<p>Interesting piece in todays Wash Post about a mom frustrated that her high scoring kid with mediocre grades didnt get into the school of his choice. Hes brilliant but bored silly in HS and so just didnt do the work. </p>
<p>Most of the folks who wrote in said the school was justifiedlow grades means not responsible, not diligent, etc etcand Tech had every right to reject him. She says that the school system didnt serve her kid well at all and that he was penalized for being too smart for the system. </p>
<p>Something to be said for both sides I think, but basically what came across to me is how badly schools serve smart kids. We expect them to spend day after mindless day doing stuff they already know while educators drain every last drop of joy out of learning. If he were an adult, hed get another job. But hes a kid and maybe his folks couldnt get him another school. So he comes across an underachiever. Not fair in my book. But is it the fault of the HS or of the college? Or, as people say, the kid. And would a smaller LAC that evaluated kids more holistically have worked better for him? What say you?</p>
<p>Bored silly and just didn't do the work. Wouldn't it be nice if that would fly later on in life? </p>
<p>If he were an adult, he'd get another job and another and another.....</p>
<p>I am not suggesting that the schools aren't making them do mindless stuff they already know at times but I would hope that our schools are not all about that.</p>
<p>The problem is that there is no way for the college to know that he's "too smart for his school." (Aside from the fact that mom's not quite an unbiased observer of her son. But let's assume it's true . . .) On what, other than grades, test scores, etc. would the college base its assessment? Just because he says he already knew the stuff? Why would they believe him? And why would they take a chance on him?</p>
<p>In college, he'll have classes that he hates, too. Classes that bore him. Classes that may be too slow for him. So what? Then a grad school should take him based on his say-so? Or an employer should hire him?</p>
<p>And on the job - we all have things to do that bore us silly. But we still have to do them. And get another job - there will be things about that job that bore us silly too.</p>
<p>Yes, I agree that high schools do a disservice to our bright kids, and do tend to suck the joy out of learning. However, one of those "lessons" that this bright kid didn't learn is how to suck it up and do what you have to do to succeed. He didn't.</p>
<p>The kid didn't do the required work for the courses. His mom apparently knew that he didn't do the required work for the courses but didn't seem willing to make him do the work. Now she's upset because he didn't get into his schools of choice. I agree that the work in question may have been easy/mindless/busywork, whatever, especially for a gifted student. However, why didn't his parents explain to him the importance of grades? Why didn't his parents ensure that his work was done? If the homework was so easy, he could have done it relatively quickly and then studied all of the advanced material that he seems to have done on his own. Even if he did part of an assignment he wouldn't have gotten 0's and could have had a higher GPA. My kids (gifted, like many on CC I suppose) have sometimes complained that assignments are "stupid", "waste of time", etc. Basically, I tell them "too bad, you still have to do it." I agree with Chedva. Sometimes you just have to suck it up.</p>
<p>My surprise is that the parents and the school waited thru so many years before having a plan for this boy. Parital homeschooling? Dual enrollment at a local U? I don't want to judge if parents were pushing for their bright son to complete homework assignments, or allowing him to waive them.</p>
<p>While the school may deserve some blame, I think this boy's parents enabled the behavior of not doing work that he thought was beneath him. It would be interesting to learn how he does at VCU.</p>
<p>I'm way too brilliant for my job. My boss doesn't understand that handing in simple assignments is something I shouldn't be required to do. Sometimes I have to make my own copies and staple things. I just want a job where my only responsibility is to have great thoughts and have a bunch of average IQ people do all the mindless tasks.</p>
<p>My kid would be like that if allowed. She does get the material/concepts and tests very, very well but hates to do the busy work. My POV is that it's just too bad for her. She chose her school out of a lot of good options and she is going to put in the work or suffer the consequences. Thre's always someting to be learned, even if it's the value of sucking it up, from doing honest work. We had a report card (you may recall the aliens who stole her homework) with a grade that should have been close to a hundred but wasn't even in the ballpark. After I stopped foaming at the mouth, I reiterated that in our family we do our work and if she ever got a report card with the "poor/missing homework" notation again she would lose every privilege she's ever aspired to in her life. I have absolutely no sympathy for people who don't teach their kids the value of hard work. Challenge them elsewhere, but when you affirmatively choose to send your child to a particular school, the school's rules apply to that child and how dare you presume otherwise?</p>
<p>I know a very bright young man who did not want to continue in our public schools. He was proactive in finding a school that he found appropriate. They offered a full scholarship to him (it was a private school). His parents let him go there and he moved on with his life. He did not just sit in a classroom collecting Cs, Ds and Fs like this young man. The student in this article made a decision not to do his work. He knew the requirements. He and his parents saw some low grades on his report card. Why didn't they do something about it? There were options that could have been tried, IMO.</p>
<p>I asked the teachers to give my son additional work to make the courses more challenging. I don't recall any teacher that did not cooperate. He had to do the basic work plus extra stuff. This kept him engaged and challenged. In our experience if you worked with the schools from elementary school onward, he wasn't bored and learned that boring or not he had to complete all assignments, reading, etc.</p>
<p>After actually earning her teachers' notice and respect, a whole bunch of very interesting opportunities have come my daughter's way. I don't think that would have happened just because I said she was very smart. They learned that she is, in fact, that smart but is also capable of doing what needs to be done. That type of respect is, to me, so valuable as to be worth the effort required to earn it.</p>
<p>We read that column in The Washington Post about two weeks ago. My son, who is gifted (like lots of other kids), remarked that some of the assignments he has are not too challenging, but guess what? Those assignments prepare you for the next level, whether it be higher education, work, military, etc. Not everything that is assigned with thrill or challenge. It might be for review or reinforcement. </p>
<p>When my son realized that our school (which is small and rural) did not offer the classes that he desired, he took action. He asked for help from our guidance people and the administration. They let them select online AP classes. He has been thrilled with that opportunity. </p>
<p>My dad told me when I was a little kid that school was my job. Grades were my salary. I have tried to pass that along to my sons. I also have given them my expectations for school work. I'm not hard on them, but they know the boundaries.</p>
<p>Yes it is. If I am taking a course way below my ability level, and the teacher is assigning busywork or very low level work, doing that work offers me no benefit. If I do it, I am just doing it to please the teacher so the teacher will give me a good grade. That busywork may be appropriate for my peers, it may help them to master skills, but it doesn't benefit me. In fact, it is sucking up my limited time and energy which I should be applying to higher-level pursuits.</p>
<p>"Yes it is. If I am taking a course way below my ability level, and the teacher is assigning busywork or very low level work, doing that work offers me no benefit. "</p>
<p>Keep telling yourself that.</p>
<p>Not at all. Homework in different classes is not anything like repeatedly digging a ditch.</p>
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Not at all. Homework in different classes is not anything like repeatedly digging a ditch.
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<p>It depends on the kid and it depends on the school. In many cases it is.</p>
<p>Personally, I was very fortunate in my schooling I wasn't put in this position. But I've known a lot of people who were, and blaming them for being lazy for not being willing to suck it up and do the busywork is uncharitable and unfair.</p>
<p>"But I've known a lot of people who were, and blaming them for being lazy for not being willing to suck it up and do the busywork is uncharitable and unfair."</p>
<p>No it's not. LIfe is full of busywork. It is enormously important to learn that you have to put the work in.</p>