This allegorical incident is alleged to have occurred at the January 1970 meeting of an Idaho PTA at a high school in one of Idaho's larger cities. Mr. Janus Pierson, a local academician, known for his intense advocacy of gifted education, presented the following proposal to the members at the meeting:
1. That the local high school initiate a program of selecting the most talented boys in the school.Mr. Pierson, father of a very talented (gifted) boy, then put his proposal into the form of a motion. The motion was seconded by Mrs. Pierson, and the Chairman called for discussion. Discussion vigorously ensued: "Undemocratic! Impossible! Too expensive! . . . Make snobs out of those selected. . . Not fair to other children!" Let's say that the majority of the discussion was NOT exactly amenable to the proposal.
2. That rigorous performance tests be created and that pupils be encouraged to try to pass the test after school hours.
3. That a special team be formed of those pupils who passed the test.
4. That high school staff members be paid extra to teach this talented group of boys after school hours.
5. That these boys be dressed in special uniforms with marks of identification so they can be recognized while performing.
6. That other district high schools be encouraged to develop teams of similar talent to compete with each other.
7. That trophies, honors and award programs be developed to recognize these special students.
Mr. Pierson ended the melee with the following remarks: "I think you should know that I was not describing a new program. We have been carrying on this program for years at our high school. We call it the Football Team."
The sad part is that although this allegedly took place some twenty years ago, we have made little progress since that time. Most Gifted Children Programs are (at best) lip-service "tokens" that involve only a tiny percentage of the effort put into our sports programs.