Nearly a third of the parents whose sixth graders are in the new gifted program at Thurgood Marshall Fundamental Middle School in St. Petersburg say yes, according to the results of this recent survey.

The parents were given the statement, "The amount of homework is appropriate for the level of work expected and is appropriate for the gifted students." Thirty-two percent agreed and 24 percent strongly agreed, but 31 percent either disagreed or strongly disagreed. Some parents expressed their frustration with the homework load at a meeting last week.

On other questions about the new program, overwhelming majorities of parents agreed things were going well. Seventy-seven percent, for example, agreed the new program "provides academic rigor appropriate to your child's learning needs," while only 6 percent disagreed.