The RFP in MCPS - are they going to gut the magnet and immersion programs or enhance them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is it so hard for parents to believe MCPS IS trying to get rid of magnets? Do you really feel the MCPS administrators feel as strongly as you are about the magnet? The number of awards magnet kids get don't save them money.

Because my kids are in magnets and I don't see it. That's why.

You obviously don't have kids in magnets, so you think anything you make up might seem credible. You don't seem credible.

If they were, what would you expect to SEE? Do you really think MCPS will be open enough to let you SEE??

I love this. You want us to trust you instead of trusting our own eyes. Because, um, the lack of hard evidence supposedly proves, rather than disproves, your point. WTF? You're a loon.

And you truly a dumb person. In a bureaucratic system (local, state, or Federal doesn't matter), how do you kill a program? Here is how... I will give you a step-by-step process.

1. you realize you have an issue (in MCPS's case, it's lack of money to support increasing student enrollment - remember how fast MCPS is growing thanks to influx of new people moving in)?
2. you look for places to cut/increase dollar value (why do you think they put the HS late start issue on hold??) Follow me so far?
3. you look for money spent with small return on investment - and guess what? MCPS has obviously decided the way they are running the special program (i.e., magnet) is one of the areas.
4. you do a study that can be used to "justify" the cuts/changes
5. you implement the changes

So, they are doing step 4 - doing the so called "study" to make their case. They will use the "study" to show/prove/fool how the money can be "better" spent and students will benefit more (i.e., closing the achievement gap) and "improve" the school system. My guess is it will take a year or two before they can move on to step 5.

+1

Look at the student population that is flocking to Blair. The population that is increasing doesn't represent a tax base that can support the increasing demands on the Blair staff. So you kill the magnet to free up the cash.

Johnson, the principal at Blair already killed off the program that assigned counselors to the magnet. She has lost veteran teachers and she is now using nonmagnet teachers to teach magnet math. Remember that this is the same principal who danced around in videos produced by a precalculus teacher called 2Pi. Know what happened to him? He had to leave the school in a hurry.

By killing the magnet Johnson will also become an administrator at headquarters.

It is a win win situation for the main people involved.

Now here's the thing--the Blair principal relies on the accomplishments of the magnet students to tweet the hell out and attract DCC students to Blair. When the magnet fails Blair becomes just another DCC school.

If you really want a good magnet education -- this is really sad to say -- the Blair magnet is not the place to be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
+1

Look at the student population that is flocking to Blair. The population that is increasing doesn't represent a tax base that can support the increasing demands on the Blair staff. So you kill the magnet to free up the cash.

Johnson, the principal at Blair already killed off the program that assigned counselors to the magnet. She has lost veteran teachers and she is now using nonmagnet teachers to teach magnet math. Remember that this is the same principal who danced around in videos produced by a precalculus teacher called 2Pi. Know what happened to him? He had to leave the school in a hurry.

By killing the magnet Johnson will also become an administrator at headquarters.

It is a win win situation for the main people involved.

Now here's the thing--the Blair principal relies on the accomplishments of the magnet students to tweet the hell out and attract DCC students to Blair. When the magnet fails Blair becomes just another DCC school.

If you really want a good magnet education -- this is really sad to say -- the Blair magnet is not the place to be.

In your reply to your other post, you're contradicting yourself. The Blair principal is trying to kill the magnet, but she needs the magnet to succeed at Blair? Okay!

Listen, it's impossible to argue with a crazy person because, eventually, the sane person just gets exasperated and gives up, while the crazy person just continues to spout the same nonsensical fever dreams deep into the night. So this is my last post on the matter. But I'll leave you with this: In two weeks, like every year, about 400-500 kids will take the magnet test. Of those kids, 100 will be admitted to the magnet. And except for a few from that small group of kids who will be able to choose between RM-IB and the magnet, all will go to Blair next year, like they do every year. None of those families are thinking the Blair magnet is not the place to be.

[Anonymous]

20:26 - I can't tell you if PP is crazy or not. But you are so blinded by your support to Blair magnet, you are not thinking thru this. The issue isn't whether parents support the magnets or not, the issue being debated is what is MCPS's FUTURE plan for the magnets. Some of us think, sadly, we are seeing the beginning of the end.

[Anonymous]

20:26 - I know you are part of the Blair effort to pull wool over our eyes while the magnet is destroyed. Keeping our kids coming is essential to your plan to proving that magnet parents really don't care about the quality but just care about the bling of the magnet.

