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I also made the decision yesterday that I have been all too consumed with the kindergarten process. We have applied to charter schools; G&T; District 3 and I am just tired. As of yesterday, I am DONE! For some reason I had a reality check that it is kindergarten and as a parent, I would not allow her to be in an educational environment that she wouldn't benefit from/thrive in. So, no matter where she goes in September 2009, I am confident it will be a great place/program for her.

We have NOT received our G&T scores and are wait listed at all the charter schools. She is being offered placement at PS 165 in District 3, but I may pass that up for a better K-5 environment.

PHEW!!! We are ALL exhausted by this process.

From Marice:

Actually, the DoE did NOT get *all* scores out in one batch.  My son's tester transposed his first and middle names between the two testing booklets -- one was marked "Edward Michael" and the other was "Michael Edward".  So when I called the G&T office, they had no record that my son ever took the test!  It took all day, about a dozen emails and unreturned phone calls to finally find out what the problem was. 

And here's the kicker -- my recently-turned-5 year-old son reads at a 2nd grade level and does 2nd grade math.  However, they scored him at the 92nd %ile.  I was flabberghasted.  When I expressed this to Liz Saplin, the G&T coordinator for Brooklyn, she merely said, "We don't test reading and math in Kindergarteners." 

I don't get this...  my son, who is extremely academically gifted, did not make the cut for the Citywide schools, but many children who cannot read or do multiplication made the cut for Citywide schools?  What is wrong here? 

I believe the tester may have been distracted or tired or whatever and therefore was error-prone.  I believe that she also made errors when recording my son's answers.  I am appealing to the DoE to have my son re-tested since the tester made at least one major error and was therefore more likely to make errors in general.  I don't think it was malicious; PS282 was a madhouse on the day my son was tested.  The tester was likely tired or distracted.  Still, I believe this is a valid reason for a re-test.  I'm going to try, anyway. 

If they reject our appeal, it'll be: "Hell-O Montessori!"  We're opting out.

I was disappointed with me son G and T result as well.  He is 5 yrs old and is reading 2nd grade level and can do multiplication, divison, addition, and subtraction faster than most adult.  He only recieved a 91 on the olsat.  During the exam he said he has to use the bathroom (he has a bladder problem) but were not allow to.  Is there a rule that you can't use the bathroom during the exam? 

OMG, that is SOOO unfair -- even if he didn't have a bladder problem.  How can they prohibit a five year-old from going to the bathroom?  Can you imagine the anxiety that would cause a child trying not to embarass himself by peeing in his pants?  It's simply heartless.  Come to think of it, isn't denying visits to the bathroom one of the torture procedures they used at Guantanamo?  I'm so sorry for your son. 

This system is incredibly screwed up.  After going through the bureaucracy of trying to even find my son's scores, my husband remarked, "If this is the way things run there, I'm not sure I want them in charge of my son's education....."