could not grasp it. It was affecting the rest of us because we had to keep repeating the same material over and over when the rest of us understood. Finally, the guidance counselor and prinicipal had this student removed from the class.

Kind of like not every student can make the Varsity team, not every student can make it in AP, Honors, Gifted programs.

It's just a fact of life. Nothing to get upset over. I really think there needs to be academic levels of classes as all students are capable at different levels.

 

[golfgal]

And you wonder why are school's are failing.

Every kid should have the opportunity to take an advanced class WITHOUT the STUPID IQ TEST. That is my pet peeve.

If a kid wants to work hard and can pass the classes with A'/B's, the option to take a higher level class should be on the table for ALL kids.

I freaking HATE HATE HATE HATE the fact we do not allow kids to take higher level classes because of an IQ test when they belong in higher level classes.

And that is my rant...

I agree-around here there ARE advanced classes for the good students and the only qualifications to get "in" are where you are placed by your teachers from the previous years-makes perfect sense. To get into our G/T you have to do an IQ test but that is only a very small part of the selection process. You also undergo a battery of psychological tests to determine if you meet the REAL definition of gifted--as it should be. These kids are actually in the same classes as their agemates but are given different homework developed by the G/T coordinator in conjunction with their classroom teacher. Like I said earlier, for kids that are beyond G/T classes they work on an individual basis with those kids to meet their needs.

Your DD REALLY needs to get into a better school--I know, easier said than done. I just think of the opportunities she would have in our district--she would just flourish here.

 

[golfgal]

I disagree with the answer. I think the answer is the public schools are now teaching to the lowest common denominator due to the NCLB.


I think we are getting advanced classes and the gifted/talented confused. .

I think this is really the core of the problem-people view the G/T classes as the advanced classes and those of us with districts that HAVE advanced classes starting in the elementary level see the G/T classes as for kids that are REALLY gifted-thus when you see these schools with 10+% of a class in G/T you have to wonder. It is very possible that the G/T classes in other schools are the same as the advanced classes other districts provide. THus the answer to the overwhelming demand--again, I think for many people with kids in the G/T programs even just having "advanced" classes isn't enough of a marker for their child.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

First, tell us how you really feel. JK. I think we are getting advanced classes and the gifted/talented confused. Around here, any student can take advanced classes (AP/Honors) IF they can handle the class work. Plain and simple, not all students can handle that level of work. I was in AP English and Physics in my HS. I was in college prep for the rest. There was one student in AP Physics because his parents wanted and fought for him to be there. However, he just could not grasp it. It was affecting the rest of us because we had to keep repeating the same material over and over when the rest of us understood. Finally, the guidance counselor and prinicipal had this student removed from the class.

No, I am not confused. I have a college dd and a middle school dd and have lived in 2 states.

My pet peeve is with Missouri schools. When we moved back we picked a school that allowed you to take a higher level class without being in the gifted program.

However guess what? Not all schools here do that, in fact one of the districts that we moved from on purpose DOES NOT ALLOW REGULAR KIDS TO TAKE BIOLOGY THEIR FRESHMAN YR IN HS.

Only the gifted kids get to take the HONORS CLASSES in high school, even if you could get an A in the class as a regular student!!!

There is no waiver or anything they do not allow it.

It is total horsecrap. Disgusting, disgusting, disgusting....

Can you tell it makes my blood boil? They are totally ripping off the regular kids and it is one of the reasons why the ACT scores are lower because the kids are 1 yr behind in math and science when they go to take the ACT/SAT test.

 

[dngnb8]

IQ is not a sole determining factor. There are numerous other tests. In addition, many children who are accurately identified as gifted, also have a learning disabilities. They are referred too as twice gifted. Many of the gifted programs, like the one my daughter attends, have the resources to address the learning disabilities, like my daughter has.

She currently is in the Middle Years International Baccalaureate program. My daughter suffers from Executive Dysfunction (never heard of it until they told me).

