Why I Write About Gifted Children

Posted by Carla Marie Boulianne Jul 10, 2008

As the new feature writer for Parenting a Gifted Child, I want to share some of my experiences with gifted education before covering topical content. I participated in various gifted pull-out, independent study, AP, honors, alternative, and early college entrance programs as a child. Some programs met my academic needs better than others.

Even as a child I had very strong opinions about the state of gifted education in U.S. public schools. I remember asking my sophomore honors English teacher why she was wasting our time with a coloring ditto. She replied that it was because of class overcrowding- enrollment stood at 32 students. I pointed out that if we weren’t using textbooks written at a seventh grade level, so many kids wouldn’t qualify for honors. She referred me to the school counselor.

I was designated as at-risk for dropping out because I questioned the learning objectives and demanded challenge. My school recommended early college entrance, but since it was mid-semester sent me to an alternative school part-time in the interim. That school met its educational mission by allowing students to watch MTV all day. I was in limbo.

I started college at 16 and thrived, getting "A"s and making friends. Peer acceptance was not an issue. The program was only half-day and my family could not afford an extra car; long bus rides between college and high school resulted in perpetual tardiness. Despite high test grades, my high school physics teacher informed me that I was failing his class based on attendance. He said I had the rest of my life for college, but needed to graduate high school. I dropped out of the college program. My preference was to drop out of high school. That was not an option.

To be continued in "Confessions of a Gifted Underachiever."