Westland - Please share your experience

[Anonymous]

It is a big school but that is how the middle schools work around here, and it makes the transition to HS quite easy. The facility is fine so I don't think the kids feel it is overcrowded. The problem we have had is that the teachers vary widely, some (especially in math) are terrific but there are many who are unbelievably poor and the Administration has no interest in getting involved. The prior Administration was far more responsive so if you get one of the bad teachers, and your child will just based on numbers, it will be a trying experience. Current Principal is quite weak and a school like Westland needs a strong Principal. It is not terrible by any means but it could be much better, and there really is no excuse for the poor teachers (losing assignments, never posting on edline, having 8th grade children color maps because that is what they did 20 years ago, teaching from old mimeographed assignments, again because the teacher does not want to change what he or she has been doing). The early/late lunches are a problem but the kids are supposed to be able to eat snacks in their classrooms, though that is not always observed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Westland when I grew up was only 7th and 8th. It was always an ok school that you just had to suffer through.

When I went there it was 7th, 8th and 9th.

I have several friends who have kids there now and they seem happy with it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you for the feedback. Here's are some specific questions.

How separate is the 6th grade from the older grades?
How does that 10:02 lunch actually work? Does it affect their ability to focus in the afternoon?
Who are these "fantastic teachers" specifically?
Is it possible for a child to really get to know their teachers in such a huge place? And just importantly, for the teachers to know the child?

No, homeschooling isn't an option. I'm hoping that private school is an option for high school. But do kids actually place out of Westland to the top schools?

I understand your concerns -- the transition to middle school is tough and you do worry about things like mixing of grades with older kids, managing in a large group, etc. I would gently suggest that a lot of the things you are worrying about won't turn out to be problems. Remember that your child is getting older and more mature -- it's so hard to imagine them making the jump from ES to MS and handling such a big environment but they do!

When my daughter had the early lunch at Westland, teachers encouraged them to bring a snack like granola bars etc. to have during an afternoon period. This really mitigated the issue of concentration in the afternoon.

The sixth graders are pretty separate -- to my recollection, except for some math classes where they were mixed with 7th graders they were all together. And as someone else mentioned, the sixth grade class is relatively small because kids from at least one ES don't go to Westland until 7th grade.

Like any school (and my kids have attended a number of MCPS schools!), there are good teachers and not so great. I will say that my daughter had two "bad" teachers over three years and in both instances the administration jumped right in. In one case the teacher left and in the other, the admin did a lot of support and observation to help mitigate the problem. We had particularly good impressions of math teachers Ms. Walstein and Mr. Katz, history teacher Ms. Sultan, and more. These and many other teachers did develop relatipnships with my daughter and were excellent about communicating with me proactively if there was a concern. The chorus program is great. The administration is very warm and supportive and they all know my daughter by name.

I hope this allays some of your worries!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you for the feedback. Here's are some specific questions.

How separate is the 6th grade from the older grades?
How does that 10:02 lunch actually work? Does it affect their ability to focus in the afternoon?
Who are these "fantastic teachers" specifically?
Is it possible for a child to really get to know their teachers in such a huge place? And just importantly, for the teachers to know the child?

No, homeschooling isn't an option. I'm hoping that private school is an option for high school. But do kids actually place out of Westland to the top schools?

I understand your concerns -- the transition to middle school is tough and you do worry about things like mixing of grades with older kids, managing in a large group, etc. I would gently suggest that a lot of the things you are worrying about won't turn out to be problems. Remember that your child is getting older and more mature -- it's so hard to imagine them making the jump from ES to MS and handling such a big environment but they do!

When my daughter had the early lunch at Westland, teachers encouraged them to bring a snack like granola bars etc. to have during an afternoon period. This really mitigated the issue of concentration in the afternoon.

The sixth graders are pretty separate -- to my recollection, except for some math classes where they were mixed with 7th graders they were all together. And as someone else mentioned, the sixth grade class is relatively small because kids from at least one ES don't go to Westland until 7th grade.

Like any school (and my kids have attended a number of MCPS schools!), there are good teachers and not so great. I will say that my daughter had two "bad" teachers over three years and in both instances the administration jumped right in. In one case the teacher left and in the other, the admin did a lot of support and observation to help mitigate the problem. We had particularly good impressions of math teachers Ms. Walstein and Mr. Katz, history teacher Ms. Sultan, and more. These and many other teachers did develop relatipnships with my daughter and were excellent about communicating with me proactively if there was a concern. The chorus program is great. The administration is very warm and supportive and they all know my daughter by name.

