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Bold move to take this stance when he would have caught very little heat for saying he wouldn't change anything. But I think he's right in that gifted education doesn't mean much in the earlier years. It mostly selects for children of means with anxious parents.

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I wouldn't based any policy based on people's opinion IMO. There has to be a cost/benefit study to base your decision on. Anyway kids can be pretty smart. It wouldn't surprise me to learn that this program is beneficial even that early in life.

Often times, educational programs are put in place without rigorous study, based on opinion. And the program design space is so large that it is hard to have a clear conclusion on an entire concept, like early gifted and talented programs.

My perspective is that the mos important thing in the early grades are that kids are engaged and not being held back. But there are many ways to address this.

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