Montgomery County's most academically challenging private schools
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Anonymous
You can toss in the Richard Montgomery IB program and the Blair Communication Arts program while you're at it. With the Blair Science and Math program, these are the three test-in public programs. |
Anonymous
Do RM and CAP really have a stronger math science element than other schools? |
Anonymous
You are wrong! |
Anonymous
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I went to Holton and my daughter goes there. It is definitely NOT one of the top in math or science. DD will actually have to take advanced classes at Landon as she will soon have completed everything.
The best is actually Georgetown Day School. This is where two of the top math minds in the world went to school--kids that got gold medals in the International Math Olympics (sorry don't know the proper name but it's basically the top math competition in the world for high schoolers). The school has an amazing math teacher who coaches their math team--they do math way way beyond what is being taught in AP Calculus. With all due respect to Feyman... I think it's probably a decent school but I don't think it's really a school for gifted. It's mean to be a school where parents who like to think their kids are gifted send them. |
Anonymous
Bingo! |
Anonymous
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Wow, a lot of animosity toward Feynman here ... any of the naysayers send their DCs there? The school always gets great reviews from parents (see GreatSchools, Patch) and it is a STEM-focused school with the support and guidance of top university scholars in gifted education. These are kids whose only other option for enrichment might be Johns Hopkins CTY which is pretty limited in scope. Bethesda Magazine just posted a blog featuring Feynman: http://www.bethesdamagazine.com/Blogs/Education-Matters/September-October-2012/Cant-Find-a-School-for-Your-Gifted-Child-Start-Your-Own/
Feynman is one of the few private schools growing in a rough economy. For some reason, a couple of posters on these boards seem threatened by it, not sure why. |
Anonymous
| Feynman's math advisor has coached U.S. Math Olympiad teams. Nice guy, taught at Bronx Sci. for two decades, now with the Templeton Foundation. |
Anonymous
Way to bash your school and a fellow alum. Also, the head of lower school admissions at GDS has already referred to Feynman as a "mini-GDS in Maryland," so apparently he thinks the schools attract similar students and share a similar philosophy. |
Anonymous
No, they're not really about math/science, but I was responding to the thread title which asks about "academic challenge" in general. FWIW, kids in both programs can take AP Calc AB/BC and other AP science and stats classes, but I assume that's true at Holton too. Blair non-magnet kids, in CAP and regular Blair, can take many magnet math and science classes if they meet the prereqs. |
Anonymous
No, they're not really about math/science, but I was responding to the thread title which asks about "academic challenge" in general. FWIW, kids in both programs can take AP Calc AB/BC and other AP science and stats classes, but I assume that's true at Holton too. Blair non-magnet kids, in CAP and regular Blair, can take many magnet math and science classes if they meet the prereqs. |
Anonymous
No, they're not really about math/science, but I was responding to the thread title which asks about "academic challenge" in general. FWIW, kids in both programs can take AP Calc AB/BC and other AP science and stats classes, but I assume that's true at Holton too. Blair non-magnet kids, in CAP and regular Blair, can take many magnet math and science classes if they meet the prereqs. |
Anonymous
| Yikes! Sorry, everyone for the multiple postings. I thought my iPhone looked hung up, but apparently it wasn't. |
Anonymous
I can't speak for the bashers because I wasn't one if them. But I think a big part of the negative reaction here is against the Feynman boosterism. There were a few Feynman threads last year that were totally over the top, booster-wise. So you get the same eyerolls and pushback Holton Mom gets. Maybe tone it down until everyone forgets? |
Anonymous
| 13:02 your reply makes little sense. Feynman parents are actually pretty laid-back, I would bet moreso than those at most other schools that regularly get lambasted on this forum. But they are very enthusiastic about their DCs' school. One family with two sibs at Feynman actually bought a new home this year in order to be closer to the school. Many of the parents volunteer because they believe they are helping to create something extraordinary for children who would be (and in most cases were) bored at their old school. So when someone posts an uninformed smear such as "...I don't think it's really a school for gifted. It's meant to be a school where parents who like to think their kids are gifted send them," parents are likely to engage in what you derisively call "boosterism". Actually, the MSDE refers young gifted students to Feynman, as do several DC-area educational psychologists, WPPSI administrators and pediatricians. The school follows NAGC best practices for admissions, curriculum and programming. If getting the facts right bothers you, please feel free to ignore the posts. tia |
Anonymous
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New poster. 14:40, I don't think you really want to challenge people to go back a few months and cite for you examples of over-the-top Feynman boosterism. That exercise will lead to nothing good for Feynman, because several of us clearly remember those posts.
Why don't we just acknowledge that some Feynman supporters have been particularly zealous in their efforts to promote the school's positives (just like there are highly zealous supporters of some other schools). No need to be defensive, and no need to re-hash the issue further. Let's just move on. |