I hope this allays some of your worries!

NP here with a bit more info:

6, 7, 8 all together - My 6th grader is pretty separate from the 7 and 8 graders. She overlaps a bit in Spanish class, but that is it. They definitely are together in the halls, and that can be overwhelming at first. It is big, crowded, and the 7th and 8th graders are more "worldly". During the first week of school, my 6th grader was astonished by the constant swearing, and I heard the same from other kids.

Lunch - Lunch for 6th graders is very early! But, the teachers let them eat snacks in class all afternoon, understanding that situation isn't ideal.

Teachers - So far we have been pretty happy with the quality of instruction. But... the challenge is that with the new curriculum, they don't have many text books. For reference materials they get web-sites, hand outs, etc. Not consolidated at all. That can be hard. Not the fault of the teachers. Also, some of the classes are overcrowded. For example, there are 30 kids in the Spanish class. That is just too many. But... English has 18. That is great. In terms of great teachers, we have been really impressed with Mr. Scribner (English). And yes... it is possible for teachers and students to get to know each other. The students need to be a bit proactive and reach out, and the teachers definitely seem to make an effort.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you for the feedback. Here's are some specific questions.

How separate is the 6th grade from the older grades?
How does that 10:02 lunch actually work? Does it affect their ability to focus in the afternoon?
Who are these "fantastic teachers" specifically?
Is it possible for a child to really get to know their teachers in such a huge place? And just importantly, for the teachers to know the child?

No, homeschooling isn't an option. I'm hoping that private school is an option for high school. But do kids actually place out of Westland to the top schools?

I understand your concerns -- the transition to middle school is tough and you do worry about things like mixing of grades with older kids, managing in a large group, etc. I would gently suggest that a lot of the things you are worrying about won't turn out to be problems. Remember that your child is getting older and more mature -- it's so hard to imagine them making the jump from ES to MS and handling such a big environment but they do!

When my daughter had the early lunch at Westland, teachers encouraged them to bring a snack like granola bars etc. to have during an afternoon period. This really mitigated the issue of concentration in the afternoon.

The sixth graders are pretty separate -- to my recollection, except for some math classes where they were mixed with 7th graders they were all together. And as someone else mentioned, the sixth grade class is relatively small because kids from at least one ES don't go to Westland until 7th grade.

Like any school (and my kids have attended a number of MCPS schools!), there are good teachers and not so great. I will say that my daughter had two "bad" teachers over three years and in both instances the administration jumped right in. In one case the teacher left and in the other, the admin did a lot of support and observation to help mitigate the problem. We had particularly good impressions of math teachers Ms. Walstein and Mr. Katz, history teacher Ms. Sultan, and more. These and many other teachers did develop relatipnships with my daughter and were excellent about communicating with me proactively if there was a concern. The chorus program is great. The administration is very warm and supportive and they all know my daughter by name.

I hope this allays some of your worries!

NP here with a bit more info:

6, 7, 8 all together - My 6th grader is pretty separate from the 7 and 8 graders. She overlaps a bit in Spanish class, but that is it. They definitely are together in the halls, and that can be overwhelming at first. It is big, crowded, and the 7th and 8th graders are more "worldly". During the first week of school, my 6th grader was astonished by the constant swearing, and I heard the same from other kids.

Lunch - Lunch for 6th graders is very early! But, the teachers let them eat snacks in class all afternoon, understanding that situation isn't ideal.

Teachers - So far we have been pretty happy with the quality of instruction. But... the challenge is that with the new curriculum, they don't have many text books. For reference materials they get web-sites, hand outs, etc. Not consolidated at all. That can be hard. Not the fault of the teachers. Also, some of the classes are overcrowded. For example, there are 30 kids in the Spanish class. That is just too many. But... English has 18. That is great. In terms of great teachers, we have been really impressed with Mr. Scribner (English). And yes... it is possible for teachers and students to get to know each other. The students need to be a bit proactive and reach out, and the teachers definitely seem to make an effort.

