Before moving on to the next topic, I should stop to offer a few
thoughts about the consequences of acceleration as a model for
educating gifted youngsters. I do this largely in response to a
thoughtful e-mail from a Village News reader who – while he
liked the idea of a STEM governor’s school – feared the social
consequences for young students graduating from that school at
16, 15 or even younger. There is nothing to fear. Each child is
unique, of course, and parents are often in the best place to
make the ultimate decision, but the evidence strongly suggests
that highly-gifted youngsters do very well at college – and go
on to do very well in life. The research is not as extensive as
one might wish, but there’s enough of it to satisfy all but the
most over-protective of parents. The folk wisdom about very
young college students leading lonely, isolated lives turns out
to be a folk story – and for logical reasons. Let’s go into that
a little. I studied Gifted Education in grad school, and had the
good fortune