One side is the parent struggling to get the best education they can that challenges their child intellectual capability. The child is bored and can even be disruptive in a general education environment. Some kids can be gifted in one subject or another, not all.

On the other side, there is the perception that because these kids are so smart, they shouldnt get anything special since they are above the general education already. Children in school treat them like they have a disease, they are teased, and can be a target for bullying simply because they dont have to put in an effort for the general curriculum. I know this first hand. It has been insinuated that since my daughter has an IEP that she isnt gifted. My daughter started school at 4 and was in 1st grade math.

Since my child has been diagnosed with her LD and her gifted intelligence, we have dealt with bigotry on many different levels. There is even some in this thread, and others. Many people speaking from an emotional position, and not one of knowledge or education.

Ive seen people on here ask opinion for health, music, food, travel, personal issues. But when a parent comes out about their gifted child, the trolls invade the thread. There was even a thread satirizing parents of gifted children, as if our kids arent really gifted, we just are one of those parents who dodes over our kids.

I find the behavior from adults, about kids and their parents, deplorable. Most have zero idea what we go through and the challenges we face. Its like because the kid is smart, there is always a rainbow and they always get straight A's.

People need to educate themselves before speaking on the topic.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I agree-around here there ARE advanced classes for the good students and the only qualifications to get "in" are where you are placed by your teachers from the previous years-makes perfect sense. To get into our G/T you have to do an IQ test but that is only a very small part of the selection process. You also undergo a battery of psychological tests to determine if you meet the REAL definition of gifted--as it should be. These kids are actually in the same classes as their agemates but are given different homework developed by the G/T coordinator in conjunction with their classroom teacher. Like I said earlier, for kids that are beyond G/T classes they work on an individual basis with those kids to meet their needs.

Your DD REALLY needs to get into a better school--I know, easier said than done. I just think of the opportunities she would have in our district--she would just flourish here.

I am in a school district that is OK for now.

My dd will be fine. It just fuels her anger. In fact she ranted on an assignment for one of her classes recently.

They had to do a "rant blog" for her computer class. So she ranted.

You see she started off in regular classes (6th), then was moved to challenge classes (halfway through 6th) and now she is in the gifted program (second semester here in 8th).

She is pissed that the "gifted kids" get all of these perks and help (careers, trips, recognition, etc). She says, mom it is backwards. The kids that need this help are the regular kids.

ETA...one of the reasons she is so pissed is because these kids could care less about being in the program and make the classes suck to the nth degree. She was so excited to get into the "gifted program" only to find out they do the bare minimum and blow stuff off.

So anyway she is counting down to high school and we will see.....She got into an english class that is above the honors english class so she is going to be finally challenged. She can't wait.

 

[ccgirl]

No, I am not confused. I have a college dd and a middle school dd and have lived in 2 states.

My pet peeve is with Missouri schools. When we moved back we picked a school that allowed you to take a higher level class without being in the gifted program.

However guess what? Not all schools here do that, in fact one of the districts that we moved from on purpose DOES NOT ALLOW REGULAR KIDS TO TAKE BIOLOGY THEIR FRESHMAN YR IN HS.

Only the gifted kids get to take the HONORS CLASSES in high school, even if you could get an A in the class as a regular student!!!

There is no waiver or anything they do not allow it.

It is total horsecrap. Disgusting, disgusting, disgusting....

Can you tell it makes my blood boil? They are totally ripping off the regular kids and it is one of the reasons why the ACT scores are lower because the kids are 1 yr behind in math and science when they go to take the ACT/SAT test.

Ouch! Biology is itself conisdered only for the advanced freshman year? They don't have varying levels of the Biology class so all students can take it? I can definitely see why you would be frustrated. However, I think the frustration should really be with the school board not the parents with "gifted" students. Again, my DD8 is not gifted academically. I just don't have any issues with different class levels in public schools. As a matter of fact, I encourage that. Even though our public schools offer the varying levels, I chose to send my DD to a private school as I thought that fit her better. My son may be different.

