BASIS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't agree, if you go with a DCPS middle school EotP and don't crack Walls or Banneker from 8th grade, you're screwed if you can't afford private school, don't want to move to the burbs and aren't willing to accept Eastern or Dunbar. We know kids with high 8th grade GPAs at Ward 6 middle schools who failed to get into Walls or Banneker, although they work a couple years ahead in math. This didn't happen in the past, before admission to Walls was essentially a lottery. McKinley is still iffy on rigor. These kids would have hit the ground running in 9th grade at BASIS. In fact, they were shut out of BASIS in 4th grade with low WL numbers, despite being math whizzes. The admissions system is really screwed up across the board in DC public schools and very likely to stay that way.

How do you propose to capture those students without inadvertently letting in a lot who will suffer from unpreparedness?

[Anonymous]

Other East Coast cities figured that one out long ago. Stop saying impossible, never, no way as an electorate. Ask politicians to copy those cities. Vote them out if they don't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't agree, if you go with a DCPS middle school EotP and don't crack Walls or Banneker from 8th grade, you're screwed if you can't afford private school, don't want to move to the burbs and aren't willing to accept Eastern or Dunbar. We know kids with high 8th grade GPAs at Ward 6 middle schools who failed to get into Walls or Banneker, although they work a couple years ahead in math. This didn't happen in the past, before admission to Walls was essentially a lottery. McKinley is still iffy on rigor. These kids would have hit the ground running in 9th grade at BASIS. In fact, they were shut out of BASIS in 4th grade with low WL numbers, despite being math whizzes. The admissions system is really screwed up across the board in DC public schools and very likely to stay that way.

I think anyone living in DC with kids in a ward that doesn't have an "acceptable" feeder needs to accept some responsibility for their choices. We bought and established roots in a Ward where we aren't comfortable with the MS and HS. We lost in the lottery multiple times. BUT, we always considered private as a backup. We had a plan B. Are we lucky we can afford private? Hell yes, extremely. But we still have to make compromises with the commute, with the opportunity cost of what we could do with that money instead of school, with friends being all over the city. Do I envy those who won the lottery and don't have to make the same compromises? Yes, a little. Do I sympathize with those who struck out and have to make hard choices? Yes, I do. However, DC has NEVER promised these people an acceptable option. We all know the risks. We all need to be prepared to move or pay if we don't win the lottery.

[Anonymous]

Right, but no need to sing the praises of a poorly thought through admissions systems in your good fortune if you've won the charter lottery. No need to deny that the applicants who are best suited to BASIS should be admitted, for your tax dollars. No need to give up on the prospect of a saner, fairer, more intelligent system ever materializing. It might behoove us to remember our Tennyson as DC voters, 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't agree, if you go with a DCPS middle school EotP and don't crack Walls or Banneker from 8th grade, you're screwed if you can't afford private school, don't want to move to the burbs and aren't willing to accept Eastern or Dunbar. We know kids with high 8th grade GPAs at Ward 6 middle schools who failed to get into Walls or Banneker, although they work a couple years ahead in math. This didn't happen in the past, before admission to Walls was essentially a lottery. McKinley is still iffy on rigor. These kids would have hit the ground running in 9th grade at BASIS. In fact, they were shut out of BASIS in 4th grade with low WL numbers, despite being math whizzes. The admissions system is really screwed up across the board in DC public schools and very likely to stay that way.

Maybe we should be pushing DCPS to do a better job at providing an appropriate education for advanced middle schoolers EoTP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Right, but no need to sing the praises of a poorly thought through admissions systems in your good fortune if you've won the charter lottery. No need to deny that the applicants who are best suited to BASIS should be admitted, for your tax dollars. No need to give up on the prospect of a saner, fairer, more intelligent system ever materializing. It might behoove us to remember our Tennyson as DC voters, 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world.

