Comment Re:Both sides of the coin (Score 1) 684
Talent schools do exist, a lot of them are private though.
Sounds expensive and out-of-reach for many students.
Being in the top 10% of your math class doesn't make you a math prodigy.
It does in the little world that is a 6th-grade classroom.
Smart people who act "cool" tend to get applause for their "talents" , not bullied
First impressions are difficult to replace though, especially in an environment (like middle school) where students want to fit in. If a student is labeled "nerd" or "geek" on day one, it's not easy to change the label.
In life in general, sometimes it's better to fit in than be the nail that gets hammered
"Fitting in" should not be a reason to NOT learn and develop though. Besides, in the United States at least, we're very big on promoting the "everyone is special in their own way" message.
If the kids actually cared about excelling in their subject of choice, they wouldn't care about being bullied,
If a talent keeps a student out of social cliques, that's one thing, but being put down day after day makes it very difficult to accept that the bullying may not matter in the long run.
Last, but not least, AP Calc has yet to help me in life, AP chem... kind of
This one I agree with.
