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Comment by sudosysgen | Hacker News Reader

No one is asking their parents not to teach their children how to be good people. And yes, the context you commented on was about million dollar inheritances.

As someone who went through gifted classes in public high schools, as they exist, I have no issues with them being removed. They have very, very serious issues with socioeconomic discrimination and discrimination against people with mental health issues, from first hand experience. So unless we can figure out better ways to select people for them, and so far it looks like we can, I agree that they do more harm than good compared to the alternatives.

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As a person who came from a poor family and is now at least moderately successful due to participating in gifted programs, I completely disagree with you. The people I went to school with ranged from first generation immigrants to children of relative wealth, and the latter would have absolutely gone to private school had the program I attended not existed. Because of that program I was able to see that it can be totally normal to have two parent households and that it is achievable to be a doctor or lawyer. Without that I would have been stuck in my neighborhood with my heroin addicted neighbor and the prostitutes who worked the end of my block.

See, that's exactly the reason why these programs are an issue. If you had behavioral issues or if you were twice exceptional, you'd be fucked, like many of my friends did. These programs end up increasing segregation, exactly for those that need it the most. The solution is desegregation of schools relative to SES, not further segregation.

Sincerely, a former gifted student that's also a first generation immigrant that didn't end up addicted to any drugs or getting beat up for the sole reason that I was able to hide my ADHD until I got into college. Three of my gifted friends, two of which got into gangs and one of which was struck to depression to the level of suicide attempts, weren't so lucky.

Either we find a way of selecting gifted students without rejecting the most vulnerable ones that need the most help, which apparently we can't right now, or we desegregate schools.

The truth is that I suffered for depression for all of high school too.

But either way, I credit the program I was in with saving my life essentially. Also, very few people were willing to put in the work needed for this program. My high school was significantly harder than my college, with the exception of a few classes.

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