Deal kid is floundering in private high school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid just started at a Big3 for 9th and the summer reading was the Autobiography of Malcolm X.

A classic.

Exactly. But PPs insist that only white authors can write classics.

Currently at Deal,
6th graders are reading Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
7th graders are reading Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman
8th graders are reading Raisin in the Sun

Who insisted upon that?!
No one, that’s who.

The first PP that said “The books they read at Deal are not particularly advanced. And for some reason all the books are about racism or minority groups being oppressed. Like every single book”.

I’m sure they think Malcom X and Raisin in the Sun falls into the not advanced category.

I think the point is that these books don’t foster critical thinking. There is nothing to debate. There’s only one correct viewpoint. When the kids finish the book about segregated schools, they start a book about the Japanese internment camps. And when they finish that, they read about about the trail of tears. And then they learn about Jackie Robinson for the seventh consecutive year.

Nothing to debate??
Have you read any of these books? Maybe it's you that lacks critical thinking skills.

It would take a very brave 8th grader to publicly express any view that wasn’t 100% woke approved in a DCPS building. Very brave.

this. What does PP think there is to debate in any of those books; can they come up with a single topic that the whole class won't either agree on or know they have to agree on?

There is an orthodoxy in DCPS. It manifests itself in subtle and not so subtle ways. The choice of books to read. The choice of team names at Deal (Team Obama), the imagery of a curled fist on communications from school staff, the use of BLM curriculum, etc. In DCPS students are taught you are either a victim, a victimizer, or an ally. There is no room for honest dissent or debate. We are ruining these kids. The level of indoctrination is astounding and it comes at the expense of critical thinking and academic rigor. The privates are more insulated from this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I suspect some of the PPs on this thread are not Deal parents because their experience is completely different than my experience with two kids at Deal during the pandemic. Bizarre.

As a Deal parent who saw the details of the lack of substantive education provided while schools were closed, I think you just don't know exactly what your kid is or isn't doing if you think they're reading entire books.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I suspect some of the PPs on this thread are not Deal parents because their experience is completely different than my experience with two kids at Deal during the pandemic. Bizarre.

As a Deal parent who saw the details of the lack of substantive education provided while schools were closed, I think you just don't know exactly what your kid is or isn't doing if you think they're reading entire books.

Agree with this. I think there are many Deal parents who are completely ignorant as to how much their kids are reading for class. They assume "oh they're reading the entire book". Unless you're sitting by your kid's shoulder, day-after-day,
what you assume is happening in class may not be happening.

I was having this discussion with several Deal parents a few weeks ago. Those of us who were actually sharing work space with our kids or helping our struggling kids with every.single.assignment during the pandemic were shocked by how little they were reading. "Reading" a full book
meant reading a few chapters. Our kids were on a cross section of teams. We always assumed that full books were being read. Not the case at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not pp, but with fake school last year it should have been painfully obvious how little they were doing. If they were staying in DCPS, you could probably ignore it, but if they’re were going to a high school that drew heavily from kids doing real school in 8th grade you should have seen this coming. If you can afford a big 3, you can afford a few novels or a history book. Buy them and assign a few essays

Exactly, should have seen it coming. We figured out how to download e-books from DC Public Library early in the pandemic. We found great book lists/curricular for 8th grade ELA on-line easily enough, and offered him incentives to read as many of the books as possible. We also hired a fine on-line writing tutor (in India) who ran us $25/hr. Kid liked the incentives and mostly cooperated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I suspect some of the PPs on this thread are not Deal parents because their experience is completely different than my experience with two kids at Deal during the pandemic. Bizarre.

As a Deal parent who saw the details of the lack of substantive education provided while schools were closed, I think you just don't know exactly what your kid is or isn't doing if you think they're reading entire books.

Agree with this. I think there are many Deal parents who are completely ignorant as to how much their kids are reading for class. They assume "oh they're reading the entire book". Unless you're sitting by your kid's shoulder, day-after-day,
what you assume is happening in class may not be happening.

I was having this discussion with several Deal parents a few weeks ago. Those of us who were actually sharing work space with our kids or helping our struggling kids with every.single.assignment during the pandemic were shocked by how little they were reading. "Reading" a full book
meant reading a few chapters. Our kids were on a cross section of teams. We always assumed that full books were being read. Not the case at all.

