Tj teachers - Be prepared!

[Anonymous]

Current TJ parent. Many of my student’s teachers have been excellent. Highlights included freshman English, biology and computer science teachers. Math teachers have been ok, not amazing, so far.

[Anonymous]

How is it that the top 1.5% will still be found, as PPs have said? There will be way more than 1.5% of students at each school who have straight As. There are no teacher recommendations or standardized test results to distinguish between all the straight A students, only a subjectively graded essay test that is largely about character traits that have no explicit connection to STEM. I truly do not understand how this process will catch the top STEM kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How is it that the top 1.5% will still be found, as PPs have said? There will be way more than 1.5% of students at each school who have straight As. There are no teacher recommendations or standardized test results to distinguish between all the straight A students, only a subjectively graded essay test that is largely about character traits that have no explicit connection to STEM. I truly do not understand how this process will catch the top STEM kids.

How did the old process distinguish between the top kids? There were kids who passed the exam, had straight A's, completed Algebra and Geometry, wrote the essay and were denied.

So this year there is no exam. Kids still have to apply. Those who apply need to meet a GPA requirement and have had Algebra. They have to write an essay. The kids in the top 1.5 of their Middle School who apply and meet the criteria will be accepted. The kids not in the top 1.5% will be evaluated like they were in past years, but with no exam.

I have no clue how schools like Carson will determine who applied and is in the top 1.5%, I suspect that will be easier at the schools that have not sent as many kids to TJ in the past. I also wouldn't be surprised if some of those schools do not use all the slots allocated to them due to lack of applications.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How is it that the top 1.5% will still be found, as PPs have said? There will be way more than 1.5% of students at each school who have straight As. There are no teacher recommendations or standardized test results to distinguish between all the straight A students, only a subjectively graded essay test that is largely about character traits that have no explicit connection to STEM. I truly do not understand how this process will catch the top STEM kids.

How did the old process distinguish between the top kids? There were kids who passed the exam, had straight A's, completed Algebra and Geometry, wrote the essay and were denied.

So this year there is no exam. Kids still have to apply. Those who apply need to meet a GPA requirement and have had Algebra. They have to write an essay. The kids in the top 1.5 of their Middle School who apply and meet the criteria will be accepted. The kids not in the top 1.5% will be evaluated like they were in past years, but with no exam.

I have no clue how schools like Carson will determine who applied and is in the top 1.5%, I suspect that will be easier at the schools that have not sent as many kids to TJ in the past. I also wouldn't be surprised if some of those schools do not use all the slots allocated to them due to lack of applications.

In the past, there were teacher recommendations that could distinguish between kids who all had straight As and had completed Algebra and Geometry. I think scrapping the exam is not as big a deal as scrapping the teacher recommendations. There is a reason that colleges, which do holistic admissions, use teacher recommendations. Teachers know the students and they can also compare their students with others they have taught in the past or are currently teaching, so they have extremely relevant information.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How is it that the top 1.5% will still be found, as PPs have said? There will be way more than 1.5% of students at each school who have straight As. There are no teacher recommendations or standardized test results to distinguish between all the straight A students, only a subjectively graded essay test that is largely about character traits that have no explicit connection to STEM. I truly do not understand how this process will catch the top STEM kids.

How did the old process distinguish between the top kids? There were kids who passed the exam, had straight A's, completed Algebra and Geometry, wrote the essay and were denied.

So this year there is no exam. Kids still have to apply. Those who apply need to meet a GPA requirement and have had Algebra. They have to write an essay. The kids in the top 1.5 of their Middle School who apply and meet the criteria will be accepted. The kids not in the top 1.5% will be evaluated like they were in past years, but with no exam.

I have no clue how schools like Carson will determine who applied and is in the top 1.5%, I suspect that will be easier at the schools that have not sent as many kids to TJ in the past. I also wouldn't be surprised if some of those schools do not use all the slots allocated to them due to lack of applications.

