South Arlington Wakefield High US News Ranking is so poor they didn't assign them a number

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I thought Arlington deliberately doesn't participate in the US News survey.

That is the excuse the APS boosters use when they fail.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought Arlington deliberately doesn't participate in the US News survey.

That is the excuse the APS boosters use when they fail.

Meh. APS still better than Fairfax, according to that link. I mean, 2/3 of APS schools rank in the top 25 statewide. In Fairfax, it's like 40% (11 of 28 schools)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought Arlington deliberately doesn't participate in the US News survey.

That is the excuse the APS boosters use when they fail.

Meh. APS still better than Fairfax, according to that link. I mean, 2/3 of APS schools rank in the top 25 statewide. In Fairfax, it's like 40% (11 of 28 schools)

Love it. Something for everyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought Arlington deliberately doesn't participate in the US News survey.

That is the excuse the APS boosters use when they fail.

Meh. APS still better than Fairfax, according to that link. I mean, 2/3 of APS schools rank in the top 25 statewide. In Fairfax, it's like 40% (11 of 28 schools)

Don't worry some people consider low performing to mediocre better because it is easier.

[Anonymous]

As someone who went to a high school consistently ranked in the top 5 nationally, I will be sending my children to Wakefield without hesitation. You can make statistics say anything you want; get to know the teachers and administrators, talk to parents and students who actually attend the school, and you would come to the same conclusion (if you ever muster up the courage to rough it and travel south of Route 50).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As someone who went to a high school consistently ranked in the top 5 nationally, I will be sending my children to Wakefield without hesitation. You can make statistics say anything you want; get to know the teachers and administrators, talk to parents and students who actually attend the school, and you would come to the same conclusion (if you ever muster up the courage to rough it and travel south of Route 50).

Hmmm, please tell me which stats make wakefield look good?

[Anonymous]

You know that your kid's greatness is not a function of my kid going to "the other school."

Let it go.

[Anonymous]

My point was that ESL kids are likely to have lower test scores. FARMS kids are likely to have lower test scores. Certain minority populations are likely to have lower test scores. When these groups make up a higher percentage of the total student body, average SOL scores will be lower. Also, think about the differences in kids whose parents have a $300K HHI vs kids whose parents have a $75K HHI. Like it or not, sometimes high earners are high earners because they also had high test scores and went to good schools and ended up buying pricier houses.

Also, making a major decision based on a couple of percentage points of difference (between peers) is stupid. If one school had a 93% Caucasian graduation rate and the other had 91%, that would be a negligible difference. Plus a lot depends on parent involvement. Believe it or not, YOU as a parent have some control over how your kid performs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As someone who went to a high school consistently ranked in the top 5 nationally, I will be sending my children to Wakefield without hesitation. You can make statistics say anything you want; get to know the teachers and administrators, talk to parents and students who actually attend the school, and you would come to the same conclusion (if you ever muster up the courage to rough it and travel south of Route 50).

My private high school was ranked #11 last year. My children will also be attending Wakefield in about 5 years. We are currently very happy at our S. Arl elementary school.

I would never send them to Yorktown.

I'm a teacher.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My point was that ESL kids are likely to have lower test scores. FARMS kids are likely to have lower test scores. Certain minority populations are likely to have lower test scores. When these groups make up a higher percentage of the total student body, average SOL scores will be lower. Also, think about the differences in kids whose parents have a $300K HHI vs kids whose parents have a $75K HHI. Like it or not, sometimes high earners are high earners because they also had high test scores and went to good schools and ended up buying pricier houses.

Also, making a major decision based on a couple of percentage points of difference (between peers) is stupid. If one school had a 93% Caucasian graduation rate and the other had 91%, that would be a negligible difference. Plus a lot depends on parent involvement. Believe it or not, YOU as a parent have some control over how your kid performs.

Well said!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As someone who went to a high school consistently ranked in the top 5 nationally, I will be sending my children to Wakefield without hesitation. You can make statistics say anything you want; get to know the teachers and administrators, talk to parents and students who actually attend the school, and you would come to the same conclusion (if you ever muster up the courage to rough it and travel south of Route 50).

My private high school was ranked #11 last year. My children will also be attending Wakefield in about 5 years. We are currently very happy at our S. Arl elementary school.

I would never send them to Yorktown.

I'm a teacher.

I respect the sentiment of the post above, except for the second line. Adding the slam against Yorktown serves no useful purpose and is mean-spirited. It completely detracts from the credibility of the message.

[Anonymous]

Was H.B. Woodlawn included? Are they not considered an Arlington high school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As someone who went to a high school consistently ranked in the top 5 nationally, I will be sending my children to Wakefield without hesitation. You can make statistics say anything you want; get to know the teachers and administrators, talk to parents and students who actually attend the school, and you would come to the same conclusion (if you ever muster up the courage to rough it and travel south of Route 50).

My private high school was ranked #11 last year. My children will also be attending Wakefield in about 5 years. We are currently very happy at our S. Arl elementary school.

I would never send them to Yorktown.

I'm a teacher.

Great. A teacher with the maturity of a 12-year-old. She doesn't ask why Wakefield isn't ranked, but insults another school that is highly ranked.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As someone who went to a high school consistently ranked in the top 5 nationally, I will be sending my children to Wakefield without hesitation. You can make statistics say anything you want; get to know the teachers and administrators, talk to parents and students who actually attend the school, and you would come to the same conclusion (if you ever muster up the courage to rough it and travel south of Route 50).

My private high school was ranked #11 last year. My children will also be attending Wakefield in about 5 years. We are currently very happy at our S. Arl elementary school.

I would never send them to Yorktown.

I'm a teacher.

What kind of teacher defiantly declares where she will not send a child? Not a very good one.

But I'll bite: Why on Earth would you NEVER send them to Yorktown? I can't wait to hear this explanation. I mean, I know the teachers and administrators there and know parents and students there, and it seems like a fantastic school. In all of your one-on-one interaction with these same people, what, specifically, has put you off? Two or three concrete anecdotes would be nice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Was H.B. Woodlawn included? Are they not considered an Arlington high school?

No, Woodlawn is a "program" that draws from all three high schools. The kids at Woodlawn get degrees from their respectively zoned schools. If they play sports (and about half do), they also play for their home HS team.