A mother asked me which would be the most rigorous school for her son.

[Anonymous]

Was he in France? That's what I felt like when I moved from there to study here! The difference is that here you can choose a lot more subjects but they are often taught incompletely and superficially. In France and Germany, you get less subjects but each is taught in depth, which leads to a greater understanding and better long-term retention of the material.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And I did not know what to say. She recently located here from overseas and put her son at BCC in MoCo and he is in all AP classes and finds it a breeze compared to his more rigorous boarding school.
She is looking for a school for her younger sons that would offer that rigor, and to be honest, I was at a loss for an answer because I am not sure that exists in the DC area.
I know that people will talk about the whole child and teaching the child how to think rather than drill and kill and so on, but I did not get the impression that she wanted touchy feely. But it is sad when I had to say that it unlikely that she would find anything to compare to what she left.

Shame the kid didn't do IB at BCC....

[Anonymous]

She needs to talk to the counselor - he is not in the right classes - they will adjust his classes.

[Anonymous]

In European schools, "high school" often ends with the US equivalent of one year of college. So, your friend's son might be better off at a school that will offer advanced courses beyond what is available at most high schools. If she's complaining that the courses aren't rigorous enough, I'm surprised that he didn't test into higher levels of classes at the public school--unless he's already at the top classes and still feels bored. Schools like GDS and Sidwell offer math classes beyond BC Calc.

[Anonymous]

OP here, he was at a boarding school in South Africa, but they are not S. African.
She said that no one told her about the IB program and they arrived a week after school started this school year.
She is not interested in changing the oldest child's school, but she would like to find a better fit for the younger children. She mentioned that her kids never felt super smart before they came here, and she is afraid that they will become over confident and complacent. The schools overseas made even the brightest kids feel that there was much room for improvement.

[Anonymous]

GDS is academically challenging IF you have a kid who is intellectually inclined (or maybe just competitive by nature). It's not a "rigorous" school in the sense of setting the bar high and expecting everyone to clear it. It's a school that meets a kid where s/he is and gives them the help/encouragement/direction they need to take their work to the next level. For some kids, that means the bar just keeps moving up, up, up. And the more/better you do, the more you'll be challenged.

But it's not so challenging for a kid who tends to just do the needful and be done with it. If you're not looking for challenge, challenge isn't stalking you and demanding your acceptance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:GDS is academically challenging IF you have a kid who is intellectually inclined (or maybe just competitive by nature). It's not a "rigorous" school in the sense of setting the bar high and expecting everyone to clear it. It's a school that meets a kid where s/he is and gives them the help/encouragement/direction they need to take their work to the next level. For some kids, that means the bar just keeps moving up, up, up. And the more/better you do, the more you'll be challenged.

But it's not so challenging for a kid who tends to just do the needful and be done with it. If you're not looking for challenge, challenge isn't stalking you and demanding your acceptance.

Yes, but teachers in many other countries don't care if they have a little Einstein on their hands. They will still find weaknesses in a paper, or look for even more challenging ways of presenting math problems. The problem wit our system is that we give highest marks to kids who aren't perfect.

[Anonymous]

There are strengths and weaknesses in both approaches (as well as a fair degree of variation *within* each category -- i.e. teaching in the US vs. in many other countries). And, frankly, not a topic on which I'd pay much attention to DCUM posters. So I wasn't making claims on that level -- just trying to answer OP's question re local schools in a way that might prove helpful (depending on the kid(s) involved).

[Anonymous]

Should a boarding school compare to our local public non magnetic programs? Perhaps she should try private or a private boarding school if her kids can get in. Lawrenceville, Phillips Exeter, Roxbury Latin, there are plenty of good ones.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Should a boarding school compare to our local public non magnetic programs? Perhaps she should try private or a private boarding school if her kids can get in. Lawrenceville, Phillips Exeter, Roxbury Latin, there are plenty of good ones.

Roxbury Latin is not a boarding school. And BCC, while not "magnetic," is still probably as rigorous as many boarding schools if you take the right classes (though not the top-notch schools you mention).

[Anonymous]

Right you are on Roxbury, I always thought their campus looked like it would have boarders. I will then add Milto, Philips Andover, St. Pauls, Deerfield, Choate, and Groton to the list.

Apparently it is not as rigorous as the school they found in South Africa. BCC may be good but I do not think any public or private school compares to Phillips or any of these schools. I'm sure their will people who disagree but most of their scores on SAT and AP are well above other schools. Plus the course offerings are nuts. If the local privates are losing money on tuition, I think these schools must be losing a ton of money giving their facilities, course offerings and advanced degree teachers that they have. Of course their endowments are sizeable so they are probably not that concerned about losing a few coins here or there.

[Anonymous]

pp, I would not assume that a large number of courses offered means that the school is good. I bet that a good deep core curriculum can prepare any child very well.

[Anonymous]

A lot of schools can not afford to offer too many courses. I think Phillips Exeter is seen as a great school and their course offering is amazing.