I'm the PP and I agree with you to an extent. If you are asking for a saner/fairer/newer public school system in DC when your kid is in 8th grade, you're a fool. The parents in early elementary may have a better chance at that (but, let's look at history and be real).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't agree, if you go with a DCPS middle school EotP and don't crack Walls or Banneker from 8th grade, you're screwed if you can't afford private school, don't want to move to the burbs and aren't willing to accept Eastern or Dunbar. We know kids with high 8th grade GPAs at Ward 6 middle schools who failed to get into Walls or Banneker, although they work a couple years ahead in math. This didn't happen in the past, before admission to Walls was essentially a lottery. McKinley is still iffy on rigor. These kids would have hit the ground running in 9th grade at BASIS. In fact, they were shut out of BASIS in 4th grade with low WL numbers, despite being math whizzes. The admissions system is really screwed up across the board in DC public schools and very likely to stay that way.

Maybe we should be pushing DCPS to do a better job at providing an appropriate education for advanced middle schoolers EoTP.

This has been debated and argued for at least the past two decades. The problem isn't the middle schools...it's the high school problem. EoTP has no acceptable high school for advanced learners. DCPS does not give a damn about this and has relied on the charter schools to help fix.

[Anonymous]

Non-starter. DCPS claims that they do a great job on that score and council members don’t lose their seats, or win them, on the issue. As long as DC lacks an elected school board and mayor doesn’t engage on the issues, all you can do is make the best of the public MS and HS school options you have, go private or move.

[Anonymous]

Cone on, middle school is a problem, too, though not as grave a problem as high school.

[Anonymous]

We know a bunch of Hill SE kids who struck oit in the BASIS and Latins lotteries who commute to DCI via public transportation. They spend two hours doing this RT, taking multiple buses and Metro trains. Some of these kids would have aced BASIS. It’s all so bone-headed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't agree, if you go with a DCPS middle school EotP and don't crack Walls or Banneker from 8th grade, you're screwed if you can't afford private school, don't want to move to the burbs and aren't willing to accept Eastern or Dunbar. We know kids with high 8th grade GPAs at Ward 6 middle schools who failed to get into Walls or Banneker, although they work a couple years ahead in math. This didn't happen in the past, before admission to Walls was essentially a lottery. McKinley is still iffy on rigor. These kids would have hit the ground running in 9th grade at BASIS. In fact, they were shut out of BASIS in 4th grade with low WL numbers, despite being math whizzes. The admissions system is really screwed up across the board in DC public schools and very likely to stay that way.

What you're arguing for is another application school for kids who didn't get into the existing application schools.

I don't understand why the focus is on BASIS when what you really want is an expansion of Walls/Banneker or more rigor at McKinley et al.

[Anonymous]

Some of us would settle for a second BASIS middle school that fed into the BASIS HS. The franchise isn’t interested for now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't agree, if you go with a DCPS middle school EotP and don't crack Walls or Banneker from 8th grade, you're screwed if you can't afford private school, don't want to move to the burbs and aren't willing to accept Eastern or Dunbar. We know kids with high 8th grade GPAs at Ward 6 middle schools who failed to get into Walls or Banneker, although they work a couple years ahead in math. This didn't happen in the past, before admission to Walls was essentially a lottery. McKinley is still iffy on rigor. These kids would have hit the ground running in 9th grade at BASIS. In fact, they were shut out of BASIS in 4th grade with low WL numbers, despite being math whizzes. The admissions system is really screwed up across the board in DC public schools and very likely to stay that way.

Maybe we should be pushing DCPS to do a better job at providing an appropriate education for advanced middle schoolers EoTP.

This has been debated and argued for at least the past two decades. The problem isn't the middle schools...it's the high school problem. EoTP has no acceptable high school for advanced learners. DCPS does not give a damn about this and has relied on the charter schools to help fix.

I thought they can apply for SWW/Banneker/McKinley? How many people are actually shut out of all three?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some of us would settle for a second BASIS middle school that fed into the BASIS HS. The franchise isn’t interested for now.

People want a rigorous middle school that also has fields, an auditorium, gym, lab space, etc.

[Anonymous]

Dream on.