As 20:51 wrote, some of do think and do pay attention to what is happening to our children. We know that the magnet is on its death bed. We know that kids were asked to play Magnet Bingo. We know that kids in 'math' classes were asked to tweet instead of learning (tweeting is essential to promoting Blair-in the principal's view).

The kids win prizes and do well in competitions because we supplement their education and find them internships.

The Blair magnet was gone the moment Johnson came in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:20:26 - I know you are part of the Blair effort to pull wool over our eyes while the magnet is destroyed. Keeping our kids coming is essential to your plan to proving that magnet parents really don't care about the quality but just care about the bling of the magnet.

As 20:51 wrote, some of do think and do pay attention to what is happening to our children. We know that the magnet is on its death bed. We know that kids were asked to play Magnet Bingo. We know that kids in 'math' classes were asked to tweet instead of learning (tweeting is essential to promoting Blair-in the principal's view).

The kids win prizes and do well in competitions because we supplement their education and find them internships.

The Blair magnet was gone the moment Johnson came in.

This poster is positively certifiable. I hope she gets the helps she needs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:20:26 - I know you are part of the Blair effort to pull wool over our eyes while the magnet is destroyed. Keeping our kids coming is essential to your plan to proving that magnet parents really don't care about the quality but just care about the bling of the magnet.

As 20:51 wrote, some of do think and do pay attention to what is happening to our children. We know that the magnet is on its death bed. We know that kids were asked to play Magnet Bingo. We know that kids in 'math' classes were asked to tweet instead of learning (tweeting is essential to promoting Blair-in the principal's view).

The kids win prizes and do well in competitions because we supplement their education and find them internships.

The Blair magnet was gone the moment Johnson came in.

This poster is positively certifiable. I hope she gets the helps she needs.

+1. Magnet classes continue to be as fantastic as they ever were. I don't know what 1st PP's issues are, or why she's so obsessed with Blair and its principal. But she clearly knows very little about the magnet and so she has to grasp at weird straws and rumors involving twitter.

Death bed? As hyperbole goes, that's plumb pitiful. More laughable, however, is the suggestion that Blair kids do well because "we" supplement their education. Trust me, honey, "we" couldn't possibly supplement. Did you know that Magnet Stats is covering regression before the end of September? I've done regression in various jobs, but even I wouldn't try to supplement that. I'd love to watch 1st PP try to "supplement" that, though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:20:26 - I know you are part of the Blair effort to pull wool over our eyes while the magnet is destroyed. Keeping our kids coming is essential to your plan to proving that magnet parents really don't care about the quality but just care about the bling of the magnet.

As 20:51 wrote, some of do think and do pay attention to what is happening to our children. We know that the magnet is on its death bed. We know that kids were asked to play Magnet Bingo. We know that kids in 'math' classes were asked to tweet instead of learning (tweeting is essential to promoting Blair-in the principal's view).

The kids win prizes and do well in competitions because we supplement their education and find them internships.

The Blair magnet was gone the moment Johnson came in.

This poster is positively certifiable. I hope she gets the helps she needs.

+1. Magnet classes continue to be as fantastic as they ever were. I don't know what 1st PP's issues are, or why she's so obsessed with Blair and its principal. But she clearly knows very little about the magnet and so she has to grasp at weird straws and rumors involving twitter.

Death bed? As hyperbole goes, that's plumb pitiful. More laughable, however, is the suggestion that Blair kids do well because "we" supplement their education. Trust me, honey, "we" couldn't possibly supplement. Did you know that Magnet Stats is covering regression before the end of September? I've done regression in various jobs, but even I wouldn't try to supplement that. I'd love to watch 1st PP try to "supplement" that, though.

PS. Let me be completely clear. When my kid took Magnet Stats, we did not "supplement," despite both DH and I having done stats at the graduate level.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:20:26 - I know you are part of the Blair effort to pull wool over our eyes while the magnet is destroyed. Keeping our kids coming is essential to your plan to proving that magnet parents really don't care about the quality but just care about the bling of the magnet.

As 20:51 wrote, some of do think and do pay attention to what is happening to our children. We know that the magnet is on its death bed. We know that kids were asked to play Magnet Bingo. We know that kids in 'math' classes were asked to tweet instead of learning (tweeting is essential to promoting Blair-in the principal's view).

The kids win prizes and do well in competitions because we supplement their education and find them internships.

The Blair magnet was gone the moment Johnson came in.

