Geniuses

Very interesting article about those on the upper end of "special."

To some extent, complacency is built into the system. American schools spend more than $8 billion a year educating the mentally retarded. Spending on the gifted isn't even tabulated in some states, but by the most generous calculation, we spend no more than $800 million on gifted programs. But it can't make sense to spend 10 times as much to try to bring low-achieving students to mere proficiency as we do to nurture those with the greatest potential.

In a no-child-left-behind conception of public education, lifting everyone up to a minimum level is more important than allowing students to excel to their limit. It has become more important for schools to identify deficiencies than to cultivate gifts.

AS A CULTURE, WE FEEL DEEPLY ambiguous about genius. We venerate Einstein, but there is no more detested creature than the know-it-all.

Home schoolers would also say that our education system is great at training followers and employees, but who is training the leaders to lead.

I am not three deviations above the mean, but I went to public school until college, took all the advanced AP classes, etc, and was essentially never challenged much. That all changed when I started my rigorous college studies woefully under prepared, and struggled my freshman and sophomore years to get up to speed. My college experience prepared me well, and made med school a cake walk. My point? The public education system of Anaheim CA let me down, and I don't think I was alone in that.

My other point: it was not the Government's job to make sure I was educated properly. My parents should have seen to that. I don't want to seem too hard on them. They did what their generation thought was right: sent me to school and provided lots of opportunity outside of school. They also paid my way through that excellent private college.

Still, we are going about it differently with our kids. Hopefully with better results.