Can anyone update me on Shaw Middle and parent involvement?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Any problem behaviors start in middle school, not high school.

Exactly. Those kids will come to your Shaw middle school too. So take the 50 million to renovate and get some intensive social, psychological and acadrmic sipports in place.

That is where the logic fails. They renovate, but they don't change the programming.

I don't know if it's the programming per se, but they can't change the students. Brookland is a cautionary tale here - it's a gorgeous building, is offering a Chinese class and supposedly more STEM (per hte parent feedback). But it's still a neighborhood middle school and the vast majority of kids in that neighborhood are not ready for advanced classes.

74% of kids in the city's public schools are economically disadvantaged and at high risk for academic failure. There aren't enough mid- to high-SES students to spread around. In that sense FEWER middle and high schools makes more sense so there can be a concentration.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Any problem behaviors start in middle school, not high school.

Exactly. Those kids will come to your Shaw middle school too. So take the 50 million to renovate and get some intensive social, psychological and acadrmic sipports in place.

That is where the logic fails. They renovate, but they don't change the programming.

+1. See Walker Jones and Dunbar.

[Anonymous]

They just renovated Cardozo. How wasteful would it be to leave it even more empty, take up another building and then spend another $50 million to renovate that building!

[Anonymous]

When I was in middle school, they had different tiers of classes, so that kids who were advanced were challenged and those who needed extra help got it. These tiers were determined through a combo of elementary grades and test-in scores. I went to a real rough inner city school where stabbings were common. But I was sheltered from all of that because my classes were composed of all the smart kids. Sometimes I had to interact with the other kids during elective classes but for the most part, they left me alone.

Are you saying that places like Brookland Middle has the same classes for evey student regardless of ability? If so, that's ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When I was in middle school, they had different tiers of classes, so that kids who were advanced were challenged and those who needed extra help got it. These tiers were determined through a combo of elementary grades and test-in scores. I went to a real rough inner city school where stabbings were common. But I was sheltered from all of that because my classes were composed of all the smart kids. Sometimes I had to interact with the other kids during elective classes but for the most part, they left me alone.

Are you saying that places like Brookland Middle has the same classes for evey student regardless of ability? If so, that's ridiculous.

Based on what is online for Brookland -http://www.brooklandms.org/home/subjects/ (no hint of Algebra or Geometry) and what has been stated at the MacFarland planning meetings, full tracking as you describe isn't happening in DCPS.

In some schools like Hardy they do have some honors vs regular classes (likely math) but other subjects (science, history, electives) will be for all students regardless of current academic levels.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When I was in middle school, they had different tiers of classes, so that kids who were advanced were challenged and those who needed extra help got it. These tiers were determined through a combo of elementary grades and test-in scores. I went to a real rough inner city school where stabbings were common. But I was sheltered from all of that because my classes were composed of all the smart kids. Sometimes I had to interact with the other kids during elective classes but for the most part, they left me alone.

Are you saying that places like Brookland Middle has the same classes for evey student regardless of ability? If so, that's ridiculous.

Based on what is online for Brookland -http://www.brooklandms.org/home/subjects/ (no hint of Algebra or Geometry) and what has been stated at the MacFarland planning meetings, full tracking as you describe isn't happening in DCPS.

In some schools like Hardy they do have some honors vs regular classes (likely math) but other subjects (science, history, electives) will be for all students regardless of current academic levels.

The city was sued over tracking decades ago since the test in method yielded too many white/high income kids. We need tracking starting in third grade where the stark academic differences really show up. Other jurisdictions do it. It's a total disservice to truly academically advanced kids. I'm surprised parents of gifted kids haven't sued the city or demanded that IEPs include academically gifted kids.

[Anonymous]

I'd like to learn more about this lawsuit. How does it serve the kids who are doing well academically to put them into advanced classes that they are not prepared for. It's more of a disservice to those who are not academically minded. It's just setting kids up for failure. Not everyone can or should be a doctor, lawyer, etc.

[Anonymous]

DCPS doesn't, and won't, track because of the way it looks racially here. Just one of the many idiotic DCPS policies. They have test in schools and academies for high schools, but nothing for middle schools.

[Anonymous]

This isn't about DC specifically but outlines the issue pretty well. http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2013/03/gifted_and_talented_education_cities_try_to_make_programs_more_inclusive.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd like to learn more about this lawsuit. How does it serve the kids who are doing well academically to put them into advanced classes that they are not prepared for. It's more of a disservice to those who are not academically minded. It's just setting kids up for failure. Not everyone can or should be a doctor, lawyer, etc.

It doesn't! Duh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd like to learn more about this lawsuit. How does it serve the kids who are doing well academically to put them into advanced classes that they are not prepared for. It's more of a disservice to those who are not academically minded. It's just setting kids up for failure. Not everyone can or should be a doctor, lawyer, etc.

That's not the way it shakes out though, PP. Instead you have kids who are doing well academically in classes geared toward kids who need more help. The result is that the advanced kids are bored.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'd like to learn more about this lawsuit. How does it serve the kids who are doing well academically to put them into advanced classes that they are not prepared for. It's more of a disservice to those who are not academically minded. It's just setting kids up for failure. Not everyone can or should be a doctor, lawyer, etc.

Which is why higher SES parents choose private, or more recently - charter.