 

[cabanafrau]

IQ is not a sole determining factor. There are numerous other tests. In addition, many children who are accurately identified as gifted, also have a learning disabilities. They are referred too as twice gifted. Many of the gifted programs, like the one my daughter attends, have the resources to address the learning disabilities, like my daughter has.

She currently is in the Middle Years International Baccalaureate program. My daughter suffers from Executive Dysfunction (never heard of it until they told me).

One side is the parent struggling to get the best education they can that challenges their child intellectual capability. The child is bored and can even be disruptive in a general education environment. Some kids can be gifted in one subject or another, not all.

On the other side, there is the perception that because these kids are so smart, they shouldnt get anything special since they are above the general education already. Children in school treat them like they have a disease, they are teased, and can be a target for bullying simply because they dont have to put in an effort for the general curriculum. I know this first hand. It has been insinuated that since my daughter has an IEP that she isnt gifted. My daughter started school at 4 and was in 1st grade math.

Since my child has been diagnosed with her LD and her gifted intelligence, we have dealt with bigotry on many different levels. There is even some in this thread, and others. Many people speaking from an emotional position, and not one of knowledge or education.

Ive seen people on here ask opinion for health, music, food, travel, personal issues. But when a parent comes out about their gifted child, the trolls invade the thread. There was even a thread satirizing parents of gifted children, as if our kids arent really gifted, we just are one of those parents who dodes over our kids.

I find the behavior from adults, about kids and their parents, deplorable. Most have zero idea what we go through and the challenges we face. Its like because the kid is smart, there is always a rainbow and they always get straight A's.

People need to educate themselves before speaking on the topic.

Intelligence and learning disabilities are frequently linked. Einstein and Edison were famously dyslexic. My DH is dyslexic & his IQ score is quite impressive. Through his years of struggling, testing, coming up w/ learning strategies, etc. he was told that in the case of dyslexia, which may well be true of other learning disabilities also, it is thought the brain itself works harder to compensate & come up with different methods of doing things.

It kind of makes sense to me in the same way they say a blind person's other senses are heightened because they cannot rely on their sense of sight. DH still has notebooks & boxes of disassembled watches, clocks, radios, you name it, from his childhood. He never really read a book until college -- something I truly cannot imagine -- yet he has drawings going back until he was about five years old, attempting to come up with a design for an anti-gravitational machine? Apparently instead of Legos he took apart whatever he could get his hands on to try to figure out how it worked and if he could make it work better or make something entirely different out of it.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Ouch! Biology is itself conisdered only for the advanced freshman year? They don't have varying levels of the Biology class so all students can take it? I can definitely see why you would be frustrated. However, I think the frustration should really be with the school board not the parents with "gifted" students. Again, my DD8 is not gifted academically. I just don't have any issues with different class levels in public schools. As a matter of fact, I encourage that. Even though our public schools offer the varying levels, I chose to send my DD to a private school as I thought that fit her better. My son may be different.

Nope. They make them take "Physical Science".

Anyway we are not in that school district anymore however it still angers me because I think it is wrong that they are allowed to get away with this.

 

[disney junky]

Everyone wants to feel like their child is more special than "regular" children.

 

[castleview]

I have always believed that G&T classes/ schools were for "at risk" kids who are intellectually gifted but would not be served by a regular school due to the slower or more average pace of schooling. Would this be a fair assumption? If so, why are parents clamoring like crabs in a barrel to get their kid in a gifted school? There has GOT to be a legitimate reason.

Is it because these schools give the kids a leg up? Is is because they have better (fill in the blank)? This isn't about G&T...it is about something else. It appears that G&T is being manufactured in kids so they could get in but why?? Can someone please opine? Thanks!!

Truly gifted students are at risk if they are not tended to if you ask me. The problem in most school systems is that to justify having a GT program, they want a certain amount of students and many time that means bringing in kids who are above average and very bright, but not gifted.

