Were you in the "Gifted Program" ?

I don't like much about the school system, my oldest daughter now 43 road the short bus, I spent years trying to get her out of special ed. only when we moved to a small town did she get put into regular classes and she did just fine,

I guess they needed to meet a quota.

My daughter 6 just made it into the "gifted" program in our school corp. she scored in the 97th percentile on the otis lennon ability test.

I have no clue the depth of the test or what not. last year prior to kindergarten she scored an 87 missing the entry minimum by one point.

Any Idea how that might relate to her IQ if at all. It didn't tell us her IQ, just the percentile

I was in the Gifted and Talented program, all the way up until I refused to transition into A.P. classes instead.

I can tell you two things:

1. Standardized tests are a crock.

2. Gifted students will often be "lazy" or "bored" because they aren't being challenged. I was bored.

reply to post by Roundtree


No can't say I remember that episode, but I do remember there being a deaf girl, and at one point the captain was talking to the main character and he was showing that to get her attention you could just knock on the boat's floorboards. I thought that was kinda cool at the time lol.

Originally posted by tw0330
My daughter 6 just made it into the "gifted" program in our school corp. she scored in the 97th percentile on the otis lennon ability test.

I have no clue the depth of the test or what not. last year prior to kindergarten she scored an 87 missing the entry minimum by one point.

Any Idea how that might relate to her IQ if at all. It didn't tell us her IQ, just the percentile

It doesn't really coorelate with IQ, only with progress for the age level. I'm sure that those who do well on it due to surpassing the progress have a higher IQ, but it's not an IQ test and cannot be used as one.

Different programs are set up differently. Those set up by reccomendation usually end up with the "financially elite", those set up through testing are for the actual academically gifted.
If you remember taking a test to be admitted, it was an actual gifted program. If there was a gifted program and you weren't part of it but remember that all the "rich kids" were and don't know of any test offered, then it was nothing more than a way to group the kids based on what their parents wanted, not what academic merit. The testing serves as justification for being in the program. Otherwise, all the "rich kids" would have the best teachers, the best classes, the best education and those who were "poor" would get the bottom of the barrel...and it happens far too often.

Originally posted by PurpleChiten
Different programs are set up differently. Those set up by reccomendation usually end up with the "financially elite", those set up through testing are for the actual academically gifted.
If you remember taking a test to be admitted, it was an actual gifted program. If there was a gifted program and you weren't part of it but remember that all the "rich kids" were and don't know of any test offered, then it was nothing more than a way to group the kids based on what their parents wanted, not what academic merit. The testing serves as justification for being in the program. Otherwise, all the "rich kids" would have the best teachers, the best classes, the best education and those who were "poor" would get the bottom of the barrel...and it happens far too often.

This is very true for this type of system, which was in place in NY state when I was in the program. It was an offsite, one-day style as others have mentioned, and in my case placement was done through testing. I was the only poor kid there, it seemed like. Playing Favorites: Gifted Education and the Disruption of Community by Mara Sapon-Shevin explores these very issues. She also looks at how racial and other factors than socioeconomic class shaped the program, and how it engenders a feeling of superiority in the 'chosen' ones.

Rational deduction suggests to me the odds are in favor of the program as a social experiment, which i hardly find a controversial idea. It allowed the school wide authority to test and rank *all* children, and then isolate a particular subset. Of course the idea was to see what happened when you do that. What happened for me was mostly a huge amount of bullying (until I started fighting back) and a lot of very interesting learning. I do remember wondering why school couldn't be that way for everyone all the time, that it was unfair. I also remember zero follow-up--after a certain grade, it just stopped.

Many, including educators, are confused over the term 'gifted', and as such, the myrid of different programmes offered.

What the current school education including college is to create robots - humans whom are only gifted with better brain capacities for storage and retrieval. They are not geniuses, nor can ever claim to be. Their gift enables them to score As in their subjects matter, but when dealt with new and real life matters they often stumble and fail. No human can claim to know it all. Can Stephen Hawkings conduct an archeology dig? Does Edison comprehends Quantum Mechanics?

The truly gifted are usually very FOCUS at a young age over their interest, usually not more than 3 subjects, and when fully allowed to develope, they will not only master it, they will build upon it and figure new ways to solve problems that those gifted in memory capacity cannot. Was Robert Goddard a linguist? Could Donna Karen solve economic issues?

