If quality of education is your only priority, are there any reasons to live in DC...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

This isn't to say you can't get an adequate education, especially for the very little ones, but if it is your #1 priority ... yeah, you probably aren't staying in DC.

I would say this is definitely true if you are the type of pedantic rule following type a personality that DC seems to attract. You'd think a town full of these types could accomplish so much, wouldn't you?

Yes, all my friends working their asses off in public policy, global health, disability rights, gender rights ... so pedantic and rule following! And yet many of them moved out of DC for schools!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I wasn't raised in a suburb, I don't like suburbs, I don't want to raise children in a suburb. My children are all smart, and will succeed no matter what--in fact, I would prefer them not to be in an environment chock full of kumon, travel sports, and AP classes for the sake of "rigor." Life is rigor. Living it should be interesting. Being ferried by school bus or suv from one subdivision to another, with the occasional meal at le pain quotidien or the cheesecake factory, sounds like hell.


That's fine. You don't prioritize education in the same way OP does.

Yes, because nothing says prioritizing education like a rich suburban public school, where sports are a mere aside to the true focus of the life of the mind.

[Anonymous]

Yes, all my friends working their asses off in public policy, global health, disability rights, gender rights ... so pedantic and rule following! And yet many of them moved out of DC for schools!

Extremely pedantic and rule following. Also, humorless and without nuance. Trust me, I shop at the TP coop too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I wasn't raised in a suburb, I don't like suburbs, I don't want to raise children in a suburb. My children are all smart, and will succeed no matter what--in fact, I would prefer them not to be in an environment chock full of kumon, travel sports, and AP classes for the sake of "rigor." Life is rigor. Living it should be interesting. Being ferried by school bus or suv from one subdivision to another, with the occasional meal at le pain quotidien or the cheesecake factory, sounds like hell.


That's fine. You don't prioritize education in the same way OP does.

Yes, because nothing says prioritizing education like a rich suburban public school, where sports are a mere aside to the true focus of the life of the mind.

... ok, where are all those schools in DC focused on "the true life of the mind"?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Yes, all my friends working their asses off in public policy, global health, disability rights, gender rights ... so pedantic and rule following! And yet many of them moved out of DC for schools!

Extremely pedantic and rule following. Also, humorless and without nuance. Trust me, I shop at the TP coop too.

whatever dude. if you were as cool as you seem to think you are, you would be unschooling your kids in a yurt somewhere. OP is clearly interested in a more traditional kind of education.

[Anonymous]

The material writes itself, doesn't it?

Yes, all my friends working their asses off in public policy, global health, disability rights, gender rights ... so pedantic and rule following!

All very liberal and working for social justice. Except in schools. Near them. Also, prone to tell everyone else that they are doing it "wrong" and don't value education. Because, nothing works better for public policy, global health, disability rights, and gender rights, than ghettoizing yourself with the only people you find appropriate.

[Anonymous]

whatever dude. if you were as cool as you seem to think you are, you would be unschooling your kids in a yurt somewhere. OP is clearly interested in a more traditional kind of education.

No, sadness. I work within my community, because it's mine. My kids don't "suffer" for that. And wow, the thing is, you're even lecturing me about how righteous and liberal your "friends" are. I would seriously find it easier to swallow if you just told me you moved to arlington to avoid the blacks.

[Anonymous]

... ok, where are all those schools in DC focused on "the true life of the mind"?

I think there are several, but you're just going to sneer and tell me Chevy Chase High School is better, so what's the point? I wouldn't send my cat there.

[Anonymous]

If quality of education is your only priority, your kids are bright and hard working and you can swing 35K per child per year for high school, you do very well in DC, the city with a number of the country's top-performing private schools. The rest of us live under a dark cloud of mediocrity, charter lottery stress, dead end middle school feeds, increasing crowding in the Deal feeders and at Wilson and Deal. I always get bummed out when I check Metro area lists of National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists in the early spring. Wilson produces one, two or three, and so does Walls, and that's it from public schools, year in and year out. Meanwhile, many a suburban high school produces 10, 15, 20, even dozens at TJ and the Blair Montgomery magnets.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wasn't raised in a suburb, I don't like suburbs, I don't want to raise children in a suburb. My children are all smart, and will succeed no matter what--in fact, I would prefer them not to be in an environment chock full of kumon, travel sports, and AP classes for the sake of "rigor." Life is rigor. Living it should be interesting. Being ferried by school bus or suv from one subdivision to another, with the occasional meal at le pain quotidien or the cheesecake factory, sounds like hell.

