Math cluster letter

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone’s child been assigned to the “Course Advancement” cluster (group 6 that has no score criteria listed?) if so, please share their stats.

No one gets automatically assigned to this. The school would have to nominate the kid, and central office would bring the kid in for an evaluation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone’s child been assigned to the “Course Advancement” cluster (group 6 that has no score criteria listed?) if so, please share their stats.

No one gets automatically assigned to this. The school would have to nominate the kid, and central office would bring the kid in for an evaluation.

Has anyone’s kid been nominated by their school for such an evaluation? If yes, did this happen automatically or did you have to push the school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Came on here expecting there to be a thread already. DS came home with a letter describing MCPS criteria and the cluster that he belongs to. What’s funny is that the description of his assessment (grade level instruction with consistent acceleration) doesn’t cleanly match any of the clusters which are either “grade level instruction with some acceleration” or “acceleration”. The clusters indicate criteria and when the kids would likely take algebra 1.

Was the letter from the school or from Central Office?

[Anonymous]

What it looks like to me is that the actual math acceleration is now starting in 6th grade rather than with elementary school compacted math.

[Anonymous]

These all for riing 4th graders only right?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These all for riing 4th graders only right?

Families of rising 4th graders got a letter, but the information is relevant for everybody since it is discussing the new pathways and evaluation criteria.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone’s child been assigned to the “Course Advancement” cluster (group 6 that has no score criteria listed?) if so, please share their stats.

No one gets automatically assigned to this. The school would have to nominate the kid, and central office would bring the kid in for an evaluation.

And we know how univerally supportive of advancement MCPS principals are. No difference at all in the way a student at one school is treated vs. the way a student at another school is treated. Not to mention whole cohorts of students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What it looks like to me is that the actual math acceleration is now starting in 6th grade rather than with elementary school compacted math.

In effect yes. But they are saying it's starting as early as third grade, as of 2027-2028.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What it looks like to me is that the actual math acceleration is now starting in 6th grade rather than with elementary school compacted math.

They're recharacterizing acceleration more as dipping into the next year's content during the current year's instruction than as covering the next year's content early. They can do this because many elementary modules in one grade have a parallel/more complex module covering a similar concept (or natural extensions thereof) in the next grade. This "content spiral" has been in place for quite a while.

It won't introduce the wholly new concepts from the grade ahead, though, and kids being given acceleration in 3rd, for example, covering parallel material from 4th grade, will then cover that material again when they hit 4th, presumably with the same kind of acceleration into 5th grade material. MCPS is relying on this to:

1) hold the intetest/address the need to stretch of kids at the higher end of the math capability spectrum

2) provide a more nuanced structure for the entirety of the spectrum, with an easier (if still imperfect) means of shifting among groupings during the year, when compared to the current separation of on-level vs. compacted

3) ensure more consistent mastery of the subject with time committed to full coverage of on-grade-level content during the instructional block.

MCPS risks a lot with this approach, however. It is uncertain whether it will really provide challenge enough to hold that interest in 1, whether their groupings will result in any greater mobility of 2, whether the population with higher capabilty will see marked benefit from 3, or whether MCPS's oft-noted implementation inconsistencies from school to school will undermine all of that. It will take quite a while to see.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What it looks like to me is that the actual math acceleration is now starting in 6th grade rather than with elementary school compacted math.

In effect yes. But they are saying it's starting as early as third grade, as of 2027-2028.

Not really. As of 2027-2028, math placement in 6th grade is what matters. Right now, what matters is placement in 4th.

[Anonymous]

It sounds like w / acceleration and accelerated classes are basically the equivalent on grade level with enrichment. So the first actual cohorting going forward is precalculus in 6th.

[Anonymous]

Have a riding 4th grader and have not seen criteria for groupings or a letter.

[Anonymous]

The first actual cohorting going forward is precalculus in 6th. If the student doesn't make the cut for that, then the next opportunity is Integrated Algebra 1 in 8th.

Right now, 4th grade is the big acceleration placement year. Going forward, 4th grade placement doesn't matter and 6th and 8th grade placements matter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The first actual cohorting going forward is precalculus in 6th. If the student doesn't make the cut for that, then the next opportunity is Integrated Algebra 1 in 8th.

Right now, 4th grade is the big acceleration placement year. Going forward, 4th grade placement doesn't matter and 6th and 8th grade placements matter.

If you mean a separate standalone class then yes - 6th is the first, but it's not just prealgebra. They also have AMP 6+.

But they are saying they are doing cohorting from 3rd-5th and that acceleration will be available, just not in a standalone class. I very much doubt this will happen, which means that very few kids will get into pre-algebra in 6th (only the ones who were accelerated privately).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The first actual cohorting going forward is precalculus in 6th. If the student doesn't make the cut for that, then the next opportunity is Integrated Algebra 1 in 8th.

Right now, 4th grade is the big acceleration placement year. Going forward, 4th grade placement doesn't matter and 6th and 8th grade placements matter.

If you mean a separate standalone class then yes - 6th is the first, but it's not just prealgebra. They also have AMP 6+.

But they are saying they are doing cohorting from 3rd-5th and that acceleration will be available, just not in a standalone class. I very much doubt this will happen, which means that very few kids will get into pre-algebra in 6th (only the ones who were accelerated privately).

It looks like there is no separate AMP 6+.

There is a Math 6 class where kids with accelerated tag will get some sort of enrichment. Then there is prealgebra.

So most kids will be in a Math 6 class, and some kids in that class will get some additional material.