It's not the individual school that decides who is in the top 1.5%, is it? I thought it was TJ admissions committee who will decide.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How is it that the top 1.5% will still be found, as PPs have said? There will be way more than 1.5% of students at each school who have straight As. There are no teacher recommendations or standardized test results to distinguish between all the straight A students, only a subjectively graded essay test that is largely about character traits that have no explicit connection to STEM. I truly do not understand how this process will catch the top STEM kids.

How did the old process distinguish between the top kids? There were kids who passed the exam, had straight A's, completed Algebra and Geometry, wrote the essay and were denied.

So this year there is no exam. Kids still have to apply. Those who apply need to meet a GPA requirement and have had Algebra. They have to write an essay. The kids in the top 1.5 of their Middle School who apply and meet the criteria will be accepted. The kids not in the top 1.5% will be evaluated like they were in past years, but with no exam.

I have no clue how schools like Carson will determine who applied and is in the top 1.5%, I suspect that will be easier at the schools that have not sent as many kids to TJ in the past. I also wouldn't be surprised if some of those schools do not use all the slots allocated to them due to lack of applications.

It's not the individual school that decides who is in the top 1.5%, is it? I thought it was TJ admissions committee who will decide.

I would imagine at many schools that there are more kids who have the same GPA and meet the requirements, and apply for TJ. I wouldn't think that who the top 1.5% is determined by TJ because that should be the top X number of students.

The question is how do you determine the top X students if there is a larger number of kids who have the same academic profile AND they all apply to TJ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
The question is how do you determine the top X students if there is a larger number of kids who have the same academic profile AND they all apply to TJ?

Also, do they weigh the classes differently when they compute GPA? Would a kid in gen ed for all classes + M7H + Algebra Honors in 8th and a 4.0 be considered higher ranked than a kid in all AAP who is taking Geometry Honors in 8th, but got 1 A- in something? Even if you had 2 kids in AAP everything, would the kid who got an A- in AAP Honors English in 7th grade, but who is taking Algebra II in 8th with straight As in math and science be lower ranked than a kid who has straight As, but did the M7H and then Algebra I sequence?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
The question is how do you determine the top X students if there is a larger number of kids who have the same academic profile AND they all apply to TJ?

Also, do they weigh the classes differently when they compute GPA? Would a kid in gen ed for all classes + M7H + Algebra Honors in 8th and a 4.0 be considered higher ranked than a kid in all AAP who is taking Geometry Honors in 8th, but got 1 A- in something? Even if you had 2 kids in AAP everything, would the kid who got an A- in AAP Honors English in 7th grade, but who is taking Algebra II in 8th with straight As in math and science be lower ranked than a kid who has straight As, but did the M7H and then Algebra I sequence?

they might make honors equivalent to aap and rank them ahead of non-honors, but there is no way they are going to give a boost to AAP when potential applicants are barred from registering for those classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
The question is how do you determine the top X students if there is a larger number of kids who have the same academic profile AND they all apply to TJ?

Also, do they weigh the classes differently when they compute GPA? Would a kid in gen ed for all classes + M7H + Algebra Honors in 8th and a 4.0 be considered higher ranked than a kid in all AAP who is taking Geometry Honors in 8th, but got 1 A- in something? Even if you had 2 kids in AAP everything, would the kid who got an A- in AAP Honors English in 7th grade, but who is taking Algebra II in 8th with straight As in math and science be lower ranked than a kid who has straight As, but did the M7H and then Algebra I sequence?

They explained this. It is unweighted GPA they look at, you have to have a 3.5, and be in gifted classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
The question is how do you determine the top X students if there is a larger number of kids who have the same academic profile AND they all apply to TJ?

Also, do they weigh the classes differently when they compute GPA? Would a kid in gen ed for all classes + M7H + Algebra Honors in 8th and a 4.0 be considered higher ranked than a kid in all AAP who is taking Geometry Honors in 8th, but got 1 A- in something? Even if you had 2 kids in AAP everything, would the kid who got an A- in AAP Honors English in 7th grade, but who is taking Algebra II in 8th with straight As in math and science be lower ranked than a kid who has straight As, but did the M7H and then Algebra I sequence?

