Indian school or US school w/Gifted&Talented program?

GT programs focus more on creativity and self direction...they challenge the kid but don't have the same book based component that Indian systems have...so you may think that they don't seem to be doing more advanced work but it will show up when they are in their older classes because they have been trained o think outside the box. But that doesn't mean your work is over you will have to keep up with the amount of planning and helping them finding the resources necessary for the assignments and also help your child to stay on track.

CBSE is very child friendly but there is a substantial amount of teacher training that is happening and will continue to happen for a while before the same level of creativity can occur. But because of the high level of direct instruction and repetition, a bright child will internalize faster and with fewer problems if you do move when he is young.

 

Hi, I have a son who was in the gate program in sfo. I moved to India 2 years ago ( chennai) and have to say that iif you can stay on in the us then it might be better for him in the long run as the gate program has superb structure to bring out the talents in the child plus some more. In India they are neither equipped nor have the time in the schools to encourage gifted kids, not that teachers don't care, but their time and resources are limited here.

My child attended vidya Mandir and I have great respect and admiration for the principal and teachers, but I feel maybe my child would have faired better in the us.

As a parent wether your child is "gifted" or not you have to put in a fair amt of time into their studies and extra curricular activities. But with twin 3 year olds I'm not sure what kind of support structure you have in the us? In India you may have parents/relatives who can help out, but getting decent maids here in chennai is getting to be impossible! So if you feel help is what you need then get a nanny in the us as it will be easy on you.

Coming back to your concern my opinion is that maybe it might be better to see how your child does in the next year or two an then take the plunge, but do it before you finish 3 grade as they start languages and your child will lag behind if they join school in say the 5-6th grade ( to late to move to India ) at that point. Also make sure your child can write fast as in Indian schools they dictate a lot of stuff and us raised kids cannot cope immediately as it takes them2-3 years to catch up on speed.

I plan to return to the us soon and feel that I should have stayed on!

 

Th Indian systems are set to a high standard...but our approach doesn't allow for exploration, extensions and innovation...the pressure to complete the syllabus is very high and doesn't allow for developing the child's creativity...at least at this point. It may change in the future.

For example, if your child is advanced in one specific area, there is no individualization possible. At this point it is all a set syllabus. There is a lot of innovation happening... it will take a few years because you are asking a whole system to change its way of thinking. Where as in the US with the GT program individualization is an advantage (as with the spl. Ed programs).

Having said that bright kids make that transition (depending on other factors like language, support at home, etc) because it clicks for them....not because the system is geared to guide them. if there are gaps in his skills, I don't think you'll have the support to identify and target those.

Also, look at the reviews of your program...ask the other parents to know more about their experiences. The approach is different and you have to know what you are comfortable with. It is better to move when he is younger because it will be easier for him to adapt to that level of direct instruction.

 

You have to research the ib schools very carefully...a lot of schools have signed up for ib...but most of these don't have the necessary trained teachers unless of course you find something like the American school...I think there is one in Chennai. If you do look at IB then I would look for one of those as opposed to the local schools which also offer IB. If I were to go with local schools, I'd prefer the CBSE syllabus...

IB schools have to Have affiliations as well...see if you can go through their list to find if the American international school in chennai is one of theirs...

 

Another thing u might want to consider is GT programs have been axed in many states in the US due to the current budget crisis and the numbers are growing.CA is one of them .