El P.A.S.S.o

The title is a pharse borrowed from Mr. Bill (my boss at The Peddler)...

The P.A.S.S. evaluation results have come in and Holden did not get accepted. I had to meet with the P.A.S.S. coordinator and the school psychologist to discuss the results last week. It was somewhat intimidating to me and I had an uneasy feeling the entire time. It was as though they were telling me Holden had a terminal illness.

The meeting entailed them explaining the P.A.S.S. program to me, detailing the various tests they administered, and the results. I was mistakenly under the impression that P.A.S.S. was an advanced placement program that offered classwork at a higher level than the rest of the grade was doing. The program is actually for students that are gifted. Looking back on when I received the information a few months ago, I thought the use of the term "gifted" was rather strong for the students in the program. But it seems they were actually searching not for children who are smarter than your average bear, but are on a much higher level. Genius?

In light of this, I've done some research on giftedness. There are many websites out there and most of them define giftedness as something very near Holden. I am not the only one who thinks so. His teacher and the P.A.S.S. coordinator were sure he'd qualify and both were very disappointed that he didn't make it. When it comes down to it though what matters are the numbers on the paper. Holden did not score well on the IQ tests... only slightly above average. An IQ of 130 or greater gets you automatic entry into the program. A score of 112 to 129 along with high scores in two other areas can qualify you for the program, but if your IQ is below 112 you're out. After hearing about the IQ test (I've never taken a real one myself) I can see why he didn't do well in some of the areas. Some elements were confusing and he didn't even complete some of the test because he ran out of time. Guess that would be my fault for drilling into his head that it doesn't matter how quickly you finish, but if you did your best work and took time to double check yourself.

Holden was not disappointed that he didn't make it. He didn't even want to try out for it. I had to convince him to let me submit the parent survey on the condition that he could leave the program at any time if he was unhappy. I am disappointed only because I think Holden does so well in small groups and thrives with personal attention. The program sounds wonderfully interesting; something that all students would benefit from regardless of level of intelligence. Regular classroom teachers don't have the time for so many "extras" given the laundry list of standards they are required to teach for fear their student's will be exposed as "left behind".

I am very proud of Holden's graceful acceptance of not getting into P.A.S.S. I know that I would have reacted differently even now as a "mature" adult. He continues to excel in school and even better... he is well-adjusted (except for his astraphobia).

Update on the 4H Poster Contest: Holden again won first place in his class and the poster will go on to the county competition. He came up with a great slogan and a terrific concept. I will post a photo of it when we get it back! The next project in 4H is a demonstration of how to do something... anything! He wants to show how to use a computer. More on that as details become clearer.

Science Fair is next Monday!