What are differences between MoCo and DC public schools?

[Anonymous]

We're planning to move back to the area to be closer to family. We are considering moving either to NW DC or to an inner MD suburb such as Bethesda, Silver Spring or Takoma Park. What are the main differences between schools in Montgomery County and the ones in upper NW DC? I am most interested in differences in the upper elementary years and beyond, in terms of curriculum (especially how much pressure there is to teach only to the test), specials, group work, differentiation, homework, and general feel/culture. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Oh honey.

[Anonymous]

MoCo is highly regarded. Not every school, but in general people move from the district to go to those schools.

The district is uneven, and even the good schools don't seem to me to be as good as what my kid gets in the suburbs. YMMV. There's been a big move by parents to improve the schools in the district.

As for all those things you list: High schools in this region are very big and very bureaucratic. There are a ton of high acheivers, and it is not uncommon for kids to take more AP classes than they have fingers. There's hardly an answer to the things you list, except to say they make you sound like your kids are very young yet.

[Anonymous]

DCPS is a huge, terrible mess. There really is no other appropriate description, OP. The elementaries are good in NW, because parents there are wealthy and educated, but it goes downhill from there fast.

MCPS is considered to be one of the top public school systems in the nation, and also one of the largest, which means there will be some unevenness. While being vastly different from DCPS at the middle and high school level, it doesn't mean education there is superb, because the US is sadly not in the top group of nations with the best education systems. The privates aren't great either (ie, they focus on extras like athletics instead of paying their teachers more, which means that they're not $40k a year better than publics).

Between them, the choice is a no-brainer. You also need to parent your child adequately at home, enrich and fill in what you think might be lacking at school.

[Anonymous]

Extremely happy with the elementary education in NWDC. Will introduce European curriculum in middle school, but will go private or move to Fairfax for high school.

[Anonymous]

Wait...you are moving BACK to this area and you don’t know this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wait...you are moving BACK to this area and you don’t know this?

I was in college when my parents moved here, and then I lived here for a while in my 20s. Schools weren't on my radar then.

And yes, kids are still quite young, so I haven't done much thinking about later grades yet, but I don't want to move and then move again, so I'm trying to think longer term now.

[Anonymous]

Just move to Bethesda. Don't over think if you can afford it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just move to Bethesda. Don't over think if you can afford it.

I"m not sure Bethesda would be my first choice, but you are totally right about the overthinking.

OP - pick an old, well established neighborhood where the kids use the high schools. Or, just get your head around the possibility of private schooling.

Don't pick somewhere too far from transportation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just move to Bethesda. Don't over think if you can afford it.

I"m not sure Bethesda would be my first choice, but you are totally right about the overthinking.

OP - pick an old, well established neighborhood where the kids use the high schools. Or, just get your head around the possibility of private schooling.

Don't pick somewhere too far from transportation.

PP what would your first choice be if not Bethesda?

[Anonymous]

We recently decided for our early elementary between DC and MD and ended up in DC for a few reasons - but either would be okay honestly. And part of what swayed us was having 2 more years of Pre-K: our kids had lottery spots in a charter school so saving >$50K on preschool tuition was a big thing when we were looking at taking on a mortgage. We spent time on playgrounds in the neighborhoods in MD and DC where we were looking and more consistently ran into people to chat with and kids for our kids to play with in DC - they tended to be empty in MD or parents were less happy to chat. Not a reason in and of itself, but it seemed like an indicator of the little micro-cultural differences - we're just city people.

But... longer term, we bet the investment on our house that MoCo schools will end up being reorganized and boundaries re-drawn and options less pervasive than they are in DC for when our kids are in Middle/High School within the next decade. And we have enough time to help things change in DC, and/or save up for private if needed. But for now, seems like elementary is better in NWDC, and middle/high is better in MoCo. We have friends who tried to buy in DC and kept getting outbid and got a house in MoCo... so also depends on what you want most for where you're living too (unless you have a $2M+ budget - we had to make some trade-offs even with $1M+)

Good luck! It's crazy here

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just move to Bethesda. Don't over think if you can afford it.

I"m not sure Bethesda would be my first choice, but you are totally right about the overthinking.

OP - pick an old, well established neighborhood where the kids use the high schools. Or, just get your head around the possibility of private schooling.

Don't pick somewhere too far from transportation.

Plenty of those all around the county and yet they get trashed here.

[Anonymous]

I've lived in NW DC, Bethesda, and Silver Spring, all with kids.

Of the three, I'm least likely to choose Bethesda again. The problem with Bethesda if you have young kids is that the amount of time parents spend working in order to afford Bethesda precludes much socializing. I also found that, as a mom in her early 30s, I was on the young side for the neighborhood and it was hard to make friends with parents who had kids the same age as mine.

NWDC was great, but as our kids got older, we found the lack of gifted programs to be an issue for one of our kids in particular. There was no absence of smart and well-prepared peers, but there was really nothing for kids who genuinely learned differently.

Silver Spring has some great schools and some perfectly fine schools. But our experience at a perfectly fine Silver Spring school still provided more differentiation and acceleration than a "better" DCPS school, simply by virtue of having a dedicated track for gifted kids that started in 2nd grade and then got more serious in 4th.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We're planning to move back to the area to be closer to family. We are considering moving either to NW DC or to an inner MD suburb such as Bethesda, Silver Spring or Takoma Park. What are the main differences between schools in Montgomery County and the ones in upper NW DC? I am most interested in differences in the upper elementary years and beyond, in terms of curriculum (especially how much pressure there is to teach only to the test), specials, group work, differentiation, homework, and general feel/culture. Thanks.

I had this concern before my kids started school in MCPS. It wasn't justified. If there has been any "teaching only to the test", I haven't noticed it. Well, except in my daughter's AP class this year, but that probably wasn't what you had in mind?

The most recent time I heard the public-schools-teach-to-the-test! concern was from a person who attended only private schools, has taught only in private schools, and has his kids in private schools. I told him what I told you -- that this hasn't been my experience.

[Anonymous]

No gifted programs in DCPS. Big issue for one child (other child would have been fine in the otherwise very good NWDC ES).