What makes a school good or bad?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

"The bigger issue is that Alexandria City Public Schools are just terrible. There's an institutional culture of failure and a penchant for action imperative policymaking rather than a holistic, long-term view for success."

"We had to call the teacher and tell the teacher dd could have any book she wanted."

"The principal giving the tour stops, gets down on her level and puts her hand on dd's shoulder. 'DD,' she said, 'we are a community of readers here. You can have any book you want'."

Any one of these comments would have made me chuckle. Three of them in a single post just made me want to hurl.

I'm so glad you moved out of Alexandria. You sound very, very impressed with yourself.

Someone's projecting their insecurity!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Honey, I'm sorry you need concepts dumbed down, but you're embarrassing yourself.

So using consultant-babble terms makes you feel bright? Anyway, for you to criticize TC as having an "apartheid-like structure" after you've moved to North Arlington, which lacks racial OR economic diversity, shows what a hypocrite you are.

LP - we are at Maury, and very happy so far.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm so glad I moved out of Alexandria too. Enjoy your substandard school system.

My dear, it can only improve with one less parent who engages in assaults on the English language such as "penchant for action imperative policymaking."

Honey, I'm sorry you need concepts dumbed down, but you're embarrassing yourself.

Which two ACPS schools do you two represent? The horrible librarian is from which school? And the person who hates the person who hates the horrible librarian has a DC in which school? My child is zoned for MacArthur in a few years, and I'm already worried about this. Even though it's supposed to be one of the better schools (right?) in ACPS. There's a limited number of ACPS moms on this board, so when they post I read with great interest. Thank you.

I'm the one who relayed the library anecdote. DD was at MacArthur.

MacArthur's nurse is also a piece of work. Once told a type 1 diabetic child he was faking his illness, otherwise discussed children's medical issues publicly.

We had a decent academic experience at MacArthur. It's a great school, but it's not the end-all-be-all. Another example: In 2nd grade, dd was writing books on paper that were stapled together. In Arlington, she's writing the books on an iPad and publishing e-books.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Honey, I'm sorry you need concepts dumbed down, but you're embarrassing yourself.

So using consultant-babble terms makes you feel bright? Anyway, for you to criticize TC as having an "apartheid-like structure" after you've moved to North Arlington, which lacks racial OR economic diversity, shows what a hypocrite you are.

LP - we are at Maury, and very happy so far.

What hypocrisy?

TC is an apartheid system. I realize some white families are willing to exploit that to their advantage, and maybe you are one of them, but the lessons it embeds were offensive to me. I prefer to have my children in an environment where achievement is universally valued and college is assumed to be the goal for all. Your impugnation of my motives is really nasty and ugly and uncalled for. Seriously, you're calling me racist? But then again, you have contributed nothing but nastiness in this discussion anyway. Until you have something of value to contribute, why don't you think twice before posting and then not do so?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
What hypocrisy?

TC is an apartheid system. I realize some white families are willing to exploit that to their advantage, and maybe you are one of them, but the lessons it embeds were offensive to me. I prefer to have my children in an environment where achievement is universally valued and college is assumed to be the goal for all. Your impugnation of my motives is really nasty and ugly and uncalled for. Seriously, you're calling me racist? But then again, you have contributed nothing but nastiness in this discussion anyway. Until you have something of value to contribute, why don't you think twice before posting and then not do so?

Fine. It's a win-win to me to have a parent like you out of the Alexandria system.

You clearly never had a child at GW or TC, but you call it an "apartheid system." That is just BS. If there is "apartheid" and "ethnic cleansing" taking place in this region, it is in North Arlington, which becomes more segregated every year, not Alexandria.

Your motives couldn't be clearer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
What hypocrisy?

TC is an apartheid system. I realize some white families are willing to exploit that to their advantage, and maybe you are one of them, but the lessons it embeds were offensive to me. I prefer to have my children in an environment where achievement is universally valued and college is assumed to be the goal for all. Your impugnation of my motives is really nasty and ugly and uncalled for. Seriously, you're calling me racist? But then again, you have contributed nothing but nastiness in this discussion anyway. Until you have something of value to contribute, why don't you think twice before posting and then not do so?

Fine. It's a win-win to me to have a parent like you out of the Alexandria system.

You clearly never had a child at GW or TC, but you call it an "apartheid system." That is just BS. If there is "apartheid" and "ethnic cleansing" taking place in this region, it is in North Arlington, which becomes more segregated every year, not Alexandria.

Your motives couldn't be clearer.

Your self-congratulations is hilarious.

As I said, enjoy your substandard school system. It's such a shame because Alexandria is such a nice city otherwise. But Morton Sherman and that dysfunctional school board just made it impossible. For me, the efforts to get a longer school day and year was crazy.

I know plenty about GW and TC. I've been in the schools. My favorite thing about TC is the daycare center (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/12/AR2008121203507.html). Personally, I'd like my kids to go to school without such distractions. But more power to you.