+1

[Anonymous]

What a weird direction this thread has taken... To get back to the original question, I think the Blair magnet would be least likely to be affected by this program review, since it gets good results and attention for MCPS. If they were to cut anything, I think it would be the HGC and middle school magnet programs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What a weird direction this thread has taken... To get back to the original question, I think the Blair magnet would be least likely to be affected by this program review, since it gets good results and attention for MCPS. If they were to cut anything, I think it would be the HGC and middle school magnet programs.

You may be right, but of course we are all just speculating here. I definitely agree with you that they are unlikely to touch the Blair magnet because it delivers some national prestige. I also think a very strong case can be made to maintain the HGCs and middle school magnets because they serve the very real needs of advanced learners, whereas the language immersion programs, while very cool to be able to offer, seem like luxuries in an era of shrinking budgets and seismic shifts in demographics.

Given these changing demographics and the needs of ESL students, my bet is the county decides to shift away from the immersion models to more bi-lingual learning centers.

But, again, I'm just speculating.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:20:26 - I know you are part of the Blair effort to pull wool over our eyes while the magnet is destroyed. Keeping our kids coming is essential to your plan to proving that magnet parents really don't care about the quality but just care about the bling of the magnet.

As 20:51 wrote, some of do think and do pay attention to what is happening to our children. We know that the magnet is on its death bed. We know that kids were asked to play Magnet Bingo. We know that kids in 'math' classes were asked to tweet instead of learning (tweeting is essential to promoting Blair-in the principal's view).

The kids win prizes and do well in competitions because we supplement their education and find them internships.

The Blair magnet was gone the moment Johnson came in.

+1

Dear 1st PP and your sock puppet: we know you are a big booster of the Poolesville magnet. In fact, we know you moved up there because Blair's Four Corners location was becoming too diverse for you.

So, is Starr going to shut the Poolesville magnet down too? Or, of all the magnets from K-12 across the county, is it your contention that Starr is just gunning for Blair?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What a weird direction this thread has taken... To get back to the original question, I think the Blair magnet would be least likely to be affected by this program review, since it gets good results and attention for MCPS. If they were to cut anything, I think it would be the HGC and middle school magnet programs.

You may be right, but of course we are all just speculating here. I definitely agree with you that they are unlikely to touch the Blair magnet because it delivers some national prestige. I also think a very strong case can be made to maintain the HGCs and middle school magnets because they serve the very real needs of advanced learners, whereas the language immersion programs, while very cool to be able to offer, seem like luxuries in an era of shrinking budgets and seismic shifts in demographics.

Given these changing demographics and the needs of ESL students, my bet is the county decides to shift away from the immersion models to more bi-lingual learning centers.

But, again, I'm just speculating.

A smart 21st century Super would retain the immersions and make them two directional -- native Spanish speaking students and native English speaking students in fully mixed classes speaking in English and Spanish on alternate days. With perhaps full immersion at only the preK and K level. This is basically the WIS model. In this model, the English speakers and the Spanish speakers are treated as equally valuable; the presence of each in equal numbers contributes to full fluency for all.

If the school system wants to retain Blair for its prestige, it would be short-sighted to eliminate the HGC and middle school magnets, as they provide a pipeline of kids to the Blair program. It would be much harder to start the Blair program at the level it starts (and have the end results it has), if there were no acceleration in the lower grades.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What a weird direction this thread has taken... To get back to the original question, I think the Blair magnet would be least likely to be affected by this program review, since it gets good results and attention for MCPS. If they were to cut anything, I think it would be the HGC and middle school magnet programs.

You may be right, but of course we are all just speculating here. I definitely agree with you that they are unlikely to touch the Blair magnet because it delivers some national prestige. I also think a very strong case can be made to maintain the HGCs and middle school magnets because they serve the very real needs of advanced learners, whereas the language immersion programs, while very cool to be able to offer, seem like luxuries in an era of shrinking budgets and seismic shifts in demographics.

Given these changing demographics and the needs of ESL students, my bet is the county decides to shift away from the immersion models to more bi-lingual learning centers.

But, again, I'm just speculating.

I agree that MCPS is not going to shut down the Blair magnet, for the reason PP mentioned, that it's a high-profile program that delivers national prestige. I don't get the impression that it's very expensive to run, relative to educating the same kids elsewhere in the system.

I do think that at some level, MCPS is motivated by desires to (a) keep middle class families in MCPS as a whole, and (b) to ship some of the kids downcounty. I don't know where they decide that the costs are exceeding the unquantifiable benefits of continuing to offer these programs.

[Anonymous]

I think the immersion programs have the least justification.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the immersion programs have the least justification.

Immersion is going nowhere... Dual language does not work. Spanish speaking kids always learn English no matter what. English Speakers don't learn fluent Spanish.