2023 TJHSST Student - Ask me anything

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP you sound great & thanks for creating this thread! Wish you all the best.

These 2 questions are NOT for you specifically, but:

- what do other TJ students think about the school board’s alterations to TJ admissions? Also,

- how do other / older students view those students who were only admitted because of the SB’s alterations to the admissions policy?

DP but also a current TJ student!

1. As far as what other TJ students think about the admissions changes, it obviously varies a lot depending on who you're talking to. Almost everyone will talk about how their parents are upset about the changes because they think that they'll devalue our diplomas and the prestige of going to TJ, but a lot of students aren't really worried about that. There are a lot of students who think it was a mistake and there are a lot of other students who think it's great to have more students coming from different places. For me, coming from RCMS, it was kind of awkward to go to TJ and immediately have almost 100 kids that I knew there already - it sort of made it hard to reach out and make new friends because it was so easy to fall back in with my middle school crowd. The new classes still have plenty of kids from RC but it's not like a quarter of your IBET will be from there.

2. There's a couple of ways to answer this question. There are obviously some kids, like I mentioned before, who think that any kid who shows up from PW, or a school like Whitman, or is Black or Hispanic only got in because of the new process. But the reality that most of us understand is that there have always been SOME kids who are from those schools that don't send many kids, and there have always been A FEW Black kids and Hispanic kids and kids from PW. So there's really no way for us to know who is who, and it's kinda mean to just assume. And I mean, even if they did get in because of the new process, it's not their fault. They didn't get to choose the process.

Before this year, I could go an entire day at TJ without seeing a single Black kid. I've only ever had one in any of my classes. I think it's really cool that those kids don't have to feel alone anymore. And the same goes for the kids who got in from less represented schools. While coming in here with a hundred other kids was weird, it would have been a lot worse to be the only one, and the new process makes sure no one is in that position.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP you sound great & thanks for creating this thread! Wish you all the best.

These 2 questions are NOT for you specifically, but:

- what do other TJ students think about the school board’s alterations to TJ admissions? Also,

- how do other / older students view those students who were only admitted because of the SB’s alterations to the admissions policy?

DP but also a current TJ student!

1. As far as what other TJ students think about the admissions changes, it obviously varies a lot depending on who you're talking to. Almost everyone will talk about how their parents are upset about the changes because they think that they'll devalue our diplomas and the prestige of going to TJ, but a lot of students aren't really worried about that. There are a lot of students who think it was a mistake and there are a lot of other students who think it's great to have more students coming from different places. For me, coming from RCMS, it was kind of awkward to go to TJ and immediately have almost 100 kids that I knew there already - it sort of made it hard to reach out and make new friends because it was so easy to fall back in with my middle school crowd. The new classes still have plenty of kids from RC but it's not like a quarter of your IBET will be from there.

2. There's a couple of ways to answer this question. There are obviously some kids, like I mentioned before, who think that any kid who shows up from PW, or a school like Whitman, or is Black or Hispanic only got in because of the new process. But the reality that most of us understand is that there have always been SOME kids who are from those schools that don't send many kids, and there have always been A FEW Black kids and Hispanic kids and kids from PW. So there's really no way for us to know who is who, and it's kinda mean to just assume. And I mean, even if they did get in because of the new process, it's not their fault. They didn't get to choose the process.

Before this year, I could go an entire day at TJ without seeing a single Black kid. I've only ever had one in any of my classes. I think it's really cool that those kids don't have to feel alone anymore. And the same goes for the kids who got in from less represented schools. While coming in here with a hundred other kids was weird, it would have been a lot worse to be the only one, and the new process makes sure no one is in that position.

Oh - I forgot to add.... apart from the fact that there are more of those Black/Hispanic/PW/etc kids, and that there are a LOT more of them who are in TJ Math 1 and 2, you really can't tell that much of a difference in talking to them. There are 2025s in my math class and they've done great. There are 2025s in my clubs and they're no different from the rest of the kids were when they were freshmen. I know a couple of kids who dropped out this year but I also knew a couple of kids in my class who dropped out because TJ wasn't the place for them. It's one of my only complaints about TJ is that you shouldn't feel like you have to transfer if you're not all STEM, and it feels like admin is working on that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you could do it all over, would you go with TJ or stick with your base school? Why?

I'm very curious how the current students would answer this question too.

[Anonymous]

Do you think you are special like your parents think you are?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you could do it all over, would you go with TJ or stick with your base school? Why?

Second TJ student poster.

I would NEVER trade the experience of going to TJ. Having everyone here be just as invested in academics as I am (if not more) is such a great unifier for all of us. It's hard sometimes, and it's frustrating sometimes, but in the end we're all in it together and no matter what your interests are, you can find your people here. I don't think I would have had that at my base school (Oakton). There are a ton of really smart kids there, but to be honest a lot of them think they're just better than everyone else at Oakton and that creates a lot of weird tensions. Here at TJ I have a ton of friends that I can talk to about both school and activities, and the other good part is that I can do sports and clubs together because of 8th period. At Oakton I would have had to choose because my practice time and my club meeting times would have been the same.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you think you are special like your parents think you are?

Susan—it's time to lay off that morning tequila. You need help, girl.

[Anonymous]

What kinds of characteristics would you say make someone a good match for TJ?

On the flip side, are there characteristics that you think would make someone a poor match for TJ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What do you think about the C4TJ group?

Second student poster.

Honestly, they're really annoying. I get what they're trying to do but it seems like a lot of them are just out to brand themselves and the TJ kids recognize that because a lot of them are trying to do the same thing tbh I actually knew Asra's son (won't use his name here) and he was really embarrassed by all of it. We felt really sorry for him because we were all online and not in school at the time and he was getting hit from all sides because of his mom's behavior.