Right now it's quite frustrating in our schools because we don't track by ability until middle school now and the focus is mainly on special needs and lower performing students while average, above average and gifted kids are being ignored. That probably explains the push for a more rigorous program that people want their kids in….but you do also have the parents who think their kids are better than everyone else.

 

[disney junky]

Truly gifted students are at risk if they are not tended to if you ask me. The problem in most school systems is that to justify having a GT program, they want a certain amount of students and many time that means bringing in kids who are above average and very bright, but not gifted.

Right now it's quite frustrating in our schools because we don't track by ability until middle school now and the focus is mainly on special needs and lower performing students while average, above average and gifted kids are being ignored. That probably explains the push for a more rigorous program that people want their kids in….but you do also have the parents who think their kids are better than everyone else.

I agree. If 5% of your student population were gifted, which is an average, it is hard to justify in this economic climate running a gifted class/program for 10 kids out of a class of 200. So we create a local standard we use to fill the extra spots. My problem is that kids who are fed a steady stream of "you're gifted" begin to believe that they don't need to work hard. In many cases here, the kids really develop bad/superior attitudes and poor work ethics.

 

[castleview]

I agree. If 5% of your student population were gifted, which is an average, it is hard to justify in this economic climate running a gifted class/program for 10 kids out of a class of 200. So we create a local standard we use to fill the extra spots. My problem is that kids who are fed a steady stream of "you're gifted" begin to believe that they don't need to work hard. In many cases here, the kids really develop bad/superior attitudes and poor work ethics.

Absolutely. My cousin was the best example of this. Graduated Brooklyn Tech without ever having to do much work. Drove my aunt crazy questioning everything because she "wasn't rational." Screwed around for years before he finally started focusing and went to college at 28. She regretted ever telling him he was gifted and advised me if any of my kids get an identification letter, hide it and don't let the kids know. LOL

 

[cabanafrau]

I agree. If 5% of your student population were gifted, which is an average, it is hard to justify in this economic climate running a gifted class/program for 10 kids out of a class of 200. So we create a local standard we use to fill the extra spots. My problem is that kids who are fed a steady stream of "you're gifted" begin to believe that they don't need to work hard. In many cases here, the kids really develop bad/superior attitudes and poor work ethics.

For argument's sake, how do you justify spending resources on kids who refuse to engage themselves in their own education and/or disrupt the educational opportunities for everyone else?

Do you think it's better to spend limited resources on students who take no responsibility for the privilege of education or spend those same resources to allow students who are choosing to put forth effort?

 

[Pigeon]

There is so much talk on this board about having gifted children.
I don't really get it...I'm just happy if my stepson does his best and doesn't get bad grades. More important than that is if he's a good kid- kind, responsible, generous etc.
Although I'll admit this...even though I'm not too into if he can be gifted, I am into being popular. It's important to me that he has the right clothes and is good looking and all that, because I care more about popularity than about getting the best grades. (People here have told me that's because I'm still young and when I'm older I'll feel differently.)
Maybe I'll understand all this gifted stuff someday if I have a baby of my own. Maybe I'll feel differently then, who knows. Maybe I'll want my baby to be gifted too!

How interesting. In our family, we value education. We want our kids to do the best that they can with their native intelligence, get a solid educational background, and develop good critical thinking skills. We expect them to get a college education, and hopefully post-graduate education if they are so inclined, in a field that will lead to steady, gainful and meaningful employment.

"The right clothes," not so much. While I hope high school is a positive experience for them, I couldn't care less if they are in the popular crowd. You need a few good friends in life, not a ton of superficial ones. And I see high school as a place where they get a good foundation for college, not where fun is the primary accomplishment.

I've recently reconnected with a slew of my high school peers through facebook. It is interesting to see what people are up to decades later. This experience has confirmed by believe that popularity in high school is meaningless in a larger context.