Thus, educators and the public must be fully aware of what the gifted programme is all about. It is not to create more robots. The current education style already does that. The gifted programme is to fund and nurture the next Edison, Goddard, Babe Ruth, Micheal Angelo, Plato, Keynes, David Beckham, and a few others considered solution providers of their profession of our civilisation, to progress and evolve. And sadly that's not what educators or society doing.

No society can survive if everyone is an Edison or Plato. Thus, those whom were robot educated are needed to comprehend the gifted's solutions and through past societal knowledge, to work together as team in society or organisations, to never make the same mistakes but to evolve together as one, leaving none behind.

It's like an english style football team. Everyone plays a part, made up of forwards, middle, backers and goalie, but if there were no genuises in the team, scoring - which is the main aim of that game to be champions of leagues - will be a difficult task. However, if there was a Pele, Beckham or Messi in the team, gifted footballers - winning is a no brainer. Same for our civilisation to progress and evolve.

I have read through the first page of replies and almost every member is claiming to have gone to one of these “gifted schools” or some kind of equivalent.

I just want to say this, judging by some of the threads I come across on ATS I find that very hard to believe.

From what I have read so far, it’s like people are rubbing their own ego’s with the “yeah I have insanely high IQ” mantra featuring in many of the posts I read. It’s funny because recently I wrote a rant about this strange perception many on ATS have of being the intellectual elites of the internet.

Why is it that I keep finding members on ATS who have this desperate desire to in some way crate this cyber-myth about themselves being “special”, whether it be in the likes of this thread with people claiming to be intellectually elite or another claiming to have been visited by Angels, or the Nemours ex-spc-opp people and then there are those who claim to be “special” in a religious sense or that they know something that the government is hunting them form.

The reality is that most of these people are just normal folks. I don’t understand why so many of you try to create these myths about yourselves being “special.

Originally posted by Roundtree
I'm sure many of you have heard of the gifted program, if not, it is a program set up basically to first identify "gifted" children, and then bring them all to different schools to learn different things, once a week. They took IQ tests, constantly gave us projects which were high complexity for 7-8 year olds, as well as other mentally challenging tests. The wierd thing was out of say 7-8 schools in the area, there were only 20 of us in the gifted program, called Odyssey in my region.

Was this an attempt to get the intelligent children on the books? find out who they are and watch them as they mature?

Also, how many of us ended up here? the gifted program taught us to reason, to ask why and how things happen, which is what this and other conspiracy sites are all about. Id advise you all to research star children, and compare the characteristics to the gifted program. I'm sure that we are in a record somewhere, identified as possible star children or something, what are your guys' thoughts?

I was in the "gifted program" as a child also. That's a very interesting theory that it was/is used to identify and track more intelligent children.

reply to post by QuantifedInfinity

I find it interesting that on a conspiracy forum not one person responded to your well thought out and constructed conspiracy theory.

I think you may be on to something, but not a "round-up" as much as a cover from something that happen much earlier.

These programs have roots back to the early 60's when they started to explode across the country, and like any explosion it pays to see what the ignition agent was. It would have been in the 1950's

I suspect a very selective, secret program located in one place with a small group of very young children.

Any ideas?

Wow there's alot of hostility and resentment towards the 'Gifted' kids on this thread, that sure takes me back to High School, ugh.

Originally posted by Mapkar
reply to post by Bleeeeep

 

I'd agree with you, I don't think there was anything sinister about the gifted programs. I don't actually think Roundtree was talking about anything sinister (at least in the OP).

...
If nothing else, the idea that the government would watch and train young kids through means of a special academic setting and a specialized curriculum is interesting. I could probably sit and piece together an interesting story about how they identify those who seem to have the most promise and how they set them up for success through these programs, in the hopes that they'll take the initiative and be the people who do make the world a better place. Maybe it's like their version of "semi-elite" training geared toward a select handful of people to be the ones that make the difference, armed with a vaste and specialized background on a variety of things and an inquisitive mind capable of solving complex problems. I could have a field day with that if I had time to write it...

