Don't increase AP classes at expense of gifted and talented

Baltimore County parents: Don't increase AP classes at expense of gifted and talented

School officials say they recognize the need for both

By Loni Ingraham
lingraham@patuxent.com


...Parents say the differences between AP and GT courses are profound.


AP courses are "a mile wide and an inch deep," says Towson resident Tracey Myers-Preston, mother of one gifted and talented student at Hampton Elementary and three GT students in the law magnet program at Towson High School.

She said AP classes have, "too much coverage of material that ends up on an exam, and not enough mastery or exploration of the subject, especially for a highly able student."

Myers-Preston is leader of Parents for GT Excellence and Equity, a coalition that formed in April. The group's website is www.gtee.homestead.com.

The coalition says quality and quantity of GT offerings varies by school, and parents are concerned about what they say is an erosion of these programs in the county...

...But perhaps most important, the coalition says its members fear the system may push AP classes to the extent that GT classes will gradually disappear...