An intrinsic problem to the DC charter system - admin becoming unresponsive?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you're lucky enough to be IB for Deal at YY, don't make the mistake of thinking you need to continue to DCI for strong Chinese instruction.

We bailed for Deal where our 6th grader is an a Chinese class with 8th graders (still not hard enough but good enough). Our excellent, homework heavy MoCo weekend program is much closer to our home than DCI. DC works with a good Mandarin tutor twice a week. The academics and extra curiculars at Deal are head and shoulders above DCI. No comparison.

I feel so bad for your kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP. We bailed on DCI from Capitol Hill after 6th grade not because admins were't responsive, but because the commute was too long and too much hassle for what we got.

We certainly didn't get enough rigor (including in "honors" classes in DD's target language and math) for an academically advanced student. There were just too many low-performing classmates, including high SES classmates. We homeschooled for 7th grade and had a good experience. Have not made up our minds about 8th grade.

Don't pretend, people. There's trouble in paradise.

How do people in Capitol HIll get to DCI?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. We bailed on DCI from Capitol Hill after 6th grade not because admins were't responsive, but because the commute was too long and too much hassle for what we got.

We certainly didn't get enough rigor (including in "honors" classes in DD's target language and math) for an academically advanced student. There were just too many low-performing classmates, including high SES classmates. We homeschooled for 7th grade and had a good experience. Have not made up our minds about 8th grade.

Don't pretend, people. There's trouble in paradise.

How do people in Capitol HIll get to DCI?

Metro -- Union Station to Takoma; walk to Delano Hall

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you're lucky enough to be IB for Deal at YY, don't make the mistake of thinking you need to continue to DCI for strong Chinese instruction.

We bailed for Deal where our 6th grader is an a Chinese class with 8th graders (still not hard enough but good enough). Our excellent, homework heavy MoCo weekend program is much closer to our home than DCI. DC works with a good Mandarin tutor twice a week. The academics and extra curiculars at Deal are head and shoulders above DCI. No comparison.

I feel so bad for your kids.

Sorry, the Mandarin at Deal is hands down inferior for the YY students. We know families at both.

[Anonymous]

How are the non-language classes at DCI?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you're lucky enough to be IB for Deal at YY, don't make the mistake of thinking you need to continue to DCI for strong Chinese instruction.

We bailed for Deal where our 6th grader is an a Chinese class with 8th graders (still not hard enough but good enough). Our excellent, homework heavy MoCo weekend program is much closer to our home than DCI. DC works with a good Mandarin tutor twice a week. The academics and extra curiculars at Deal are head and shoulders above DCI. No comparison.

I feel so bad for your kids.

Sorry, the Mandarin at Deal is hands down inferior for the YY students. We know families at both.

Why does this PP feel bad for the kid? Sounds like the family has found a better alternative to DCI, closer to home, to build on the Mandarin foundation established at YY. We also know families at both, so we know that the Mandarin instruction at Deal and Wilson has come a long way in the last several years. We've met with the Deal and Wilson Mandarin teachers and were impressed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How are the non-language classes at DCI?

Check recent DCI threads - lots of information on DCUM.

Parens describe the classes as just OK, better in 8th grade than in 6th and7th. No great challenge for strong students mainly because DCI doesn't offer honors classes per se, other than for math. Another problem is that most of the strongest YY students (in math, social studies, ELA and Mandarin) haven't been making the jump to DCI.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How are the non-language classes at DCI?

Check recent DCI threads - lots of information on DCUM.

Parens describe the classes as just OK, better in 8th grade than in 6th and7th. No great challenge for strong students mainly because DCI doesn't offer honors classes per se, other than for math. Another problem is that most of the strongest YY students (in math, social studies, ELA and Mandarin) haven't been making the jump to DCI.

What about other than Chinese?

I really think mandarin is a total waste of time given the xenophobic attitudes of the Chinese.

[Anonymous]

Right, the Chinese are the problem, all 1.7 billion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Right, the Chinese are the problem, all 1.7 billion.

Nah it’s an ugly language with limited usefulness in the future.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Right, the Chinese are the problem, all 1.7 billion.

Nah it’s an ugly language with limited usefulness in the future.

all the elite learn and know English. No point

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How are the non-language classes at DCI?

Check recent DCI threads - lots of information on DCUM.

Parens describe the classes as just OK, better in 8th grade than in 6th and7th. No great challenge for strong students mainly because DCI doesn't offer honors classes per se, other than for math. Another problem is that most of the strongest YY students (in math, social studies, ELA and Mandarin) haven't been making the jump to DCI.

Bald faced lie. The majority of the YY students make the jump to DCI. Anyone from YY can read the class lists at DCI - it's obvious. (A couple of low performers did leave for Basis after 4th grade, and as unkind as it is to say, everyone was glad. Sorry, Basis.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How are the non-language classes at DCI?

Check recent DCI threads - lots of information on DCUM.

Parens describe the classes as just OK, better in 8th grade than in 6th and7th. No great challenge for strong students mainly because DCI doesn't offer honors classes per se, other than for math. Another problem is that most of the strongest YY students (in math, social studies, ELA and Mandarin) haven't been making the jump to DCI.

Bald faced lie. The majority of the YY students make the jump to DCI. Anyone from YY can read the class lists at DCI - it's obvious. (A couple of low performers did leave for Basis after 4th grade, and as unkind as it is to say, everyone was glad. Sorry, Basis.)

I thought Basis was supposed to be much more rigorous and pushy on sorting out the underperformers compared to DCI, no?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How are the non-language classes at DCI?

Check recent DCI threads - lots of information on DCUM.

Parens describe the classes as just OK, better in 8th grade than in 6th and7th. No great challenge for strong students mainly because DCI doesn't offer honors classes per se, other than for math. Another problem is that most of the strongest YY students (in math, social studies, ELA and Mandarin) haven't been making the jump to DCI.

Bald faced lie. The majority of the YY students make the jump to DCI. Anyone from YY can read the class lists at DCI - it's obvious. (A couple of low performers did leave for Basis after 4th grade, and as unkind as it is to say, everyone was glad. Sorry, Basis.)

Another problem is that most of the strongest YY students (in math, social studies, ELA and Mandarin) haven't been making the jump to DCI.

[Anonymous]

I'm going to agree that the majority of the strongest Mandarin speakers haven't been going on to DCI.

Most of the families who can and do host Chinese au pairs for many years have been bailing for privates. They can afford houses big enough to give au pairs bedrooms, and the dough to pay 15K-18K a year for the help/Mandarin.