Nope nothing sinister I'd agree with that, but your last statement or speculation, I believe, is closer to the truth.
There is an obvious slant to the whole program which does indeed identify so called "gifted" children at an early age. Now imagine if you will, that only the 99.999999 percentile of those where then wisked away to a private and very special program for additional testing.

reply to post by Stormdancer777

Uhhhhh...... yeah
RH negative O positive....
Highly functional alcoholic TENDANCY.....
Was in gifted program here in Ontario Canada, most others seemed to hit university and fizzle.
I went into the trades (injection mold maker) My mechanical aptitude is off the charts. I can look at something and just know how it works, electronics, machines, assemblies.
Also have been experiencing wierd psychological stuff in the last couple years.
Thought is was coming down with MS or something, but MRI's and ALL tests are clear. Im VERY strong (6'4" - 235 lbs) and healthy, but I have incredible electrical feelings. I also am able to "feel" other people. Like I can read their minds, and make them do things (i know, but im not a psycho!)
Gifted program strated when I wrote a little book about the russian revolution when i was in grade 3. I never know there was such a thing! Teachers freaked out. We spent A LOT of time on meditation (some sort of rainbow thing), and future problem solving. I have actually managed to track down my gifted teacher and plan to meet with her in the coming weeks
I have anxiety problems, emotional disconnect (no feelings), MUST always be doing something, and adrenals are always running full bore!
My buddies all think im half spun cause im like the energizer bunny.... i just go and go. I shovelled out 11 yards of dirt from my back yard last weekend, and was sore for 1 day! HA
Anyways, sorry for the crazy ramblings.... But the "gifted, rh negative" thing led me here... blew my mind
BE WELL ALL!

all the gifted children I knew just bullied everyone in sight, I didn't like them.

reply to post by NihilistSanta


INTP FOR SURE!!!

Who would be interested in monitoring intelligent children?

- Scientists. Psychologists, neurologists, cognitive, behavioral, sociologists, geneticists, and more.

- Government. A gifted intellectual is more likely to join/start a political movement threatening to the establishment.

-Businesses. Market analysis, future recruitment.

- Wizards. Who's going to Hogwarts?

- Secret societies/ illuminati. All of the above.

Conclusion: it's hard to say what the extent of surveillance is. But it's not a far reach to speculate that nearly every community is under some monitoring for anything out of the ordinary.

i was recognized as "gifted and talented" in first grade. got to go to a special poetry class, there were not many of us. little school in virginia. that was it, until high school, when my history teacher found my elementary test scores and pretended that i was "at risk" so she could get me in the "gifted and talented AND at risk" program. we did a cool obstacle course, and thats about it.
however, i had parents i could always trust, and i was raised watching George Carlin, and other "adult" tv. i credit that with my inquisitiveness.

Originally posted by MassOccurs
Who would be interested in monitoring intelligent children?

- Scientists. Psychologists, neurologists, cognitive, behavioral, sociologists, geneticists, and more.

- Government. A gifted intellectual is more likely to join/start a political movement threatening to the establishment.

-Businesses. Market analysis, future recruitment.

- Wizards. Who's going to Hogwarts?

- Secret societies/ illuminati. All of the above.

Conclusion: it's hard to say what the extent of surveillance is. But it's not a far reach to speculate that nearly every community is under some monitoring for anything out of the ordinary.

In the past decade of researching this topic, I've seen a pattern emerge that points backwards in time to 1952 when it was VERY important for a section of the US Government to identify highly gifted children to be used for a very specific reason and task. It was almost like what the CDC goes through during a bird flu scare, it was that important to find, and gather these children for special training and testing. The "gifted" programs are actually and outgrowth of the first program, just to verify if any others of similarly gifted status popped up in the future.

I don' think they did. Plus it was a good cover as the first program went black and they graduated the children into the positions designed for them.

I think Whitley Strieber mentioned this in passing, as he was assessed and naturally failed out of such a program in the early 1950's.

Anybody here in a special program from 1952 to 1964?

Originally posted by OtherSideOfTheCoin
The reality is that most of these people are just normal folks. I don’t understand why so many of you try to create these myths about yourselves being “special.

Everyone who was in a gifted program is special. In part because no two gifted programs are alike and those in a gifted program learn a different curriculum than the regular students. Different teachers had different things that they taught, different techniques to expand the kids' minds.

When a regular student is learning basic math, someone in a gifted program of the same age is learning computer programming. When a regular student in the 3rd grade is taking an English class, a gifted kid in the 3rd grade is learning a foreign language. When a regular student is taught to be average and fit in with the status quo, a gifted student is being taught to excel-- to do something different, to stand out.

Each one is unique because they all had a different curriculum than the regular students. And that's not ego, nor myth, that's reality. We're not "normal". We didn't have a normal curriculum. We never will be normal and that's a good thing. =)