Yes! Mr. Scribner is great. My DD loved his class and had a nice connection with him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is a big school but that is how the middle schools work around here, and it makes the transition to HS quite easy. The facility is fine so I don't think the kids feel it is overcrowded. The problem we have had is that the teachers vary widely, some (especially in math) are terrific but there are many who are unbelievably poor and the Administration has no interest in getting involved. The prior Administration was far more responsive so if you get one of the bad teachers, and your child will just based on numbers, it will be a trying experience. Current Principal is quite weak and a school like Westland needs a strong Principal. It is not terrible by any means but it could be much better, and there really is no excuse for the poor teachers (losing assignments, never posting on edline, having 8th grade children color maps because that is what they did 20 years ago, teaching from old mimeographed assignments, again because the teacher does not want to change what he or she has been doing). The early/late lunches are a problem but the kids are supposed to be able to eat snacks in their classrooms, though that is not always observed.

The previous principal, referenced above, will be starting as head of school at Washington Episcopal School next year. They have an excellent middle school which draws many kids who would have attended Westland if they had gone to MCPS. You might want to check it out, and then consider BCC for HS ratger than going private for HS, as you mentioned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is a big school but that is how the middle schools work around here, and it makes the transition to HS quite easy. The facility is fine so I don't think the kids feel it is overcrowded. The problem we have had is that the teachers vary widely, some (especially in math) are terrific but there are many who are unbelievably poor and the Administration has no interest in getting involved. The prior Administration was far more responsive so if you get one of the bad teachers, and your child will just based on numbers, it will be a trying experience. Current Principal is quite weak and a school like Westland needs a strong Principal. It is not terrible by any means but it could be much better, and there really is no excuse for the poor teachers (losing assignments, never posting on edline, having 8th grade children color maps because that is what they did 20 years ago, teaching from old mimeographed assignments, again because the teacher does not want to change what he or she has been doing). The early/late lunches are a problem but the kids are supposed to be able to eat snacks in their classrooms, though that is not always observed.

The previous principal, referenced above, will be starting as head of school at Washington Episcopal School next year. They have an excellent middle school which draws many kids who would have attended Westland if they had gone to MCPS. You might want to check it out, and then consider BCC for HS ratger than going private for HS, as you mentioned.

But the PP says that the principal is "quite weak." We should follow him to WES?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you for the feedback. Here's are some specific questions.

How separate is the 6th grade from the older grades?
How does that 10:02 lunch actually work? Does it affect their ability to focus in the afternoon?
Who are these "fantastic teachers" specifically?
Is it possible for a child to really get to know their teachers in such a huge place? And just importantly, for the teachers to know the child?

No, homeschooling isn't an option. I'm hoping that private school is an option for high school. But do kids actually place out of Westland to the top schools?

I understand your concerns -- the transition to middle school is tough and you do worry about things like mixing of grades with older kids, managing in a large group, etc. I would gently suggest that a lot of the things you are worrying about won't turn out to be problems. Remember that your child is getting older and more mature -- it's so hard to imagine them making the jump from ES to MS and handling such a big environment but they do!

When my daughter had the early lunch at Westland, teachers encouraged them to bring a snack like granola bars etc. to have during an afternoon period. This really mitigated the issue of concentration in the afternoon.

The sixth graders are pretty separate -- to my recollection, except for some math classes where they were mixed with 7th graders they were all together. And as someone else mentioned, the sixth grade class is relatively small because kids from at least one ES don't go to Westland until 7th grade.

Like any school (and my kids have attended a number of MCPS schools!), there are good teachers and not so great. I will say that my daughter had two "bad" teachers over three years and in both instances the administration jumped right in. In one case the teacher left and in the other, the admin did a lot of support and observation to help mitigate the problem. We had particularly good impressions of math teachers Ms. Walstein and Mr. Katz, history teacher Ms. Sultan, and more. These and many other teachers did develop relatipnships with my daughter and were excellent about communicating with me proactively if there was a concern. The chorus program is great. The administration is very warm and supportive and they all know my daughter by name.

I hope this allays some of your worries!

OP here. Thanks so much for taking the time to respond and being so specific.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you for the feedback. Here's are some specific questions.

How separate is the 6th grade from the older grades?
How does that 10:02 lunch actually work? Does it affect their ability to focus in the afternoon?
Who are these "fantastic teachers" specifically?
Is it possible for a child to really get to know their teachers in such a huge place? And just importantly, for the teachers to know the child?

