Feedback on Two Rivers

[Anonymous]

I registered for the Two Rivers preK lottery in a last-minute panic without ever having been there and we somehow got one of the 13 spots (out of 180 applicants!). So I'd love to hear any feedback peole have. I'm particularly curious about how people feel about the fact that Two Rivers (as well as other Charters) seems to have trouble meeting AYP goals.
Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Congrats!!!! As you can see from the lottery list, it's a top choice. I know an objective ex-teacher (she moved) and parent who had other kids in charters who are THRILLED! It's similar model to Capital City - which some consider charter royalty. (Not sure what else to call it. )

Jury is out on meeting AYP for charter schools. This should not be the only criteria you use to evaluate a school because, unlike private schools, special needs kids are NOT easily managed out. Just a handful of kids not making Herculean progress can throw off AYP. Despite the fact that these kids may have done extremely well with their own skills development.

We're gambling on a different charter preschool for small class size and individual language support. AYP is less of a concern for me than methodology and student/teacher ratio.

Good luck OP!

[Anonymous]

Thank you! The info re AYP explains a lot. So how do you think the top charters compare to the best DCPS elementary schools (Lafayette, Murch etc)? I've heard that teachers have left DCPS for charters and prefer them but wonder if there are any parents that have switched between the two, or had kids in both, and could make helpful comparisons.

[Anonymous]

I have newphews that attend Two Rivers and their parents are not impressed. The first grade teachers have horrible classroom management skills and the work doesn't challange the more advanced students. Actually, it doesn't challange students who have basic skills. Testing does give you some indication of how well a school is performing. If they can't teach the lower students, their numbers should reflect as such. If I am not mistaken, their scores are in the high 20's which is crazy for any school. Depending on where you live, you might want to look into another school.

[Anonymous]

OP here. yikes! thanks for the feedback. this will definitely give us some questions to ask before deciding.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank you! The info re AYP explains a lot. So how do you think the top charters compare to the best DCPS elementary schools (Lafayette, Murch etc)? I've heard that teachers have left DCPS for charters and prefer them but wonder if there are any parents that have switched between the two, or had kids in both, and could make helpful comparisons.

I've known parents to start with a traditional public, switch to charter, only to switch back to public. It really does depend on the school. You can find some good/bad public schools as well as good/bad charter schools. As for teachers, charters pay more tend to pay more and don't require certification. Which can lead to any joe smoe with a degree in the classrooms. There is also less job stablity since charter teachers aren't union. Mind you this isn't the case for all charters.

[Anonymous]

Which first grade teachers have horrible classroom management skills? And your claim about the test scores - high 20's of what?

[Anonymous]

I have several friends who send their kids to Two Rivers and I haven't heard good things about the Executive Director. They have complained about how she deals with disciplinary problems, isn't as clued in to problems as she needs to be and isn't responsive to criticism. We looked into Two Rivers and decided to go another direction. We wanted a more structured setting and were glad we did.

[Anonymous]

I've heard nothing but good things about Two Rivers, but am concerned about the NCLB reporting. The school technically made AYP because it made significant progress in one year, but the reading & math scores are still very low.

http://nclb.osse.dc.gov/

[Anonymous]

I've heard good things about the teachers and the facilities, but I have repeatedly heard stories about the Director and they weren't favorable. I guess you have to weigh the good and the bad. You might have a great teachers, but an awful Director, and that might work for some families. We've certainly not liked the Principles in some of our kids former schools but liked the school because of other reasons. Nothing is perfect. The low test scores are worrisome.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thank you! The info re AYP explains a lot. So how do you think the top charters compare to the best DCPS elementary schools (Lafayette, Murch etc)? I've heard that teachers have left DCPS for charters and prefer them but wonder if there are any parents that have switched between the two, or had kids in both, and could make helpful comparisons.

I've found that tearchers who were fired from DCPS end up at charters. Not sure if this is true for Two Rivers. They do tend to pay more but the teachers aren't required to be certified which again speaks volumes about the quality. The Director is unresponsive to parents, another alarm and test scores are horrid. Charters don't seem to be held to the same standards at DCPS so you have too many providing poor education to the students and not being held accountable.