They explained this. It is unweighted GPA they look at, you have to have a 3.5, and be in gifted classes.

That's just not true, all you need is three honors classes including math and science

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
They explained this. It is unweighted GPA they look at, you have to have a 3.5, and be in gifted classes.

That's just not true, all you need is three honors classes including math and science

So, there's no boost for taking all honors or for taking Algebra rather than M7H in 7th grade? That's absurd. A kid in the higher level math should be given some credit for it. Likewise, a kid taking 4 Honors or AAP classes is taking a tougher load than a kid in only 3 Honors and should get some credit. It seems like people who want to maximize their chances of getting into TJ should then take regular English or History, whichever subject is weaker, and take M7H even if they easily qualify for Algebra. That would be the easiest way to guarantee a 4.0, which would land a kid in the top 1.5% over the kids who took harder courses but maybe got an A- in something.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
They explained this. It is unweighted GPA they look at, you have to have a 3.5, and be in gifted classes.

That's just not true, all you need is three honors classes including math and science

So, there's no boost for taking all honors or for taking Algebra rather than M7H in 7th grade? That's absurd. A kid in the higher level math should be given some credit for it. Likewise, a kid taking 4 Honors or AAP classes is taking a tougher load than a kid in only 3 Honors and should get some credit. It seems like people who want to maximize their chances of getting into TJ should then take regular English or History, whichever subject is weaker, and take M7H even if they easily qualify for Algebra. That would be the easiest way to guarantee a 4.0, which would land a kid in the top 1.5% over the kids who took harder courses but maybe got an A- in something.

Haven't you heard? Merit, innate talent and hard work don't matter anymore. Equity over everything else now. USA is on the fast track to socialism now, baby!!! If you're curious what life will be like in the coming years, just ask anyone from Cuba, Venezuela, China, Zimbabwe, Soviet countries, etc. This is only the beginning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
They explained this. It is unweighted GPA they look at, you have to have a 3.5, and be in gifted classes.

That's just not true, all you need is three honors classes including math and science

So, there's no boost for taking all honors or for taking Algebra rather than M7H in 7th grade? That's absurd. A kid in the higher level math should be given some credit for it. Likewise, a kid taking 4 Honors or AAP classes is taking a tougher load than a kid in only 3 Honors and should get some credit. It seems like people who want to maximize their chances of getting into TJ should then take regular English or History, whichever subject is weaker, and take M7H even if they easily qualify for Algebra. That would be the easiest way to guarantee a 4.0, which would land a kid in the top 1.5% over the kids who took harder courses but maybe got an A- in something.

Haven't you heard? Merit, innate talent and hard work don't matter anymore. Equity over everything else now. USA is on the fast track to socialism now, baby!!! If you're curious what life will be like in the coming years, just ask anyone from Cuba, Venezuela, China, Zimbabwe, Soviet countries, etc. This is only the beginning.

+1000 Open your eyes. Stop trying to rationalize all of this equity over opportunity, cancel culture, censorship, and identity politics. Brush up on the history of socialism in other countries. It might be too late, but I'm still doing everything I can to try to reverse our downward spiral toward socialism. I urge you to do the same.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
They explained this. It is unweighted GPA they look at, you have to have a 3.5, and be in gifted classes.

That's just not true, all you need is three honors classes including math and science

So, there's no boost for taking all honors or for taking Algebra rather than M7H in 7th grade? That's absurd. A kid in the higher level math should be given some credit for it. Likewise, a kid taking 4 Honors or AAP classes is taking a tougher load than a kid in only 3 Honors and should get some credit. It seems like people who want to maximize their chances of getting into TJ should then take regular English or History, whichever subject is weaker, and take M7H even if they easily qualify for Algebra. That would be the easiest way to guarantee a 4.0, which would land a kid in the top 1.5% over the kids who took harder courses but maybe got an A- in something.

I think there will be a boost, but FCPS doesn't want students to be discouraged from applying. They want the numbers up from underrepresented groups.

[Anonymous]

FCPS in court said TJ is not a gifted school, so there is no guarantee they are looking for students in advanced classes.