Bethesda - Whitman Cluster vs. BCC Cluster - Advice please

[Anonymous]

I don't think you can go wrong, really, with most MCPS schools. I am a product of that county's educational system, and so are my sisters. We all went through honors and AP programs (in our case, at Walter Johnson HS), matriculated to what most would call 'very nice' undergraduate institutions and graduate PhD and law programs with merit scholarships. In college and grad school, we never felt like we were underprepared compared with silver-spoon peers. Not too shabby for kids who aren't geniuses -- just average kids who paid attention, performing just fine without straight-As. I think the key is to choose courses wisely - honors, AP, IB when possible; take one or two foreign langauge courses; and pay attention to who the great teachers are and choose them even if they're not the easy-A. And then be interested in the world and get involved in clubs and mind-expanding summer activities.

That's it.

Buy where the neighborhood feels comfortable and welcoming. Your children will be fine.

[Anonymous]

I like you, PP! And I live in the WJ district so I hope my kids take after you...

[Anonymous]

OP here - Thanks all for all the great insight. I definitely won't limit my house search to just the Whitman areas now. However, now I'm hearing that the problem is the middle school - that Pyle is much better than Westlake. The people I've talked to haven't given specifics but just said to really try to get in the Pyle areas. Anyone have thoughts on that? Thanks again!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here - Thanks all for all the great insight. I definitely won't limit my house search to just the Whitman areas now. However, now I'm hearing that the problem is the middle school - that Pyle is much better than Westlake. The people I've talked to haven't given specifics but just said to really try to get in the Pyle areas. Anyone have thoughts on that? Thanks again!

You hear that a lot about Westland third hand, but the people I've talked to who actually have kids there seem happy. I'm not sure if Westland has gotten better (they now have an IB), or if it just has a bad rap.

[Anonymous]

I visited Westland last May. There is relatively new principal and he seemed on the ball. Very impressive curriculum and IB program. They have monthly coffees during the school year. I would recommend attending that.

[Anonymous]

Our son attended Westland for one year after going to a BCC cluster elementary school for K-5. Althouh we were very happy with our son's exerience in elementary school, we were disappointed with Westland. Our son wasn't challenged, other than in math, and just didn't learn much, so we moved him to an independent school. That was before Dan Vogelman became principal, however, and I've heard that things have improved. Specifically, I understand he was able to get rid of some underperforming teachers. I'm not sure, however, whether a principal can have much influence over the curriculum in a very top-down school system like MCPS. This was really the biggest problem we saw at Westland, notwithstanding the IB program, which seemed like lipstick on a pig.

[Anonymous]

We too have heard that Westland is a weak link, but the elementary and high school in both districts are excellent

[Anonymous]

What is the report from Westland parents about the introduction of increased rigor courses at Westland? Some of these classes can actually earn high school credit for kids (good and bad). This is part of a MCPS-wide initiative on increasing middle school rigor so that more kids are ready to take AP, etc. in high school. Are kids actually taking these courses now? Or do they start next year? Any experience out there?

Also for those considering the BCC cluster but worried about the middle school experience, there are also by application magnet schools in the humanities and math/science to which BCC cluster students can apply (and Whitman kids too).

[Anonymous]

16:33 here -- Westland kids have had the opportunity to take high school-level courses in math and foreign language for some time. Our experience was that the math instruction was excellent, but his Italian class was so big that the teacher had a hard time keeping order, and the kids didn't have much of an opportunity to practice speaking. Our son did quite well in terms of grades, but his progress was minimal compared to his experience when we switched him to an independent school wth smaller classes. This problem was pervasive at Westland at that time -- all my son's classes were 30+ kids. I don't know whether that has changed or where class sizes will go as MCPS faces budget cuts over the next few years.