That's fine. You don't prioritize education in the same way OP does.

NP with a similar philosophy to the don't like suburbs poster.

My child is at a charter that is majority AA (my son is the only white student, there are a handful of asian and hispanic students), and his education in the early years has exceeded my expectations by a lot. He's been at this school for several years now, and we have no plans to move before 5th grade, and probably won't move then.

I do prioritize my son's education - I just prioritize different things. I don't care if he gets into an ivy league college, I do care that he grows up to treat people with kindness no matter what they look like or where they work or how much education they have. I also care that he lives a full life, and isn't only exposed to people "just like him" which tends to happen more often in the suburbs.

There are many different ways to educate a child and make sure that they get a solid start in school. Straight A's in the suburbs is only one of them.

[Anonymous]

For elementary, no reason to leave if your options are Bethesda/Arlington and you're heading to a good DC school. For high school, there really is no comparison to the test ins in Fairfax and Montgomery counties.

[Anonymous]

If quality of education is your only priority, your kids are bright and hard working and you can swing 35K per child per year for high school, you do very well in DC, the city with a number of the country's top-performing private schools. The rest of us live under a dark cloud of mediocrity, charter lottery stress, dead end middle school feeds, increasing crowding in the Deal feeders and at Wilson and Deal. I always get bummed out when I check Metro area lists of National Merit Scholarship Semifinalists in the early spring. Wilson produces one, two or three, and so does Walls, and that's it from public schools, year in and year out. Meanwhile, many a suburban high school produces 10, 15, 20, even dozens at TJ and the Blair Montgomery magnets.

Are you really so terrified of raising a mediocre child? Do you really check Metro area lists of National Merit Scholarship Semnifinalists every year? If your child is National Merit material, isn't it better do be one of two or three than twenty? Is your metric of success really this narrow and small?

And if you're right? Why the hell is the DMV such a mess? Is that by design? Because I'm not sure it took a national merit scholarship semifinalist to give us the beltway, or the Metro's lack of financing, or our country's collapsing infrastructure. Or Donald Trump.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

whatever dude. if you were as cool as you seem to think you are, you would be unschooling your kids in a yurt somewhere. OP is clearly interested in a more traditional kind of education.

No, sadness. I work within my community, because it's mine. My kids don't "suffer" for that. And wow, the thing is, you're even lecturing me about how righteous and liberal your "friends" are. I would seriously find it easier to swallow if you just told me you moved to arlington to avoid the blacks.

You're insufferable. You have no idea why OP prioritizes education or what her background is. It takes a big dose of privilege to dismiss other parents' desire for traditionally good schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wasn't raised in a suburb, I don't like suburbs, I don't want to raise children in a suburb. My children are all smart, and will succeed no matter what--in fact, I would prefer them not to be in an environment chock full of kumon, travel sports, and AP classes for the sake of "rigor." Life is rigor. Living it should be interesting. Being ferried by school bus or suv from one subdivision to another, with the occasional meal at le pain quotidien or the cheesecake factory, sounds like hell.

That's fine. You don't prioritize education in the same way OP does.

NP with a similar philosophy to the don't like suburbs poster.

My child is at a charter that is majority AA (my son is the only white student, there are a handful of asian and hispanic students), and his education in the early years has exceeded my expectations by a lot. He's been at this school for several years now, and we have no plans to move before 5th grade, and probably won't move then.

I do prioritize my son's education - I just prioritize different things. I don't care if he gets into an ivy league college, I do care that he grows up to treat people with kindness no matter what they look like or where they work or how much education they have. I also care that he lives a full life, and isn't only exposed to people "just like him" which tends to happen more often in the suburbs.

There are many different ways to educate a child and make sure that they get a solid start in school. Straight A's in the suburbs is only one of them.

That's nice, but OP's question was about prioritizing education over everything. She might not have the luxury of turning up her nose at the suburbs for being boring or whatever.

[Anonymous]

It takes a big dose of privilege to dismiss other parents' desire for traditionally good schools.

Takes an even bigger one to dismiss every parent who speaks about their positive experience with city schools as someone who "doesn't value education." Seriously, want to talk about privilege? Let's talk about your breathtaking entitlement to a lifestyle with two giant cars, a single family house, driving everywhere, and living in an economically segregated community. You think you have the right to do that because you grew up poor, or something? You think I did not--or, if I did, I just don't "value education?" You think poor people don't value education? Because I suspect your own parents might take some offense at that.