I've heard a lot of stuff about TJAAG too but some of those folks actually try to do stuff to help the kids, like supporting the cultural celebrations and doing outreach events. But some of those folks are super annoying too. I think most of us just wish that everyone would shut up about admissions and just let it go, because the behavior of the parents really isn't helping the school and some of them are getting their kids too mixed up in it.

I'd write more but lunch is ending and my 3rd period is less lax than my 2nd.

[Anonymous]

What do you think of the quality of mathematics teaching at TJ so far in your 2.5 years of experience there? Do you feel you are learning why things work, building intuition, and making connections between ideas, or do you feel that it is mostly procedural in that it focuses on steps and formulae without a deeper understanding (as it typically does at base high schools).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What do you think of the quality of mathematics teaching at TJ so far in your 2.5 years of experience there? Do you feel you are learning why things work, building intuition, and making connections between ideas, or do you feel that it is mostly procedural in that it focuses on steps and formulae without a deeper understanding (as it typically does at base high schools).

Additional follow up: Do you feel that your math teachers inspire and encourage you to get a deeper understanding via encouraging exploration of ideas, forming arguments/proofs, and asking lots of questions? Or do you feel that the overall information flow is mostly one way with limited opportunity to have discussions about interesting topics?

[Anonymous]

This discussion seems purely planted

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This discussion seems purely planted

Meh.

I am the parent who posted the 2-part question on the first page. I am just the parent of wait list kid. No one asked me to pose a question.

Can’t speak for anyone else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP you sound great & thanks for creating this thread! Wish you all the best.

These 2 questions are NOT for you specifically, but:

- what do other TJ students think about the school board’s alterations to TJ admissions? Also,

- how do other / older students view those students who were only admitted because of the SB’s alterations to the admissions policy?

DP but also a current TJ student!

1. As far as what other TJ students think about the admissions changes, it obviously varies a lot depending on who you're talking to. Almost everyone will talk about how their parents are upset about the changes because they think that they'll devalue our diplomas and the prestige of going to TJ, but a lot of students aren't really worried about that. There are a lot of students who think it was a mistake and there are a lot of other students who think it's great to have more students coming from different places. For me, coming from RCMS, it was kind of awkward to go to TJ and immediately have almost 100 kids that I knew there already - it sort of made it hard to reach out and make new friends because it was so easy to fall back in with my middle school crowd. The new classes still have plenty of kids from RC but it's not like a quarter of your IBET will be from there.

2. There's a couple of ways to answer this question. There are obviously some kids, like I mentioned before, who think that any kid who shows up from PW, or a school like Whitman, or is Black or Hispanic only got in because of the new process. But the reality that most of us understand is that there have always been SOME kids who are from those schools that don't send many kids, and there have always been A FEW Black kids and Hispanic kids and kids from PW. So there's really no way for us to know who is who, and it's kinda mean to just assume. And I mean, even if they did get in because of the new process, it's not their fault. They didn't get to choose the process.

Before this year, I could go an entire day at TJ without seeing a single Black kid. I've only ever had one in any of my classes. I think it's really cool that those kids don't have to feel alone anymore. And the same goes for the kids who got in from less represented schools. While coming in here with a hundred other kids was weird, it would have been a lot worse to be the only one, and the new process makes sure no one is in that position.

Thanks - A thorough and thoughtful response; I appreciate it!

As parents/admin/SB battle over TJ, my hope is the voices of TJ students are not drowned out, but rather, considered and valued.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP you sound great & thanks for creating this thread! Wish you all the best.

These 2 questions are NOT for you specifically, but:

- what do other TJ students think about the school board’s alterations to TJ admissions? Also,

- how do other / older students view those students who were only admitted because of the SB’s alterations to the admissions policy?

DP but also a current TJ student!

1. As far as what other TJ students think about the admissions changes, it obviously varies a lot depending on who you're talking to. Almost everyone will talk about how their parents are upset about the changes because they think that they'll devalue our diplomas and the prestige of going to TJ, but a lot of students aren't really worried about that. There are a lot of students who think it was a mistake and there are a lot of other students who think it's great to have more students coming from different places. For me, coming from RCMS, it was kind of awkward to go to TJ and immediately have almost 100 kids that I knew there already - it sort of made it hard to reach out and make new friends because it was so easy to fall back in with my middle school crowd. The new classes still have plenty of kids from RC but it's not like a quarter of your IBET will be from there.

2. There's a couple of ways to answer this question. There are obviously some kids, like I mentioned before, who think that any kid who shows up from PW, or a school like Whitman, or is Black or Hispanic only got in because of the new process. But the reality that most of us understand is that there have always been SOME kids who are from those schools that don't send many kids, and there have always been A FEW Black kids and Hispanic kids and kids from PW. So there's really no way for us to know who is who, and it's kinda mean to just assume. And I mean, even if they did get in because of the new process, it's not their fault. They didn't get to choose the process.

Before this year, I could go an entire day at TJ without seeing a single Black kid. I've only ever had one in any of my classes. I think it's really cool that those kids don't have to feel alone anymore. And the same goes for the kids who got in from less represented schools. While coming in here with a hundred other kids was weird, it would have been a lot worse to be the only one, and the new process makes sure no one is in that position.

Thanks - A thorough and thoughtful response; I appreciate it!

As parents/admin/SB battle over TJ, my hope is the voices of TJ students are not drowned out, but rather, considered and valued.

PP - thanks! We students hope so too. The admins seem to be providing more opportunities for us to be heard - enough that it seems intentional.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This discussion seems purely planted

+1. It showed up at the same time the admissions contact info started getting posted all over the place.