I think the kids are grouped by ability. My kids read the full book and answered homework on them. But they were not on Port au Prince. I hope you were able to find a private school to better suit your kid’s needs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid just started at a Big3 for 9th and the summer reading was the Autobiography of Malcolm X.

A classic.

Exactly. But PPs insist that only white authors can write classics.

Currently at Deal,
6th graders are reading Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
7th graders are reading Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman
8th graders are reading Raisin in the Sun

Who insisted upon that?!
No one, that’s who.

The first PP that said “The books they read at Deal are not particularly advanced. And for some reason all the books are about racism or minority groups being oppressed. Like every single book”.

I’m sure they think Malcom X and Raisin in the Sun falls into the not advanced category.

I think the point is that these books don’t foster critical thinking. There is nothing to debate. There’s only one correct viewpoint. When the kids finish the book about segregated schools, they start a book about the Japanese internment camps. And when they finish that, they read about about the trail of tears. And then they learn about Jackie Robinson for the seventh consecutive year.

Nothing to debate??
Have you read any of these books? Maybe it's you that lacks critical thinking skills.

It would take a very brave 8th grader to publicly express any view that wasn’t 100% woke approved in a DCPS building. Very brave.

this. What does PP think there is to debate in any of those books; can they come up with a single topic that the whole class won't either agree on or know they have to agree on?

There is an orthodoxy in DCPS. It manifests itself in subtle and not so subtle ways. The choice of books to read. The choice of team names at Deal (Team Obama), the imagery of a curled fist on communications from school staff, the use of BLM curriculum, etc. In DCPS students are taught you are either a victim, a victimizer, or an ally. There is no room for honest dissent or debate. We are ruining these kids. The level of indoctrination is astounding and it comes at the expense of critical thinking and academic rigor. The privates are more insulated from this.

BS Alert -- several points here that tell every Deal parent this poster knows nothing about the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid just started at a Big3 for 9th and the summer reading was the Autobiography of Malcolm X.

A classic.

Exactly. But PPs insist that only white authors can write classics.

Currently at Deal,
6th graders are reading Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
7th graders are reading Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman
8th graders are reading Raisin in the Sun

Who insisted upon that?!
No one, that’s who.

The first PP that said “The books they read at Deal are not particularly advanced. And for some reason all the books are about racism or minority groups being oppressed. Like every single book”.

I’m sure they think Malcom X and Raisin in the Sun falls into the not advanced category.

I think the point is that these books don’t foster critical thinking. There is nothing to debate. There’s only one correct viewpoint. When the kids finish the book about segregated schools, they start a book about the Japanese internment camps. And when they finish that, they read about about the trail of tears. And then they learn about Jackie Robinson for the seventh consecutive year.

Nothing to debate??
Have you read any of these books? Maybe it's you that lacks critical thinking skills.

It would take a very brave 8th grader to publicly express any view that wasn’t 100% woke approved in a DCPS building. Very brave.

this. What does PP think there is to debate in any of those books; can they come up with a single topic that the whole class won't either agree on or know they have to agree on?

There is an orthodoxy in DCPS. It manifests itself in subtle and not so subtle ways. The choice of books to read. The choice of team names at Deal (Team Obama), the imagery of a curled fist on communications from school staff, the use of BLM curriculum, etc. In DCPS students are taught you are either a victim, a victimizer, or an ally. There is no room for honest dissent or debate. We are ruining these kids. The level of indoctrination is astounding and it comes at the expense of critical thinking and academic rigor. The privates are more insulated from this.

No one is ruining your kid but you. You seem to be happy if the kids are only learning The Great Replacement theory. Please stay in private.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Look, there are only so many hours in the school day. Critical race theory instruction cannot be rushed. If that means other skills and topics receive less attention, that’s just something you need to come to terms with. Not to worry though, your kid will be in the honors program at Wilson.

This is funny, but sad it’s about kids’ education.

Math and critical thought are racist. Your child will receive an education in other areas. China and India are laughing at us.

Hi Ivan. I saw that you were offline for a while, and I was worried that you got fired because didn't use the word "woke" enough in your last few posts about how much liberal arts suck and how white men are oppressed (despite all evidence to the contrary). Nice to see you still working.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I suspect some of the PPs on this thread are not Deal parents because their experience is completely different than my experience with two kids at Deal during the pandemic. Bizarre.

