MCPS should bring back finals and midterms

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think many people do not remember how finals used to be. They were written by the county to be easily passable. They were usually the easiest test given. At least a week or two were spent prepping for them...often with a study guide that was very very similar to the test. There was no school for a week in order to give them and it was a transportation problem to get there and back or sit in the cafeteria for most of the day.

Given that AP exams are widely taken, I think the end of quarter thing is ok.

AP exams aren’t widely taken across MCPS high schools. Maybe at the W schools but there are many high schools within MCPS where only a minority of kids take AP classes and their exams.

[Anonymous]

More than kids failing, it will be teachers and administrators failing!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think many people do not remember how finals used to be. They were written by the county to be easily passable. They were usually the easiest test given. At least a week or two were spent prepping for them...often with a study guide that was very very similar to the test. There was no school for a week in order to give them and it was a transportation problem to get there and back or sit in the cafeteria for most of the day.

Given that AP exams are widely taken, I think the end of quarter thing is ok.

AP exams aren’t widely taken across MCPS high schools. Maybe at the W schools but there are many high schools within MCPS where only a minority of kids take AP classes and their exams.

Kids who plan to go to college take AP classes. For kids who don't plan to go to college, what is the point of taking finals to prepare you for college?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think many people do not remember how finals used to be. They were written by the county to be easily passable. They were usually the easiest test given. At least a week or two were spent prepping for them...often with a study guide that was very very similar to the test. There was no school for a week in order to give them and it was a transportation problem to get there and back or sit in the cafeteria for most of the day.

Given that AP exams are widely taken, I think the end of quarter thing is ok.

AP exams aren’t widely taken across MCPS high schools. Maybe at the W schools but there are many high schools within MCPS where only a minority of kids take AP classes and their exams.

Kids who plan to go to college take AP classes. For kids who don't plan to go to college, what is the point of taking finals to prepare you for college?

Please check your entitlement. Many many many kids go to college that do not take AP classes. Many go to community college. Many go to trade schools too and guess what? There are test there too. Many jobs have tests for employment too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think many people do not remember how finals used to be. They were written by the county to be easily passable. They were usually the easiest test given. At least a week or two were spent prepping for them...often with a study guide that was very very similar to the test. There was no school for a week in order to give them and it was a transportation problem to get there and back or sit in the cafeteria for most of the day.

Given that AP exams are widely taken, I think the end of quarter thing is ok.

AP exams aren’t widely taken across MCPS high schools. Maybe at the W schools but there are many high schools within MCPS where only a minority of kids take AP classes and their exams.

Kids who plan to go to college take AP classes. For kids who don't plan to go to college, what is the point of taking finals to prepare you for college?

Lol the most competitive kids take AP classes to get into competitive but there are plenty of kids who don’t and go on to attend colleges like McDaniel, Salisbury University, Hood College, Bowie State, etc.

Not everyone in MCPS is looking to or will end up in a top-tier university.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wait, they don't have finals and midterms!!????

WTF are they even teaching these days!!??

Have you not heard about their grading grid and no finals to increase A's and less failing across the board?

You can get these grades and still get an A for your final grade:
1Q 79.5
2Q 89.5
3Q 69.5
4Q 79.5

MCPS has been dumbed down for about a 8 years now, even at the ES level. My oldest was taking weekly spelling and vocabulary tests, spelling bees, geography bees, daily reading groups, and advanced math starting in 1st grade. Middle child occasionally got a spelling test (no vocabulary) and occasional reading group. Youngest never had one spelling test, no vocabulary, no bees, no advance math except 4/5 combo option starting in 4th, and no reading groups.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think many people do not remember how finals used to be. They were written by the county to be easily passable. They were usually the easiest test given. At least a week or two were spent prepping for them...often with a study guide that was very very similar to the test. There was no school for a week in order to give them and it was a transportation problem to get there and back or sit in the cafeteria for most of the day.

Given that AP exams are widely taken, I think the end of quarter thing is ok.

AP exams aren’t widely taken across MCPS high schools. Maybe at the W schools but there are many high schools within MCPS where only a minority of kids take AP classes and their exams.

Kids who plan to go to college take AP classes. For kids who don't plan to go to college, what is the point of taking finals to prepare you for college?

Please check your entitlement. Many many many kids go to college that do not take AP classes. Many go to community college. Many go to trade schools too and guess what? There are test there too. Many jobs have tests for employment too.

Not in MCPS.

