Better college outcomes: Burke or JRHS?

[Anonymous]

What does your child want to do?
JR is fine. Some kids enjoy it but it is chaotic and teaching is uneven - some excellent teachers, some ok, and some terrible.
Counselors are not helpful. Despite the issues, some kids are able to thrive there, others get by and some hate it. Is your child bright, self motivated and independent. She might enjoy it then.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, Burke has also been a mixed bag in terms of teaching. Some teachers are great but my child does not like many of them. The biggest issues are total lack of rigor (except math, which is leveled). It’s a school that seems great for kids who need a lot of support. The kids who do not (no learning issues etc) seem to do minimal work and coast along. For example, my kid seems to finish all her homework in school or within an hour at home. But it takes some kids *hours* to do the same work.

It doesn’t seem worth the price tag to me. DD I think would be fine at JRHS. Was also curious about college outcomes as another consideration.

[Anonymous]

How much context do you have when you say the college list is “not terribly impressive”? Because no high school’s college list is impressive nowadays, compared to 1990.

[Anonymous]

What grade in middle school? I’m not sure most 6th and 7th graders really have more than an hour of homework.

[Anonymous]

Why not another private, OP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What does your child want to do?
JR is fine. Some kids enjoy it but it is chaotic and teaching is uneven - some excellent teachers, some ok, and some terrible.
Counselors are not helpful. Despite the issues, some kids are able to thrive there, others get by and some hate it. Is your child bright, self motivated and independent. She might enjoy it then.

JR can be quite chaotic but it is nowhere as crazy as some people make it sound. Many more good teachers then mediocre I think - a few crappy ones can always be found. 9th grade might be a bit of a transition period for them but by 10th grade they can start taking APs and classes become much more challenging and well-managed. If she is into STEM - the Academies (Biomed, Engineering, and CS) are quite good. They are also working on the others and they are becoming stronger as well.

Bonus point - if your kid can learn to navigate JR and how to advocated for themselves they will be much better prepared for college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have a high school student at Burke and haven’t experienced any widespread behavior problems. Is that predominantly an issue in middle school grades?

I have not heard of any major behavior issues in the MS. Would be surprised if Deal or JR is less chaotic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:JRHS has better college outcomes

College outcomes are student specific. No one can say whether a given student will have a better outcome from this or that school, because you can only attend one.

[Anonymous]

My kid turned down Big 3 for Burke. So did some of my kid's friends, but others went to Big 3. Enough time has passed so we can see the college results. They're almost indistinguishable. Parents of older kids say that their Burke grads did very well in college too. This isn't the 1980s. Even very solid Big 3 students struggle to get into Ivy and NESCAC colleges and top state universities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, Burke has also been a mixed bag in terms of teaching. Some teachers are great but my child does not like many of them. The biggest issues are total lack of rigor (except math, which is leveled). It’s a school that seems great for kids who need a lot of support. The kids who do not (no learning issues etc) seem to do minimal work and coast along. For example, my kid seems to finish all her homework in school or within an hour at home. But it takes some kids *hours* to do the same work.

Are you the OP, with a kid in MS? I have an 8th grader at gds, which I'm certain will be rigorous in high school. But this year, he rarely has more than an hour of homework -- which is just fine with me. More I think would be inappropriate.

It doesn’t seem worth the price tag to me. DD I think would be fine at JRHS. Was also curious about college outcomes as another consideration.

[Anonymous]

As a parent of a Burke grad in college, I can say a few things: 1) the rigor/homework increases pretty substantially between middle and high school. That said, Burke is not about doing homework for the sake of doing homework- it's about giving your kid a strong prep for college while keeping them "whole" through high school. 2) my kid that transitioned to a SLAC found the transition pretty seamless. In particular, the ability to write effectively and efficiently was a huge asset. 3) if you are looking for Ivy league admits as your maker of college success, your expectations are pretty out of line withe the reality of college admissions these days. Over the last few years, many many kids at Burke have gone to highly ranked colleges including art and music programs. Some kids have gone on to lesser known colleges with significant merit aid. The college counseling program at Burke is excellent and helps every single student find a good fit.

[Anonymous]

Really? You're worrying about what college she gets into? Please worry about whether she is happy and thriving at Burke and whether Jackson-Reed would be a better fit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you spoken with parents of high school kids at Burke? The school changes a bit after MS.

Can you say more about this?

- Burke MS parent

[Anonymous]

Just chill. Your kid is going to be fine. Just make sure they are happy. Pressure cookers aren't worth it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does your child want to do?
JR is fine. Some kids enjoy it but it is chaotic and teaching is uneven - some excellent teachers, some ok, and some terrible.
Counselors are not helpful. Despite the issues, some kids are able to thrive there, others get by and some hate it. Is your child bright, self motivated and independent. She might enjoy it then.

JR can be quite chaotic but it is nowhere as crazy as some people make it sound. Many more good teachers then mediocre I think - a few crappy ones can always be found. 9th grade might be a bit of a transition period for them but by 10th grade they can start taking APs and classes become much more challenging and well-managed. If she is into STEM - the Academies (Biomed, Engineering, and CS) are quite good. They are also working on the others and they are becoming stronger as well.

Bonus point - if your kid can learn to navigate JR and how to advocated for themselves they will be much better prepared for college.

All good points, and accurate.