L OCAL LIVING


District


17 DC


CLASS STRUGGLE


For gifted kids, skipping a grade is a no-brainer


As the second month of the school year nears, some parents wonder whether their children are getting all they need. The lessons might seem too simple. Their kids are bored. If their children have been designated gifted, there might be occasional pullout lessons to enrich what they are learning, but that might not be enough. I have seen no data to


confirm this, but it seems to me that schools rarely consider skipping those students ahead anymore. I have talked to area administrators about this. They are uncomfortable with the approach. They think students who are above their grade level learn better, with some extras thrown in, if they stick with kids their age. A generation or two ago, the


attitude was different. I run into far more people who are my age and skipped a grade than friends of my children who did the same thing. My wife skipped second grade in the early 1950s. Her parents had nothing to do with it. Six weeks into the school year in California, after attending a hard-charging school in Kansas, she heard her teacher say, “You can already do this stuff. This is a waste.” She was sent immediately to the third grade. Parents these days appear


reluctant to sanction such a jump. If anything, the fashionable move is to make sure your child is a bit old for her grade. People put their children in kindergarten a year late so their chances of academic and social success are enhanced. That is fine for kids who are late developers. But in the long-running debate over what to do with students ready for more, acceleration deserves another look. In my experience, students are more ready to adjust to age differences in their classes than we give them credit for. A 2004 study by the Belin-Blank Center for Gifted Education and Talent Development at the University of Iowa found that “an overwhelming majority” of students who skipped a grade endorsed the move when surveyed years later. They said they had been both academically challenged


JAY MATHEWS


and socially accepted. It can be cheaper and more


effective to move a child into a higher grade, compared to hiring an extra teacher to enrich his lessons where he is. Many parents have told me they can’t count on public schools to do a very good job with gifted education. School administrators have difficulty finding well-trained teachers with that specialty. The gifted-ed teacher slot may be the first to go in a budget crunch. Acceleration might ease the problem. Last year Laura Vanderkam, who runs the Gifted Exchange blog, and education author Richard Whitmire of Whyboysfail.com wrote about this topic in Education Week and tried to find school districts that embraced grade-skipping. There were very few, but the ones that did had good ideas. At Zumi Elementary School in Scottsdale, Ariz., all the math classes met in first period. Students went to whatever class they were ready for regardless of their age. In Lebanon, Pa., all children were screened for subject competency and offered a chance to take a higher-grade version of that class, even if it meant a bus ride to another school. My mother would never


have allowed that. She was concerned about my social backwardness, and she had a point. But most children are not as immature as I was. We have fine schools in the Washington area. Why can’t they open the door to higher grades for kids ready for more than just an abridged version of the next logical step in their educations?


mathewsj@washpost.com ON WASHINGTONPOST.COM 6


For more Jay, go to washingtonpost.com/


class-struggle.


animal watch


These were among cases handled by the Washington Humane Society. The society operates its shelter at 7319 Georgia Ave. NW and the District’s at 1201 New York Ave. NE. For information or assistance, 24 hours a day, call 202-723-5730 or visit www. washhumane.org.


I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Dog abuse alleged


JAY ST. NE, 2700 block, Sept. 13. A woman reported to the Humane Society that she had just gotten her dog back from a friend and that the dog appeared to have been abused. A Humane Society officer found that the 2-year-old cairn terrier mix was scratching from a flea infestation and had large areas of hair loss and scabs from the scratching. The owner said that she had heard that a previous caretaker had thrown boiling water on the dog months ago. When the owner was advised to have the dog seen by a veterinarian, she surrendered the animal. The dog was taken to a veterinarian, who diagnosed flea allergies. The incident is being investigated.


I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Kitten suffers fatal seizure


KST. NW, 1-99 block, Sept. 14. A woman called the Humane Society when her 4-month-old kitten was having a seizure. A Humane Society officer found the domestic shorthair was having difficulty holding up its head and its ear was bleeding. Family members said the kitten had been playing under a pile of laundry in the kitchen, and when they returned, it was having the seizure. Nobody could say whether the kitten had been stepped on. The woman surrendered the kitten to the society, and a veterinarian discovered bleeding in its brain. Because the kitten had suffered irreversible neurological damage, it was euthanized.


I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Infested dog is euthanized


ARKANSAS AVE. NW, 4900 block, Sept. 14. An owner called the Humane Society to surrender his 11-year-old Akita. The animal control officer who picked up the animal saw that it had maggots, which the owner claimed not to have noticed until that day. The dog was euthanized because of its injuries, and the case is under investigation.


I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Cat is given up for adoption


GIRARD ST. NW, 1400 block, April 12. A 3-year-old domestic medium-hair was surrendered by its owner because the owners’ landlord would not allow pets. The cat was made available for adoption.


ADOPT A PET


Sabrina was surrendered to the society because her owner’s landlord did not allow pets. The 3-year-old was made available for adoption.


The D.C. Animal Shelter, 1201 New York Ave. NE, and the Washington Humane Society Shelter, 7319 Georgia Ave. NW, offer animals for adoption. The D.C. shelter has viewing and adoption hours from noon to 8 p.m. weekdays except Wednesdays and noon to 5 p.m. weekends. Hours at the society’s shelter are noon to 7 p.m. daily. Pictures of other available animals can be seen at www.washhumane.org. For information, call the D.C. shelter, 202-576-6013, or the society’s shelter, 202-723-5730.


WASHINGTON HUMANE SOCIETY


The following cases were handled by the Washington Animal Rescue League, 71 Oglethorpe St. NW. For information, call 202-726-2556 or visit www.warl.org.


I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Clinic treats 24 pit bulls


OGLETHORPE ST. NW, 1-99 block, Sept. 13. Twenty-four pit bulls were treated during the league’s monthly free spay, neuter and vaccination clinic. The dogs were returned to their owners that day. The next clinic will be Oct. 11.


I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Sick dog’s pups are given up


EDSON PL. NE, 4500 block, Sept. 14. A dog owner surrendered five 2-day-old pit bulls to the league because their sick mother could not nurse them. Staff members were fostering the pups until they become old enough to be made available for adoption.


I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Ohio shelter transfers 16 dogs


OGLETHORPE ST. NW, 1-99 block, Sept. 14. League employees and the Rescue Waggin’, an animal transport service that takes adoptable animals in high-euthanasia shelters to adopting shelters, picked up 16 dogs from a crowded shelter in Mount Vernon, Ohio. The dogs included a toy poodle, two boxers, a basset hound, a springer spaniel and several Jack Russell terrier mixes. The dogs were being evaluated for adoption.


I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII League joins World Rabies Day


The Washington Animal Rescue League will give free rabies vaccinations to cats and dogs from 4:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesday in honor of World Rabies Day. No appointments are necessary. Cats must be in carriers, and dogs must be leashed. Owners should bring their pet’s vaccination record. For information, call 202-726-2273. — Compiled by Ria Manglapus


GEYOU CAN’TT THE DEALSIF YOU CAN’T FIND THE SALES.


IF THERE’S A SALE OUT THERE, IT’S IN HERE.


If you don’t get it, you don’t get it. SF612 1x3


THE WASHINGTON POST • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2010


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