<p>Recent experience prompts two new downsides:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>the child’s mere existence as a top achiever can serve as an invalidation of the rationalizations and excuses lower performers hold dear. This can produce resentment toward the achiever. Ex. some of the girls on my D’s track team were complaining about the coach’s training practices that they feel are not appropriate. They blame those practices for their poor race times recently. While there may be truth to what they say, the fact remains that D still performed well despite being subject to those same practices. This makes the girls annoyed. D’s performance must therefore be rationalized away somehow. There are many ways of doing that, but see below for one of them:</p></li>
<li><p>Other people make dire predictions about the students’ future based on the flawed assumption that such kids are unnaturally driven or are being pressured by parents. The high level of performance can’t last, they say. D commented this morning that kids are saying she will burn out. Is this warranted by any evidence? No. It’s not like D’s one of those kids who ran half-marathons at age 8 and competed with track clubs for years before HS. She just started running competitively, in fact. It’s unsettling to have people around you forecasting your decline.</p></li>
</ol>