APS FCC MS English Presentations

[Anonymous]

We live in McLean and are kinda done with the tiger mom scene. Our 6th grader has had to give 5 project presentations (biographical, novel, etc) this year in English class — I just want my weekends back.

Does APS middle school have these sort of things — we are looking to move anyway? Also want to check FCC laid back was for middle. I heard they have reduced homework, but worry a project isn’t counted in that.

[Anonymous]

Be careful what you wish for. APS increasingly lowering academic standards. Phasinf in “grading for equity” where Homework is not graded, reducing things like projects because they are inequitable (not everyone has parents at home who can help).

Definitely less than what you describe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Be careful what you wish for. APS increasingly lowering academic standards. Phasinf in “grading for equity” where Homework is not graded, reducing things like projects because they are inequitable (not everyone has parents at home who can help).

Definitely less than what you describe.

It’s middle school. I don’t expect much academic it’s more just shepherding kids thru puberty.

They’ll have plenty of time for presentation and essays in high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Be careful what you wish for. APS increasingly lowering academic standards. Phasinf in “grading for equity” where Homework is not graded, reducing things like projects because they are inequitable (not everyone has parents at home who can help).

Definitely less than what you describe.

FCPS is also implementing the standards based grading to address equity and other concerns. In fact, most all public school districts are doing this. Notably APS teachers have pushed back against the new standards based grading, especially at Wakefield HS as reported by ARLnow. School systems all over the country (as reported by Wash Post, WSJ, FT, and the Guardian) are grappling with how to change the old grading and homework practices.

In North Arlington, the new Dorothy Hamm Middle School opened recently in a state of the art facility. Teachers and principal are popular. It is also walkable to nearby homes, shops, etc. It is still under-enrolled as a result of the pandemic, so it’s not crowded like some nearby middle schools. The vibe there is definitely not “tiger mom”, but the academic standards are still high. Beautiful campus too, for an additional perk.

Lastly, people are more prone to complain on this forum, so take the advice here with a grain of salt.

[Anonymous]

Re: not grading homework. One push to standards based grading and equitable practice isn’t so much the outside help but the grading of formative (learning, practice) work vs summative (assessing competency) work. Educators are working to say do we assess students while they are learning a new skill? We want them to not be afraid to take risks and make mistakes- that’s part of learning. But if we “grade” them will they are practicing a new concept is that really fair? That’s part of what the push is to not grade homework or class work- or grade with a very low weight compared to tests and quizzes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live in McLean and are kinda done with the tiger mom scene. Our 6th grader has had to give 5 project presentations (biographical, novel, etc) this year in English class — I just want my weekends back.

Does APS middle school have these sort of things — we are looking to move anyway? Also want to check FCC laid back was for middle. I heard they have reduced homework, but worry a project isn’t counted in that.

There’s a lid for every pot I guess. Most parents in FCPS complain their kids aren’t getting enough practice writing and presenting.

Caveat: if these are dumb Slides presentations where the kids just copy bullets and images from the internet without real understanding, then I agree with you. Beyond useless busy work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Re: not grading homework. One push to standards based grading and equitable practice isn’t so much the outside help but the grading of formative (learning, practice) work vs summative (assessing competency) work. Educators are working to say do we assess students while they are learning a new skill? We want them to not be afraid to take risks and make mistakes- that’s part of learning. But if we “grade” them will they are practicing a new concept is that really fair? That’s part of what the push is to not grade homework or class work- or grade with a very low weight compared to tests and quizzes.

The key piece to the puzzle is motivating students to actually do the homework and practice work, in order to truly understand the material. A lot of parents a grappling with that issue in FCPS where standards based grading has been more fully implemented in some schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in McLean and are kinda done with the tiger mom scene. Our 6th grader has had to give 5 project presentations (biographical, novel, etc) this year in English class — I just want my weekends back.

Does APS middle school have these sort of things — we are looking to move anyway? Also want to check FCC laid back was for middle. I heard they have reduced homework, but worry a project isn’t counted in that.

There’s a lid for every pot I guess. Most parents in FCPS complain their kids aren’t getting enough practice writing and presenting.

Caveat: if these are dumb Slides presentations where the kids just copy bullets and images from the internet without real understanding, then I agree with you. Beyond useless busy work.

Well I wouldn’t mind a copy and past presentation. We had to find original sources, right citations, and cross reference as well as practice the presentation.

Dorothy Hamm sounds really nice, do they not have any busy work/homework or presentations/projects?

[Anonymous]

Is this AAP or General Ed?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in McLean and are kinda done with the tiger mom scene. Our 6th grader has had to give 5 project presentations (biographical, novel, etc) this year in English class — I just want my weekends back.

Does APS middle school have these sort of things — we are looking to move anyway? Also want to check FCC laid back was for middle. I heard they have reduced homework, but worry a project isn’t counted in that.

There’s a lid for every pot I guess. Most parents in FCPS complain their kids aren’t getting enough practice writing and presenting.

