BCC AP compared to IB compared to Blair magnet?
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Anonymous
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Our daughter is in 7th grade and we are in bounds for BCC. Setting aside the fact that entry into the magnet at Blair is competitive and she might not get in, we're wondering what are the pros and cons to each high school experience, in terms of:
1. Our daughter is not actually a die-hard STEM person: she likes science, she likes to be challenged (will take Honors Algebra 2 in 8th grade at BCC) but most of all, she likes to write. So would she be a good candidate for the Blair magnet anyway? 2. Commute time to Blair from downtown Bethesda? Is Blair overcrowded? 3. Magnet students take the same non-STEM courses as the other students, correct? How are the Humanities courses at Blair? Are there the usual core AP courses in History and English? 4. Do you think attending this magnet confers any advantage in college admissions compared to attending BCC? 5. For a strong writer, if she stays at BCC, would IB courses actually work better for her than AP? 6. Is the IB as valued by colleges as AP courses? Does it make a difference if she picks the full 2 year diploma rather than individual IB courses? Thank you for helping me think this through. |
Anonymous
| You have an excellent inbounds school that offers an IB degree program. Your daughter loves writing, making IB a great fit. She is not especially interested in STEM. You aren’t actually located near the Magnet programs. This is a no-brainer. Send her to BCC. |
Anonymous
+1. And yes to the IB diploma program particularly. |
Anonymous
Blair is overcrowded. The STEM magnet does confer an advantage. Magnet students have a special letter included with their transcript and often have the equivalent of 20-22 AP-level courses on their transcript. IB is a great choice for a strong writer Your kid can get an excellent education at any of these places. It's literally an embarrassment of riches. In some ways just going to BCC and selecting the courses that best suit her interests is compelling but also your worst case. |
Anonymous
And I'm sure the wonderful folks here at DCUM will kindly point out if I'm mistaken, LoL,.. If you go IB, make sure yours does the IB DIPLOMA program as PP mentioned, not simply IB individual class "certificates of merit". My understanding is their is a wold of difference in how those two are considered by college admissions. I look forward to being corrected... |
Anonymous
| Blair IS BEYOND overcrowded, however, it not at all diminishes how GREAT the program is. |
Anonymous
You can do either at BCC — the diploma or mix and mass IB/AP courses. |
Anonymous
And the HL IB science and math classes are no joke. Some cover material even beyond the more advanced AP courses. I'm not sure which courses BCC offers, but it's definitely worth looking into. The IB coordinator (or the IB website) should be able to tell you which concepts are covered in each class, and you can compare those to what they'd get in the various AP Physics or AP Calc courses. Blair math might be more than she wants, but IB could be just right. In other words, in the IB Diploma program, she'd get a well-rounded high school experience that will prepare her for whatever she decides to pursue in college. She could piece together something similar in the Blair magnet because they offer plenty of non-STEM AP courses, but it would be more piecemeal and less cohesive. And it doesn't make admissions a sure thing, but there are certain colleges that love IB Diploma students. You can google and find lists of the percentage of IB certificate and applicants accepted at different colleges in various years, but I know Chicago is always at the top. Many colleges will give credit or advanced placement (i.e., skipping the 100-level course and starting with a 200) for IB scores just like they do for APs, but you'd need to check with each individual school for that info. I'd say as far as colleges go, if she were certain she wanted to go into a STEM field, gunning for Blair would be the way to go. But if she wants to keep her options open, aiming for the IB Diploma with HL science and math courses would be a good alternative. And it wouldn't be a terrible fallback if she doesn't get into Blair. |
Anonymous
| Maybe Blair's CAP program would be a good fit since your daughter is a strong writer. I hear good things about the program from other families. |
Anonymous
BCC zoned kids aren’t eligible for CAP unless they attend a middle school in the DCC. OP, do you know how many 8th graders will be taking Algebra 2 at BCC next year? Talk to the counselors / math department at BCC to see what math pathways will likely exist for your child. This will likely depend on how many kids are on the same track. If they recommend going outside BCC for college math in 12th, I’d consider Blair (if your child is admitted). |
Anonymous
Here are all course offerings for 11th graders: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/100jr6gk63a9iSTPn8NSUKF9t8bPkEloFJ0HNf5HTT8U/edit#gid=356292612 And for 12th graders: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1556jHAFThI9iv1Ob8pNa2UTmklQUkYa-VqOinsaNdyY/edit#gid=1912123422 Someone who takes Hon Alg 2 in 8th would then take Hon Precalc in 9th, AP Calc BC in 10th, and then would choose among other classes, including AP stats and MV Calc. |
Anonymous
BCC really offers no IB math courses??? |
Anonymous
They do — they are listed in the courses linked above. |
Anonymous
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OP, I consider it odd and concerning that you had this question. You're super-focused on Blair's prestige. But you haven't even informed yourself about the IB-- neither about the fact that your DD would have 2 magnet IB options as alternatives to Blair, or about what the IB program, generally speaking, is about. Otherwise you'd know that your DD, from your description, is likely a better fit than a STEM class.
There is a lot of info on DCUM about the IB offerings in MCPS but there's also a ton of info about the IB program itself on the internet. Your child's MS counselor probably has a slide powerpoint from fall 2022 that he/she could share with you about HS application programs available to your DD, to be used as general background since next year might have some changes. Please be mindful that you could be on the track of pushing your DD into a high school experience that is not the kind that makes her thrive but is imposing your own expectations--your concerns about her college acceptances is misplaced. Focus on getting her in the right place for her for high school--then the path to college will be smoother and more clear as she will know who she is and have had a chance to grow in her own areas of interest. FWIW, B-CC's IB classes are not always on par with the equivalents at magnets. I say this as a parent who had a child at an IB magnet and one at B-CC. On a related note, the English curriculum at B-CC for 9th and 10th is not strong (Despite it being called honors...it is for everyone except ESOL students). This is not a reflection of the teaching ability but the fact that the expectations are watered down--the teacher cannot teach to the same level as they could at an IB magnet where all kids have a certain ability and motivation. B-CC is also a large school with less individual attention. B-CC does have its strengths, however...I would say that the caliber of its drama program, and its school paper, for example, is probably very high above the magnets, as the magnets are part of bigger schools with less resources to cultivate these areas, and B-CC has a lot of talented kids who will be involved in these types of activities and keep them at a high bar. Secondly, the IB course selection at B-CC is quite diverse, as not all schools in the region offer the same number of classes. |
Anonymous
They only offer MV Calc at BCC when there are enough students to support it. The Math Department will be able to give you an honest assessment of whether that’s likely to be the case when your child is a senior. |