Is Burke a good school?

[Anonymous]

It’s an excellent school. It’s thoughtful and the kids come out of kind and ready for college.

Whether it’s the right school for your kid is something you have to discover.

Definitely visit.

And consider the process for applying to middle and high schools a lead up to college applications. It’s a great learning experience.

[Anonymous]

Burke has been a great school for our two very different from each other kids. One really likes volleyball in particular but is not a super skilled athlete. Because Burke doesn’t cut kids from the JV team, she has been able to play and has really gotten a lot out of being on that team.

The other is into theatre. Both kids have benefited from the small, nurturing environment and really excellent teachers.

[Anonymous]

My child was part of a group of kids who left Burke in 8th and didn’t stay for HS. The common theme was these kids were NT, not “artsy/quirky/weird” and generally did not find the school to be academically challenging. Socially, it was fine (had plenty of friends, etc) but it was a bit of an exodus to DCPS, MCPS, other privates.
It’s a wonderful school for kids for whom it’s the right fit.

[Anonymous]

I'm grateful that my kid had a great MS experience at Burke both academically and socially. In HS, DC has continued to manage rigorous coursework over the years and is intellectually curious about many subjects. I'm impressed with the teachers overall, who are accessible and dedicated. I appreciate Burke's balanced approach and I'm confident that DC will do well in college.

[Anonymous]

The teachers at Burke are awesome. Many have been there a very long time. DC is challenged and not coddled. I'm a very pleased parent.

[Anonymous]

My child has had a great high school experience at Burke! The school does a nice job of challenging students and encouraging independence while providing a nurturing and supportive environment. Kids are encouraged to be their authentic selves and are seen for who they are individually. My student has made positive connections with teachers, enjoyed the art, music and theater programming, and has a nice friend group. They offer AP classes, do lots of hands on learning and field trips, and their college counseling office provides very personalized assistance. Burke’s Head of School is also a really kind and impressive leader. It’s a solid place!

[Anonymous]

I think Burke is much stronger academically in HS than in MS. We've been very happy at Burke for HS. My kid feels well prepared for college and in comparing notes with friends in public, knows that it's much more challenging than what they would have received in public. And while there are "artsy weirdos" as a PP called them, our Burke kid is the polar opposite of an artsy weirdo, as are all the kids in their close friend group. Burke has a wide range of kids with different abilities and interests. It's nurturing as a PP said but they also do a great job of making kids independent by the time they graduate.

[Anonymous]

A comment and a question -- all the kids are *not* artsy weirdos. I know a senior there, and she is neither.

The question I have is for 11:43, who says there's a wide range of kids with different abilities. My kid is not a strong student, though she wants to do well. Slow processor, moderate dyslexia (reads about a year behind grade level, is in tutoring), has a lot of pretty major holes in knowledge (we try to remediate but she needs a lot of repetition for stuff to stick). My guess is that Burke is not a good fit because of these issues, but do you have any thoughts?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child was part of a group of kids who left Burke in 8th and didn’t stay for HS. The common theme was these kids were NT, not “artsy/quirky/weird” and generally did not find the school to be academically challenging. Socially, it was fine (had plenty of friends, etc) but it was a bit of an exodus to DCPS, MCPS, other privates.
It’s a wonderful school for kids for whom it’s the right fit.

Such a strange comment from the former Burke parent. I would suggest focusing on the students and family who do stay for the excellent teachers and community. Most of the students at Burke are NT, but Burke is welcoming overall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A comment and a question -- all the kids are *not* artsy weirdos. I know a senior there, and she is neither.

The question I have is for 11:43, who says there's a wide range of kids with different abilities. My kid is not a strong student, though she wants to do well. Slow processor, moderate dyslexia (reads about a year behind grade level, is in tutoring), has a lot of pretty major holes in knowledge (we try to remediate but she needs a lot of repetition for stuff to stick). My guess is that Burke is not a good fit because of these issues, but do you have any thoughts?

DP, but I agree with your guess. There's more range, but that can mean students who need extra support in one or two subjects while being quite strong elsewhere. It's a mainstream school that offers the same standard accommodations as other independent schools (extended time, certain seating). I'd recommend looking into Lab or McLean, really making sure your kid gets the support they need to excel now, and then look into switching later on if she and you are interested.