As a Deal parent who saw the details of the lack of substantive education provided while schools were closed, I think you just don't know exactly what your kid is or isn't doing if you think they're reading entire books.

Agree with this. I think there are many Deal parents who are completely ignorant as to how much their kids are reading for class. They assume "oh they're reading the entire book". Unless you're sitting by your kid's shoulder, day-after-day,
what you assume is happening in class may not be happening.

I was having this discussion with several Deal parents a few weeks ago. Those of us who were actually sharing work space with our kids or helping our struggling kids with every.single.assignment during the pandemic were shocked by how little they were reading. "Reading" a full book
meant reading a few chapters. Our kids were on a cross section of teams. We always assumed that full books were being read. Not the case at all.

I think the kids are grouped by ability. My kids read the full book and answered homework on them. But they were not on Port au Prince. I hope you were able to find a private school to better suit your kid’s needs.

F-you. The kids are not grouped on team by ability (and never have been) and you know it. You are a nasty person and have serious issues to be spending your Wednesday writing posts like this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid just started at a Big3 for 9th and the summer reading was the Autobiography of Malcolm X.

A classic.

Exactly. But PPs insist that only white authors can write classics.

Currently at Deal,
6th graders are reading Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
7th graders are reading Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman
8th graders are reading Raisin in the Sun

Who insisted upon that?!
No one, that’s who.

The first PP that said “The books they read at Deal are not particularly advanced. And for some reason all the books are about racism or minority groups being oppressed. Like every single book”.

I’m sure they think Malcom X and Raisin in the Sun falls into the not advanced category.

I think the point is that these books don’t foster critical thinking. There is nothing to debate. There’s only one correct viewpoint. When the kids finish the book about segregated schools, they start a book about the Japanese internment camps. And when they finish that, they read about about the trail of tears. And then they learn about Jackie Robinson for the seventh consecutive year.

Nothing to debate??
Have you read any of these books? Maybe it's you that lacks critical thinking skills.

It would take a very brave 8th grader to publicly express any view that wasn’t 100% woke approved in a DCPS building. Very brave.

Oh, please tell us what "brave" statement you think they want to say but don't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid just started at a Big3 for 9th and the summer reading was the Autobiography of Malcolm X.

A classic.

Exactly. But PPs insist that only white authors can write classics.

Currently at Deal,
6th graders are reading Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
7th graders are reading Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman
8th graders are reading Raisin in the Sun

Who insisted upon that?!
No one, that’s who.

The first PP that said “The books they read at Deal are not particularly advanced. And for some reason all the books are about racism or minority groups being oppressed. Like every single book”.

I’m sure they think Malcom X and Raisin in the Sun falls into the not advanced category.

I think the point is that these books don’t foster critical thinking. There is nothing to debate. There’s only one correct viewpoint. When the kids finish the book about segregated schools, they start a book about the Japanese internment camps. And when they finish that, they read about about the trail of tears. And then they learn about Jackie Robinson for the seventh consecutive year.

Nothing to debate??
Have you read any of these books? Maybe it's you that lacks critical thinking skills.

It would take a very brave 8th grader to publicly express any view that wasn’t 100% woke approved in a DCPS building. Very brave.

Oh, please tell us what "brave" statement you think they want to say but don't.

NP. Please there are plenty of white students at Deal that have zero problems calling their fellow classmates the N word. There is a very vocal un-woke crowd for PP’s kid to join.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Look, there are only so many hours in the school day. Critical race theory instruction cannot be rushed. If that means other skills and topics receive less attention, that’s just something you need to come to terms with. Not to worry though, your kid will be in the honors program at Wilson.

This is funny, but sad it’s about kids’ education.

Math and critical thought are racist. Your child will receive an education in other areas. China and India are laughing at us.

Hi Ivan. I saw that you were offline for a while, and I was worried that you got fired because didn't use the word "woke" enough in your last few posts about how much liberal arts suck and how white men are oppressed (despite all evidence to the contrary). Nice to see you still working.

...are you trying to imply that there is a paid Russian troll on Local Mommy Fight Site? Nobody is getting paid to start fights here. I start fights here for free.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There is just more work at a private school than a public, it doesn't mean your child isn't able to do it--they just need to get used to the volume. I do think that the volume of work prepares them more for college, but it does take a lot of fun out of the high school experience.

