Yorktown versus Washington-lee?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are kids at W-L who are on the fringes of the gang scene but it's not an overwhelming presence. There is a drug problem at both schools among some upper middle class white kids with too much time and money on their hands, access to cash and Rx drugs - but that's probably true at almost every high school in NoVa.

There is no gang scene unless you mean minority kids wearing skinny jeans and brightly colored shirts, with the fake emo glasses. Too funny.

Then I guess the kids I know personally (teammates on one of DS's sports teams) who have gang members waiting for them outside W-L after school and following them around the neighborhood offering them drugs, money, girls and protection must have Fallout Boy confused with gangs.

As I said, they are on the fringes - but don't fool yourself.

[Anonymous]

Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/133-Washington-Lee-High-School/ reveals a score of 5 out of 10 due to high farms and lower test scores for wl.

Yorktown has a better 8 score but still lags fairfax county schools which typically have a 9 or 10.
Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/135-Yorktown-High-School/

[Anonymous]

Yorktown. Less drama, less overcrowding, better academics, better sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/133-Washington-Lee-High-School/ reveals a score of 5 out of 10 due to high farms and lower test scores for wl.

Yorktown has a better 8 score but still lags fairfax county schools which typically have a 9 or 10.
Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/135-Yorktown-High-School/

You can safely ignore greatschools.org. It isn't a good barometer of anything. No one takes it seriously.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/133-Washington-Lee-High-School/ reveals a score of 5 out of 10 due to high farms and lower test scores for wl.

Yorktown has a better 8 score but still lags fairfax county schools which typically have a 9 or 10.
Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/135-Yorktown-High-School/

You can safely ignore greatschools.org. It isn't a good barometer of anything. No one takes it seriously.

Of course they do. People at schools with average test scores dismiss GS because they don't like seeing it reduced to a numerical rating.

Poster who said Fairfax schools are typically 9s and 10s is wrong. Yorktown is always higher than most schools there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/133-Washington-Lee-High-School/ reveals a score of 5 out of 10 due to high farms and lower test scores for wl.

Yorktown has a better 8 score but still lags fairfax county schools which typically have a 9 or 10.
Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/135-Yorktown-High-School/

If you do the research behind the test scores through looking at the score breakdown on the Greatschools site you will find that the scores for all three Arlington high schools are quite similar. For Yorktown and W-L, scores among White, Black and Hispanic students are nearly identical. Asians perform more poorly at W-L, which is the largest score discrepancy. The scores for Wakefield are also very similar. People on this site tend to put Wakefield down, but the scores are similar to W-L and Yorktown.

The Greatschools numbering system is a bit flawed for these reasons. There just isn't a huge discrepancy among the local high schools' scores. Schools with fairly similar results could have a 5 point rating difference on Greatschools. For years, Yorktown was a 6, W-L was a 5, and Wakefield a 4. No one really talked about it. Now that Yorktown received an 8 this year, the boosters are understandably excited. I bet the W-L boosters will do the same in a few years when the Greatschools ranking goes up as the percentage of low income students in N Arlington continues to decline. I wouldn't be surprised if Wakefield moved up a spot or two either.

I wouldn't worry about Greatschools. Arlington's historically low GS rankings haven't seemed to affect the real estate market in Arlington, where neighborhoods are full of families, and the schools haven't been this crowded since the 1960s.

[Anonymous]

This is a very good summary - and I'm a Yorktown parent.

Anonymous wrote:It's ok to ask. But these schools are talked about almost every week it seems in almost every other thread, and in threads not specifically about Arlington schools. Here's my largely unbiased comparison of the two schools.

You should know that the high school boundaries will change in about two years. You can find specific information about when decisions will be made on the APS website. So unless you live within a half mile of the school, expect the possibility of the high school changing soon.

Both high schools have wealthy kids and poor kids. Some parents like the greater ethnic and socio-economic diversity at W-L, and cite that as a reason for looking for homes in the W-L neighborhoods. The test scores are higher at Yorktown, and that appeals families who prioritize test scores. Usually though, neighborhood amenities or a particular house tend to trump the differences between the two schools among homebuyers.

Academically, both schools are very similar, and there are lots of high achieving students at both schools. Last year W-L had 8 Natl Merit Semifinalists and Yorktown had 7. Both schools had a couple of Finalists the year before. A high number of students at both schools are ivy league bound every year. Both have won the US Department of Education Blue Ribbon award, but that was well over a decade ago.

The IB program at W-L is very competitive and work intensive. W-L also has an AP program for students not interested in IB classes. My hunch is that the AP program is a little weaker, if only because the IB program at W-L is a magnet program with a competitive application process. But W-L's Natl Merit Finalist the year before last was an AP scholar, so there are smart kids in both programs. Unique to W-L are some engineering and STEM electives. W-L is the only county school that has a specialized design technology laboratory. W-L recently received national recognized for its best buddies program, which pairs students volunteers with students with learning and developmental disabilities.