I hope that trade schools don't waste their students' time and money with midterms and finals. I never had to take a midterm or final to apply for a job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think many people do not remember how finals used to be. They were written by the county to be easily passable. They were usually the easiest test given. At least a week or two were spent prepping for them...often with a study guide that was very very similar to the test. There was no school for a week in order to give them and it was a transportation problem to get there and back or sit in the cafeteria for most of the day.

Given that AP exams are widely taken, I think the end of quarter thing is ok.

AP exams aren’t widely taken across MCPS high schools. Maybe at the W schools but there are many high schools within MCPS where only a minority of kids take AP classes and their exams.

Kids who plan to go to college take AP classes. For kids who don't plan to go to college, what is the point of taking finals to prepare you for college?

Lol the most competitive kids take AP classes to get into competitive but there are plenty of kids who don’t and go on to attend colleges like McDaniel, Salisbury University, Hood College, Bowie State, etc.

Not everyone in MCPS is looking to or will end up in a top-tier university.

MCPS at-a-glance reports list number of graduates who took AP or IB tests. Take a look at it some time. You might be surprised.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think many people do not remember how finals used to be. They were written by the county to be easily passable. They were usually the easiest test given. At least a week or two were spent prepping for them...often with a study guide that was very very similar to the test. There was no school for a week in order to give them and it was a transportation problem to get there and back or sit in the cafeteria for most of the day.

Given that AP exams are widely taken, I think the end of quarter thing is ok.

AP exams aren’t widely taken across MCPS high schools. Maybe at the W schools but there are many high schools within MCPS where only a minority of kids take AP classes and their exams.

Kids who plan to go to college take AP classes. For kids who don't plan to go to college, what is the point of taking finals to prepare you for college?

Lol the most competitive kids take AP classes to get into competitive but there are plenty of kids who don’t and go on to attend colleges like McDaniel, Salisbury University, Hood College, Bowie State, etc.

Not everyone in MCPS is looking to or will end up in a top-tier university.

MCPS at-a-glance reports list number of graduates who took AP or IB tests. Take a look at it some time. You might be surprised.

Here’s Richard Montgomery, which has higher than average AP/IB uptake due to it being a magnet school:

https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/contentassets/791d9e3ecf514dffa7e5f8b8cffd2a27/5451_23_rmhs-profile.pdf

About 41% of its students took an AP exam. Again, that’s with RM likely being on the higher end of the spectrum because it’s a magnet school. So within any MCPS high school, the percentage of kids taking an AP class and exam is somewhere between 20-45%. Which means the majority of MCPS kids still don’t take AP classes, like I said originally.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think many people do not remember how finals used to be. They were written by the county to be easily passable. They were usually the easiest test given. At least a week or two were spent prepping for them...often with a study guide that was very very similar to the test. There was no school for a week in order to give them and it was a transportation problem to get there and back or sit in the cafeteria for most of the day.

Given that AP exams are widely taken, I think the end of quarter thing is ok.

AP exams aren’t widely taken across MCPS high schools. Maybe at the W schools but there are many high schools within MCPS where only a minority of kids take AP classes and their exams.

Kids who plan to go to college take AP classes. For kids who don't plan to go to college, what is the point of taking finals to prepare you for college?

Lol the most competitive kids take AP classes to get into competitive but there are plenty of kids who don’t and go on to attend colleges like McDaniel, Salisbury University, Hood College, Bowie State, etc.

Not everyone in MCPS is looking to or will end up in a top-tier university.

MCPS at-a-glance reports list number of graduates who took AP or IB tests. Take a look at it some time. You might be surprised.

Here’s Richard Montgomery, which has higher than average AP/IB uptake due to it being a magnet school:

https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/contentassets/791d9e3ecf514dffa7e5f8b8cffd2a27/5451_23_rmhs-profile.pdf

About 41% of its students took an AP exam. Again, that’s with RM likely being on the higher end of the spectrum because it’s a magnet school. So within any MCPS high school, the percentage of kids taking an AP class and exam is somewhere between 20-45%. Which means the majority of MCPS kids still don’t take AP classes, like I said originally.

No, RM is not on the higher end of the spectrum when it comes to AP, actually it is on the lower end because it's an IB school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait, they don't have finals and midterms!!????

WTF are they even teaching these days!!??

Have you not heard about their grading grid and no finals to increase A's and less failing across the board?

You can get these grades and still get an A for your final grade:
1Q 79.5
2Q 89.5
3Q 69.5
4Q 79.5

MCPS has been dumbed down for about a 8 years now, even at the ES level. My oldest was taking weekly spelling and vocabulary tests, spelling bees, geography bees, daily reading groups, and advanced math starting in 1st grade. Middle child occasionally got a spelling test (no vocabulary) and occasional reading group. Youngest never had one spelling test, no vocabulary, no bees, no advance math except 4/5 combo option starting in 4th, and no reading groups.