Caveat: if these are dumb Slides presentations where the kids just copy bullets and images from the internet without real understanding, then I agree with you. Beyond useless busy work.

Well I wouldn’t mind a copy and past presentation. We had to find original sources, right citations, and cross reference as well as practice the presentation.

Dorothy Hamm sounds really nice, do they not have any busy work/homework or presentations/projects?

There are English projects throughout the year. Nothing that’s too much of a burden but with a healthy level of challenge that engages creativity. The grade 8 student work was featured on display in the halls last December.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That’s part of what the push is to not grade homework or class work- or grade with a very low weight compared to tests and quizzes.

Good grief. What is the unintended consequences of making everything about tests and quizzes? You basically put everything in one basket to determine grades (ask any grad of law school and/or med school how that works out). In other words, if a student fails a quiz or test, it is much more detrimental to said student's grades. Though I'm sure eliminating tests/quizzes will eventually be the next step in lowering standards through out the public school system.

Homework (and classwork) does have its place in the world. To ensure that what is being taught in classrooms is reverberating in the student's mind and assists in building a solid basis for higher level work. It is also in preparation for high school and beyond. Homework at the lower end of school K-4, maybe 5 can be little or nothing but once students get farther along in their academic career, not having the basics down cold will end up hurting the students that most need assistance in going forward. Your smart kid with UMC parents aren't going to let their kid slide through life but will pay someone (i.e. a tutor) to catch said student up if they are falling behind.

So in the end, what these anti-homework advocates really are doing is hurting those that least can afford to fall behind. It is like repeating all the mistakes of COVID but this time they are just being blatant about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in McLean and are kinda done with the tiger mom scene. Our 6th grader has had to give 5 project presentations (biographical, novel, etc) this year in English class — I just want my weekends back.

Does APS middle school have these sort of things — we are looking to move anyway? Also want to check FCC laid back was for middle. I heard they have reduced homework, but worry a project isn’t counted in that.

There’s a lid for every pot I guess. Most parents in FCPS complain their kids aren’t getting enough practice writing and presenting.

Caveat: if these are dumb Slides presentations where the kids just copy bullets and images from the internet without real understanding, then I agree with you. Beyond useless busy work.

Well I wouldn’t mind a copy and past presentation. We had to find original sources, right citations, and cross reference as well as practice the presentation.

Dorothy Hamm sounds really nice, do they not have any busy work/homework or presentations/projects?

There are English projects throughout the year. Nothing that’s too much of a burden but with a healthy level of challenge that engages creativity. The grade 8 student work was featured on display in the halls last December.

So in 6th grade, how much time would it take at home?

[Anonymous]

Annandale HS and Madison HS in FCPS have already implemented standards based grading. But I’m not sure about the middle schools in the area. At those schools which have adopted the new grading and homework policies, the skills assessment at the end of term generally accounts for about 90% of the grade. There are unlimited retests however, which can be taken until the students gain subject mastery. Work, study habits, attendance and class participation no longer factor into grades. The skills assessments only measure the students accumulated knowledge at the end of term. Supporters say this new grading / homework policy reduces the achievement gap quite impressively.

None of this has been implemented at APS yet due to teacher pushback.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in McLean and are kinda done with the tiger mom scene. Our 6th grader has had to give 5 project presentations (biographical, novel, etc) this year in English class — I just want my weekends back.

Does APS middle school have these sort of things — we are looking to move anyway? Also want to check FCC laid back was for middle. I heard they have reduced homework, but worry a project isn’t counted in that.

There’s a lid for every pot I guess. Most parents in FCPS complain their kids aren’t getting enough practice writing and presenting.

Caveat: if these are dumb Slides presentations where the kids just copy bullets and images from the internet without real understanding, then I agree with you. Beyond useless busy work.

Well I wouldn’t mind a copy and past presentation. We had to find original sources, right citations, and cross reference as well as practice the presentation.

Dorothy Hamm sounds really nice, do they not have any busy work/homework or presentations/projects?

There are English projects throughout the year. Nothing that’s too much of a burden but with a healthy level of challenge that engages creativity. The grade 8 student work was featured on display in the halls last December.

So in 6th grade, how much time would it take at home?

My DC finished all her presentations in class. Nothing at home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Annandale HS and Madison HS in FCPS have already implemented standards based grading. But I’m not sure about the middle schools in the area. At those schools which have adopted the new grading and homework policies, the skills assessment at the end of term generally accounts for about 90% of the grade. There are unlimited retests however, which can be taken until the students gain subject mastery. Work, study habits, attendance and class participation no longer factor into grades. The skills assessments only measure the students accumulated knowledge at the end of term. Supporters say this new grading / homework policy reduces the achievement gap quite impressively.

None of this has been implemented at APS yet due to teacher pushback.

Madison does not have unlimited retakes. Retake policies vary by teacher. There are deadlines in all of his classes. Some classes have posted info about one optional reassessment per unit. It’s a complete mystery in other classes how it’s being done.