Quote Originally Posted by Chicago Mama View Post
Meh. At the risk of a barrage of pitchforks, I think that only a very small percentage of students in SEES schools are truly academically gifted. And with the exception of that 2-3 percent of students, most of the students enrolled in SEES could have their needs met within a pullout program at their local (neighborhood) schools.

I feel like an argument could be made for magnet schools and why they are important.
I very much agree with the bolded. In both my kids' gifted classes, there were maybe a small, small handful that probably couldn't get their needs met in a regular school. All the kids were pushed through at the same rate, whether or not it made sense for the students as individuals. Most of the kids were just normal, bright kids. (My own included.) The magnets are interesting because the mixed student abilities force the teacher to be very responsive to the needs of each student.