No, homeschooling isn't an option. I'm hoping that private school is an option for high school. But do kids actually place out of Westland to the top schools?

I understand your concerns -- the transition to middle school is tough and you do worry about things like mixing of grades with older kids, managing in a large group, etc. I would gently suggest that a lot of the things you are worrying about won't turn out to be problems. Remember that your child is getting older and more mature -- it's so hard to imagine them making the jump from ES to MS and handling such a big environment but they do!

When my daughter had the early lunch at Westland, teachers encouraged them to bring a snack like granola bars etc. to have during an afternoon period. This really mitigated the issue of concentration in the afternoon.

The sixth graders are pretty separate -- to my recollection, except for some math classes where they were mixed with 7th graders they were all together. And as someone else mentioned, the sixth grade class is relatively small because kids from at least one ES don't go to Westland until 7th grade.

Like any school (and my kids have attended a number of MCPS schools!), there are good teachers and not so great. I will say that my daughter had two "bad" teachers over three years and in both instances the administration jumped right in. In one case the teacher left and in the other, the admin did a lot of support and observation to help mitigate the problem. We had particularly good impressions of math teachers Ms. Walstein and Mr. Katz, history teacher Ms. Sultan, and more. These and many other teachers did develop relatipnships with my daughter and were excellent about communicating with me proactively if there was a concern. The chorus program is great. The administration is very warm and supportive and they all know my daughter by name.

I hope this allays some of your worries!

NP here with a bit more info:

6, 7, 8 all together - My 6th grader is pretty separate from the 7 and 8 graders. She overlaps a bit in Spanish class, but that is it. They definitely are together in the halls, and that can be overwhelming at first. It is big, crowded, and the 7th and 8th graders are more "worldly". During the first week of school, my 6th grader was astonished by the constant swearing, and I heard the same from other kids.

Lunch - Lunch for 6th graders is very early! But, the teachers let them eat snacks in class all afternoon, understanding that situation isn't ideal.

Teachers - So far we have been pretty happy with the quality of instruction. But... the challenge is that with the new curriculum, they don't have many text books. For reference materials they get web-sites, hand outs, etc. Not consolidated at all. That can be hard. Not the fault of the teachers. Also, some of the classes are overcrowded. For example, there are 30 kids in the Spanish class. That is just too many. But... English has 18. That is great. In terms of great teachers, we have been really impressed with Mr. Scribner (English). And yes... it is possible for teachers and students to get to know each other. The students need to be a bit proactive and reach out, and the teachers definitely seem to make an effort.

Thank you for all the good info, including name of strong teacher. Regarding language classes, are the French classes less crowded than Spanish?

[Anonymous]

The new Head of Washington Episcopal was a fabulous Principal while at Westland, a model for all. He left to be an Asst. Superintendent in North Carolina and is now returning to head Washington Episcopal. The current Principal at Westland is the weak one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The new Head of Washington Episcopal was a fabulous Principal while at Westland, a model for all. He left to be an Asst. Superintendent in North Carolina and is now returning to head Washington Episcopal. The current Principal at Westland is the weak one.

I don't agree at all that the current principal is weak! I don't know where you are getting that. She had some big shoes to fill but we like her a lot.

[Anonymous]

It probably depends on your interactions with hers, ours have been like the PP. She will rarely intervene with the poor teachers and she is hard to get a straight answer from. She seems pleasant until you need her to do something, and then she is just frustrating.

[Anonymous]

PP, I think a lot of principals are like that, sadly. They are bureaucrats in training.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It probably depends on your interactions with hers, ours have been like the PP. She will rarely intervene with the poor teachers and she is hard to get a straight answer from. She seems pleasant until you need her to do something, and then she is just frustrating.

PP here. We had exactly the opposite experience with the two teachers that were not good. She intervened, she switched people around, she made sure the classroom was observed frequently and supports were given, and the teacher was gone the next year. We found her very responsive -- although to be sure, there are union and employment rules so she can't just fire someone who's not a good teacher.

[Anonymous]

FWIW, the view from the student trenches is that Westland is uber boring and very clique-y. Lots of mindless worksheets and very shallow classwork. Good in the sense that it's not much work, but bad in the sense that being bored all day is no fun.