. Come on, such BS. Other US cities offer far more HS rigor in the public system than DC. My alma mater, Boston Latin,is the HS sending the most grads to Ivies on a per capita basis, not a Top DC (or NYC) private. Spare us your misplaced snobbery, PP.

This thread is local.

But the point is a good one. Tony private schools aren't magic bullets. Coddled kids in cocoon environments, with no more than token poor and lower middle-class peers on scholarships, don't necessarily put nose to the grindstone, hustle to get ahead, or appreciate their opportunities to learn like public students might. This is true matter how terrific the teachers and curriculum.

After almost a decade in DCPS, we learned not to rely on school inputs to provide serious humanities challenge long ago. We enroll our children in a variety of on-line workshops and classes each school year to beef up and round out the education on offer at our neighborhood MS. We started hiring a tough writing tutor with another DCPS family last year.

We require our kids to read at least one challenging novel weekly, mainly classics we discuss with them, on top of what's being assigned at school. We shut off the Internet in the afternoons, to promote reading. We have them earn "reading points" they can cash in for adventures of their own choosing, e.g. horse-riding lessons and zip lines. We opt out of PARCC, which we consider a waste of time, in favor of having them read during testing hours. In the summers, we send our children to several weeks of academic sleep-away camps. We spend 8-10K per kid per school year to supplement, a bargain compared to Sidwell, GDS etc.

You don't understand what OP is describing. None of what you write is remotely close. We did all of that and more while in DCPS. It isn't the same at all.

NP. We do understand. We moved on from DCPS to a high-powered private HS (parochial actually) this school year ourselves, after the distance learning mess at Deal. Like the PP above, we effectively homeschooled our kid in humanities subjects in DCPS. Our kid has not been overwhelmed by HS workload. He has hit the ground running.

Get a clue, DCPS parents. When Deal assigns 3 books in 8th grade, ensure that your kid reads at least five times that many. Hire tutors, tutor yourself. Covid or not Covid, you don't have to pay tens of thousands of dollars for private school to ensure that a kid gets a good middle school education, not in this city.

NP here. None of the Catholic high schools in DC are as rigorous as a big three. So, your kid is not having the same transition as ops kid is because her kid is at a harder, more rigorous school than yours is.

[Anonymous]

Ignoring stupid Deal bashing:

Look OP, I went to Phillips Exeter from a midling public school in New York State, where I was in the gifted program, 1st violin, etc. At Exeter, I quickly learned I was average and actually behind my peers from other states in math. In three years, I brought my grades up from mostly Bs to As and A-s. It’s great your child is finally being challenged. Encourage them and they will rise. Also dont coddle them too much with tutoring. They need to seek help from their teachers, peers or the Internet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid just started at a Big3 for 9th and the summer reading was the Autobiography of Malcolm X.

A classic.

Exactly. But PPs insist that only white authors can write classics.

Currently at Deal,
6th graders are reading Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
7th graders are reading Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman
8th graders are reading Raisin in the Sun

Who insisted upon that?!
No one, that’s who.

The first PP that said “The books they read at Deal are not particularly advanced. And for some reason all the books are about racism or minority groups being oppressed. Like every single book”.

I’m sure they think Malcom X and Raisin in the Sun falls into the not advanced category.

I think the point is that these books don’t foster critical thinking. There is nothing to debate. There’s only one correct viewpoint. When the kids finish the book about segregated schools, they start a book about the Japanese internment camps. And when they finish that, they read about about the trail of tears. And then they learn about Jackie Robinson for the seventh consecutive year.

Nothing to debate??
Have you read any of these books? Maybe it's you that lacks critical thinking skills.

It would take a very brave 8th grader to publicly express any view that wasn’t 100% woke approved in a DCPS building. Very brave.

this. What does PP think there is to debate in any of those books; can they come up with a single topic that the whole class won't either agree on or know they have to agree on?

There is an orthodoxy in DCPS. It manifests itself in subtle and not so subtle ways. The choice of books to read. The choice of team names at Deal (Team Obama), the imagery of a curled fist on communications from school staff, the use of BLM curriculum, etc. In DCPS students are taught you are either a victim, a victimizer, or an ally. There is no room for honest dissent or debate. We are ruining these kids. The level of indoctrination is astounding and it comes at the expense of critical thinking and academic rigor. The privates are more insulated from this.

BS Alert -- several points here that tell every Deal parent this poster knows nothing about the school.

Which parts are untrue? This has been our experience.