(You can always call admissions and ask this question exactly as you put it here!)

[Anonymous]

Burke is an interesting school. If I had to do private school applications all over again, I would ask completely different questions and pick a completely different school than where either of my kids ended up, but I didn't know then what I know now. Here are some things that might be of interest (or not):
1. Burke has a rotating schedule of color days. Meaning that the schedule is not the same, say, every Monday. This week, my kid starts late two days (Monday is always a late start) and finishes early one day. For some extra-curriculars (especially when my kid was younger), I liked to pick a day for an activity that took a while (like horseback riding) on a day when she wasn't likely to have a ton of homework that night. Can't do that with the rotating schedule. Drs appts also hard to plan.
2. There is NO mastery/make-up work in math. Overall mastery make-up in other subjects is at teacher's discretion and is only up to 70%. At my other kids' schools (Big 3 for one), one allowed mastery on any test to early points back up to a 79%. The other allowed issue-specific mastery (meaning if you bombed a part of a test you could retake that part). Field, Bullis, St. Andrews all allow mastery in math. If your kid is bad at math, this should be a consideration. For a school that seems to be progressive, it's weird that they are so strict on the academic piece.
3. There is no campus. This bothers some, but not others. My kid likes going out to lunch every day. I would have preferred a campus.
4. Clubs (except for newspaper) are built into the school day. Every kid is required to do one club but also is only allowed to do one club. That's annoying.
5. Communication is NOT GOOD. I appreciate that the school wants the kids to be independent, but if there is an issue that requires parental involvement (like community service, sports), then I would expect the school to give parents advance notice of policies/requirements. Sending them home through my child is not efficient.
6. There is NO parking, so plan ahead for in-person events.
7. The academics are fine. The homework is fine. There is no bump given for AP classes. Teachers are fine (better than at one of the other top schools mentioned here).
8. There is a wide range of students here. This was a challenge for my kid at first b/c she needs a best friend who is "better" than she is to motivate her and with whom to compete. Ok, so yeah, not a great quality for my kid, but sort of like playing tennis - you do better when your opponent is better. There are a bunch of group projects, and my kid felt like she was carrying the group and/or wasn't comfortable telling her classmates that their parts sucked, and it was a group grade. I guess it teaches self-advocacy.

[Anonymous]

1. The rotating schedule makes sense because it allows multiple subjects to have reasonably the same allocated amount of time. This makes a lot of sense to me.

2. I do not support the mastery retake. What it really means is that the students are coached to answer a couple of questions to boost their grade. This is more of a DPCS approach than private school. More significantly, it adds an enormous bureaucratic strain for the teachers.

3. The campus should be evident during application season, so it is not a surprise. Burke uses the city as a campus.

[Anonymous]

I’m glad to hear that the HS has stronger academics than the MS. Unfortunately any critique of Burke’s rigor brings out the defenders who don’t want to hear experiences of former families.

Not sure why my comment was considered “strange” and yes, prospective families should be interested in the experiences of the families who are currently there— and the ones who left because of academic rigor questions. No one is saying it’s not a lovely school overall.

[Anonymous]

Huh. I’ve found communication quite good at Burke (especially in comparison to another local school my other child attends). They send a weekly Sunday night email that summarizes the events and activities for the week, plus other regular communication and family newsletters. I appreciated the message about the state of affairs in DC at the beginning of the year and Know Your Rights info for students who will be encountering more law enforcement in the city. Separately, I’ve found teachers to be very responsive.

As for parking, I’ve never had trouble finding street parking in the nearby neighborhood when we’re on campus for conferences, evening events, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m glad to hear that the HS has stronger academics than the MS. Unfortunately any critique of Burke’s rigor brings out the defenders who don’t want to hear experiences of former families.

Not sure why my comment was considered “strange” and yes, prospective families should be interested in the experiences of the families who are currently there— and the ones who left because of academic rigor questions. No one is saying it’s not a lovely school overall.

It's strange or weird because your comment is disingenuous. The statement clearly overreached by claiming the lack of "rigor" when parents left for all sorts of reasons: geography, larger school, finances, etc. there are plenty of motivated and high-performing students who stay for HS. Sorry your kid won't experience it.