<p>Exie, now I see what you were getting at. (Sorry this is a bit long.)</p>
<p>My d ended up being fairly good friends with Mr. Field through their mutual sport. Last year there was a point at which I could tell she was feeling ‘less than’ a lot of her peers. Apparently this is not an uncommon phenomenon according to her advisor. She was a freshman and hung out with upperclassmen. Well of course, if you run with a high powered group of kids, you probably won’t be at the top of the heap like you were back home. The thing is, they are all high powered kids. </p>
<p>However, being in the middle of the top 1-5% is not a bad thing, in my book. The norm is so high and the kids (and parents) can easily lose sight of that. We, as parents, need to recognize that and help our kids keep it all in a healthy perspective so they can have a positive experience rather than letting their relative class position get the best of them. The kids put enough pressure on themselves. Of course, I prefer that d be performing in the middle of the pack or better. But honestly, if she’s truly trying her best, what more can I ask? Doing one’s best is the best one can do. Once she’s graduated, in the long term, the top notch education she received and the fact that she persevered and made it through such a demanding program will give her more to hang her hat on than which math class she took or which competition she won. </p>
<p>What’s that old saying…something about what do you call a person who was last in his class in Med School? Doctor. </p>
<p>I think it’s also been a valuable experience for her to realize that yes, even when you try your best, there might be someone who does better than you. And that’s okay. And from what I understand, being a kid like D. Field can have its disadvantages too.</p>
<p>So what does it boil down to? If you have a prodigy child, take some time to find a school that can meet his/her special needs. If you have a bright child, most of the top schools are able to meet their needs just fine. Be careful when judging a school by it’s academic teams. Those teams may not be representative of the education provided there as much as it is of the genius kids that happen to be enrolled that year. Schools can’t turn non-geniuses into geniuses. If you want to see a school’s overall strength in an academic area, find out what percentage of the students pass the AP exams and what the average scores are. Don’t pressure your kids to be the best. Encourage them to do their best. And love them no matter what.</p>