Wrong

[Anonymous]

I used to create my own tests and exams for my kids for ES and MS, until they reached HS AP levels. You can go to quizlet to make tests.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think many people do not remember how finals used to be. They were written by the county to be easily passable. They were usually the easiest test given. At least a week or two were spent prepping for them...often with a study guide that was very very similar to the test. There was no school for a week in order to give them and it was a transportation problem to get there and back or sit in the cafeteria for most of the day.

Given that AP exams are widely taken, I think the end of quarter thing is ok.

AP exams aren’t widely taken across MCPS high schools. Maybe at the W schools but there are many high schools within MCPS where only a minority of kids take AP classes and their exams.

Kids who plan to go to college take AP classes. For kids who don't plan to go to college, what is the point of taking finals to prepare you for college?

Lol the most competitive kids take AP classes to get into competitive but there are plenty of kids who don’t and go on to attend colleges like McDaniel, Salisbury University, Hood College, Bowie State, etc.

Not everyone in MCPS is looking to or will end up in a top-tier university.

MCPS at-a-glance reports list number of graduates who took AP or IB tests. Take a look at it some time. You might be surprised.

Here’s Richard Montgomery, which has higher than average AP/IB uptake due to it being a magnet school:

https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/contentassets/791d9e3ecf514dffa7e5f8b8cffd2a27/5451_23_rmhs-profile.pdf

About 41% of its students took an AP exam. Again, that’s with RM likely being on the higher end of the spectrum because it’s a magnet school. So within any MCPS high school, the percentage of kids taking an AP class and exam is somewhere between 20-45%. Which means the majority of MCPS kids still don’t take AP classes, like I said originally.

No, RM is not on the higher end of the spectrum when it comes to AP, actually it is on the lower end because it's an IB school.

I was excluding the W schools, since those schools likely have 60-80% of kids taking AP/IB and likely wouldn’t have the kids applying to the 2nd and 3rd tier schools Latham I referenced. Stop being exhausting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think many people do not remember how finals used to be. They were written by the county to be easily passable. They were usually the easiest test given. At least a week or two were spent prepping for them...often with a study guide that was very very similar to the test. There was no school for a week in order to give them and it was a transportation problem to get there and back or sit in the cafeteria for most of the day.

Given that AP exams are widely taken, I think the end of quarter thing is ok.

AP exams aren’t widely taken across MCPS high schools. Maybe at the W schools but there are many high schools within MCPS where only a minority of kids take AP classes and their exams.

Kids who plan to go to college take AP classes. For kids who don't plan to go to college, what is the point of taking finals to prepare you for college?

Lol the most competitive kids take AP classes to get into competitive but there are plenty of kids who don’t and go on to attend colleges like McDaniel, Salisbury University, Hood College, Bowie State, etc.

Not everyone in MCPS is looking to or will end up in a top-tier university.

MCPS at-a-glance reports list number of graduates who took AP or IB tests. Take a look at it some time. You might be surprised.

Here’s Richard Montgomery, which has higher than average AP/IB uptake due to it being a magnet school:

https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/contentassets/791d9e3ecf514dffa7e5f8b8cffd2a27/5451_23_rmhs-profile.pdf

About 41% of its students took an AP exam. Again, that’s with RM likely being on the higher end of the spectrum because it’s a magnet school. So within any MCPS high school, the percentage of kids taking an AP class and exam is somewhere between 20-45%. Which means the majority of MCPS kids still don’t take AP classes, like I said originally.

and compare that to the rate of kids going to college...I think it is pretty similar

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait, they don't have finals and midterms!!????

WTF are they even teaching these days!!??

Have you not heard about their grading grid and no finals to increase A's and less failing across the board?

You can get these grades and still get an A for your final grade:
1Q 79.5
2Q 89.5
3Q 69.5
4Q 79.5

MCPS has been dumbed down for about a 8 years now, even at the ES level. My oldest was taking weekly spelling and vocabulary tests, spelling bees, geography bees, daily reading groups, and advanced math starting in 1st grade. Middle child occasionally got a spelling test (no vocabulary) and occasional reading group. Youngest never had one spelling test, no vocabulary, no bees, no advance math except 4/5 combo option starting in 4th, and no reading groups.

This is totally wrong. MCPS does not even have full year classes. Are you sure your kids go to MCPS schools?