School Open Houses and Ratings

[Anonymous]

We're considering the move from NW DC to McLean or Falls Church (for the reasons not related to schools), and would appreciate some advice on the following:

- Do middle and high schools have open houses open to public? They organize them in our kids current inbound middle and high schools in DC, but I can't find any information about this on the website of those FCPS schools that I checked, that we're likely to move inbounds for (e.g. Longfellow Middle).

- Any insights (probably only makes sense in case you have experience with both school districts) if a middle and high schools have Greatschools rating 7 in FCPS - can I assume they are better than the middle and high school in DCPS with rating 9? Can I expect significant differences in schools of such level between these school districts? In terms of teachers retention, class selection (and availability to all kids who choose specific class), overcrowded state, afterschool club selections?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We're considering the move from NW DC to McLean or Falls Church (for the reasons not related to schools), and would appreciate some advice on the following:

- Do middle and high schools have open houses open to public? They organize them in our kids current inbound middle and high schools in DC, but I can't find any information about this on the website of those FCPS schools that I checked, that we're likely to move inbounds for (e.g. Longfellow Middle).

- Any insights (probably only makes sense in case you have experience with both school districts) if a middle and high schools have Greatschools rating 7 in FCPS - can I assume they are better than the middle and high school in DCPS with rating 9? Can I expect significant differences in schools of such level between these school districts? In terms of teachers retention, class selection (and availability to all kids who choose specific class), overcrowded state, afterschool club selections?

I don’t believe MS and HS in FCPS routinely have open houses during the school year. They do typically have nice orientation sessions for new kids and families in the summer before the school year starts.

Can’t really compare DCPS and FCPS other than to suggest schools in FCPS that are rated 7 or higher on GS are going to be larger than their DCPS counterparts and offer more sessions for particular courses, such that scheduling conflicts are less likely to arise.

[Anonymous]

This is public school, you don't have a choice, there are no open houses. That is laughable!

Great School ratings are BS. Please don't use them. Talk to people who have children in the schools, that is the only way. Our ES was rated a 4 but it was a GREAT school. It was only a 4 because it had a large hispanic population that didn't test well. It has actually gone up to a 7 because test scores improving is now a metric. But they change their methodology every year and it's not scientific AT ALL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is public school, you don't have a choice, there are no open houses. That is laughable!

Great School ratings are BS. Please don't use them. Talk to people who have children in the schools, that is the only way. Our ES was rated a 4 but it was a GREAT school. It was only a 4 because it had a large hispanic population that didn't test well. It has actually gone up to a 7 because test scores improving is now a metric. But they change their methodology every year and it's not scientific AT ALL.

Public schools in DCPS do have open houses. We're going to the one in Hardy MS in November. They have been very helpful for us in the past to learn about the school and weigh if private is really needed.

[Anonymous]

There aren’t open houses but you can call the school to see if you can do a tour. I used to give them as a PTA volunteer at Longfellow MS.

[Anonymous]

Middle and high schools have "curriculum nights" usually in January.

Some of them have gone virtual... so that wouldn't help you.

You can surely call the schools you are interested in and there will probably be a liaison or counselor who will give you 20 min. walking around the school. Just don't expect anyone to try to "sell" you on the school. Public schools are not like private schools that have to woo you. Public schools exist, and don't care if you are thrilled or not.

You can surely look for a band concert or orchestra or choral concert or other events at the schools you are considering to check out the schools a bit.

[Anonymous]

No, because unlike in DC your only real option is your base school unless you can justify the switch for a very specific program in high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, because unlike in DC your only real option is your base school unless you can justify the switch for a very specific program in high school.

It’s not that hard to pupil place in FCPS at the HS level - you just find a course or program that isn’t offered at your base school. The bigger issue is what’s been mentioned already, which is that public schools in NoVa don’t view private schools as their competition in the same way that some public schools in DC do, so they don’t roll out the red carpet with “open houses” the same way. But if you want to get a feel for a school’s culture, there are ways to do so, whether by attending orientation sessions, listening to school webcasts on course offerings, attending school events, etc.

[Anonymous]

OP, the DCPS open houses exist because of charters and the lottery. Since FCPS doesn’t really have school choice on the same scale, your best bet is to call the schools you’re interested in to request a tour.

Agree with PP that GS ratings are not what I’d rely on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is public school, you don't have a choice, there are no open houses. That is laughable!

Great School ratings are BS. Please don't use them. Talk to people who have children in the schools, that is the only way. Our ES was rated a 4 but it was a GREAT school. It was only a 4 because it had a large hispanic population that didn't test well. It has actually gone up to a 7 because test scores improving is now a metric. But they change their methodology every year and it's not scientific AT ALL.

Wow GS going from 4 to 7 after the update? Congrats! Your home value has probably increased by 100k overnight. (Only partially sarcasm...)