Yorktown is an AP school, and the AP scores at Yorktown are highest of the three Arlington high schools. On occasion, people on here have described Yorktown as a pressure cooker. Some classes at Yorktown have a public policy focus, versus the engineering and STEM specific classes that W-L has. Yorktown is also a nationally recognized "school of character" and puts an emphasis on developing an inclusive environment for all students. Yorktown has also made headlines for reducing the nightly homework load of students and eliminating all summer assignments.

Yorktown is a Northern Virginia football powerhouse. W-L is better known for it's crew (rowing) tradition; the team rows out of the prestigious Potomac Boat Club. W-L is also a gymnastics powerhouse. The team won another region crown this year.

To sum it all up, you can't go wrong with either school, but you may prefer the programs of one school over the other.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I think this is a very thoughtful post and I agree with it. I don't think the poster is biased toward W-L but rather pointing out some things that people who only know the schools by test scores/street rep may not already know. I went to Yorktown and now live in a neighborhood currently zoned for W-L. I would be happy with either one and frankly with Wakefield as well.

Usually when someone prefaces a comment with the word "frankly" it means they are about to dissemble. This seems like a good example. I will be convinced that Arlington residents would be happy with Wakefield when APS proposes to move Yorktown or W-L students there, and their parents say "great - when can we move." Until then, it's cheap talk. I'd try to move as close to Yorktown as possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/133-Washington-Lee-High-School/ reveals a score of 5 out of 10 due to high farms and lower test scores for wl.

Yorktown has a better 8 score but still lags fairfax county schools which typically have a 9 or 10.
Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/135-Yorktown-High-School/

You can safely ignore greatschools.org. It isn't a good barometer of anything. No one takes it seriously.

Of course they do. People at schools with average test scores dismiss GS because they don't like seeing it reduced to a numerical rating.

Poster who said Fairfax schools are typically 9s and 10s is wrong. Yorktown is always higher than most schools there.

Not the PP but well-regarded FCPS high schools like Oakton High School, Woodson, Madison, and Langley all have a greatschools.org rating of 9. There are others in FCPS that aren't as highly rated but it seems that the best of FCPS outranks the best of Arlington, at least according to the test scores used by greatschools.org. Arlington itself still popular due to shorter commute into DC.

[Anonymous]

My neighborhood is starting a petition to be able to attend Yorktown.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/133-Washington-Lee-High-School/ reveals a score of 5 out of 10 due to high farms and lower test scores for wl.

Yorktown has a better 8 score but still lags fairfax county schools which typically have a 9 or 10.
Http://www.greatschools.org/virginia/arlington/135-Yorktown-High-School/

You can safely ignore greatschools.org. It isn't a good barometer of anything. No one takes it seriously.

Of course they do. People at schools with average test scores dismiss GS because they don't like seeing it reduced to a numerical rating.

Poster who said Fairfax schools are typically 9s and 10s is wrong. Yorktown is always higher than most schools there.

Not the PP but well-regarded FCPS high schools like Oakton High School, Woodson, Madison, and Langley all have a greatschools.org rating of 9. There are others in FCPS that aren't as highly rated but it seems that the best of FCPS outranks the best of Arlington, at least according to the test scores used by greatschools.org. Arlington itself still popular due to shorter commute into DC.

You're right, but it should be noted the Arlington schools are a selling point nonetheless. The proof is on this forum and the various APS community meetings this year where the pubic schools were given as the reason for moving to Arlington, among all the other factors like a shorter commute. The difference is that families in Arlington are willing to compromise on test scores and the high FARMs population. A few months ago, on this forum, Chevy Chase parents became nasty over how a local elementary school might be 5% FARMs. In Arlington, the popular ASFS has been about 20% FARMs for years. Yet it seems everyone is clamoring to get in.

[Anonymous]

20% FARMS really isn't that high.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:20% FARMS really isn't that high.

Exactly. Yet for some parents, 5% is too high.

[Anonymous]

The only people who complain about greatschools are the ones that refuse to believe the negative realites of their school. Perhaps the ranking should be a wake up call, the rankings breakdown the deficiencies by grade and then by subject. If it were only an esl issue why would math and science be low as well ? Would you propose emitting the lower performer esl students from the rankings, if so the scores would not change much because the higher rated ones would rate even higher and the scores are comparative not rated by threshold.

[Anonymous]

W-L is an excellent High School. It has more varied demographics--compare kids of same socioeconomic backgrounds at W-L and Yorktown and they are indistinguishable.

Disclaimer- we chose W-L because we wanted our kids to go to a public school like we did---not all rich kids. Going to school with and making friends with truly polar backgrounds was a very positive experience for us. This is another we moved from DC and didn't go the private route over there.