Northam’s “Anti-Asian, Anti-Immigrant” School Initiative

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just to be clear, one of the reasons that TJ is beneficial for high-scoring kids is because it represents a place where their creativity will be recognized and appreciated for what it is, allowing them to learn in an environment in which they will thrive. The accusation against "prepping" is cynical in that it essentially argues that, if a kid demonstrates their academic aptitude by performing well on tests, that should be taken as evidence that their original thinking should be dismissed and disregarded. It's actually pretty offensive, if you stop and think about it.

When administrators push to end merit-based admissions in favor of their preferred feudal dynamics, this is the part that they fundamentally don't understand. They view TJ as a success-granting resource which should be leveraged to the benefit of whichever group they want to serve, without realizing why it might have happenned to serve that purpose and who they might end up failing as a result.

The vast majority of the kids at TJ could have their needs met at a neighborhood school. TJ is a classic exercise in supply-induced demand, with the added twist that it has systemically favored kids whose parents come from test-prep cultures or are otherwise wealthy and pushy and has excluded kids from less privileged backgrounds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to be clear, one of the reasons that TJ is beneficial for high-scoring kids is because it represents a place where their creativity will be recognized and appreciated for what it is, allowing them to learn in an environment in which they will thrive. The accusation against "prepping" is cynical in that it essentially argues that, if a kid demonstrates their academic aptitude by performing well on tests, that should be taken as evidence that their original thinking should be dismissed and disregarded. It's actually pretty offensive, if you stop and think about it.

When administrators push to end merit-based admissions in favor of their preferred feudal dynamics, this is the part that they fundamentally don't understand. They view TJ as a success-granting resource which should be leveraged to the benefit of whichever group they want to serve, without realizing why it might have happenned to serve that purpose and who they might end up failing as a result.

The vast majority of the kids at TJ could have their needs met at a neighborhood school. TJ is a classic exercise in supply-induced demand, with the added twist that it has systemically favored kids whose parents come from test-prep cultures or are otherwise wealthy and pushy and has excluded kids from less privileged backgrounds.

That's your opinion. If your kid is happy at a neighborhood school, let them go there and don't worry about those who choose to apply to and attend TJ.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to be clear, one of the reasons that TJ is beneficial for high-scoring kids is because it represents a place where their creativity will be recognized and appreciated for what it is, allowing them to learn in an environment in which they will thrive. The accusation against "prepping" is cynical in that it essentially argues that, if a kid demonstrates their academic aptitude by performing well on tests, that should be taken as evidence that their original thinking should be dismissed and disregarded. It's actually pretty offensive, if you stop and think about it.

When administrators push to end merit-based admissions in favor of their preferred feudal dynamics, this is the part that they fundamentally don't understand. They view TJ as a success-granting resource which should be leveraged to the benefit of whichever group they want to serve, without realizing why it might have happenned to serve that purpose and who they might end up failing as a result.

The vast majority of the kids at TJ could have their needs met at a neighborhood school. TJ is a classic exercise in supply-induced demand, with the added twist that it has systemically favored kids whose parents come from test-prep cultures or are otherwise wealthy and pushy and has excluded kids from less privileged backgrounds.

That's your opinion. If your kid is happy at a neighborhood school, let them go there and don't worry about those who choose to apply to and attend TJ.

TJ has negative externalities for the county by reinforcing stereotypes about who is smart and deserving and by inefficiently using space that could be used to educate more county students. We pay a heavy price for the educational equivalent of a tacky McMansion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to be clear, one of the reasons that TJ is beneficial for high-scoring kids is because it represents a place where their creativity will be recognized and appreciated for what it is, allowing them to learn in an environment in which they will thrive. The accusation against "prepping" is cynical in that it essentially argues that, if a kid demonstrates their academic aptitude by performing well on tests, that should be taken as evidence that their original thinking should be dismissed and disregarded. It's actually pretty offensive, if you stop and think about it.

When administrators push to end merit-based admissions in favor of their preferred feudal dynamics, this is the part that they fundamentally don't understand. They view TJ as a success-granting resource which should be leveraged to the benefit of whichever group they want to serve, without realizing why it might have happenned to serve that purpose and who they might end up failing as a result.

The vast majority of the kids at TJ could have their needs met at a neighborhood school. TJ is a classic exercise in supply-induced demand, with the added twist that it has systemically favored kids whose parents come from test-prep cultures or are otherwise wealthy and pushy and has excluded kids from less privileged backgrounds.

That's your opinion. If your kid is happy at a neighborhood school, let them go there and don't worry about those who choose to apply to and attend TJ.

TJ has negative externalities for the county by reinforcing stereotypes about who is smart and deserving and by inefficiently using space that could be used to educate more county students. We pay a heavy price for the educational equivalent of a tacky McMansion.

Defund aap and support all elementary schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to be clear, one of the reasons that TJ is beneficial for high-scoring kids is because it represents a place where their creativity will be recognized and appreciated for what it is, allowing them to learn in an environment in which they will thrive. The accusation against "prepping" is cynical in that it essentially argues that, if a kid demonstrates their academic aptitude by performing well on tests, that should be taken as evidence that their original thinking should be dismissed and disregarded. It's actually pretty offensive, if you stop and think about it.

When administrators push to end merit-based admissions in favor of their preferred feudal dynamics, this is the part that they fundamentally don't understand. They view TJ as a success-granting resource which should be leveraged to the benefit of whichever group they want to serve, without realizing why it might have happenned to serve that purpose and who they might end up failing as a result.

The vast majority of the kids at TJ could have their needs met at a neighborhood school. TJ is a classic exercise in supply-induced demand, with the added twist that it has systemically favored kids whose parents come from test-prep cultures or are otherwise wealthy and pushy and has excluded kids from less privileged backgrounds.

That's your opinion. If your kid is happy at a neighborhood school, let them go there and don't worry about those who choose to apply to and attend TJ.

TJ has negative externalities for the county by reinforcing stereotypes about who is smart and deserving and by inefficiently using space that could be used to educate more county students. We pay a heavy price for the educational equivalent of a tacky McMansion.

Defund aap and support all elementary schools.

I hope you get defuned. This useless slogans yours is clearly here to stir stuff up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to be clear, one of the reasons that TJ is beneficial for high-scoring kids is because it represents a place where their creativity will be recognized and appreciated for what it is, allowing them to learn in an environment in which they will thrive. The accusation against "prepping" is cynical in that it essentially argues that, if a kid demonstrates their academic aptitude by performing well on tests, that should be taken as evidence that their original thinking should be dismissed and disregarded. It's actually pretty offensive, if you stop and think about it.

When administrators push to end merit-based admissions in favor of their preferred feudal dynamics, this is the part that they fundamentally don't understand. They view TJ as a success-granting resource which should be leveraged to the benefit of whichever group they want to serve, without realizing why it might have happenned to serve that purpose and who they might end up failing as a result.

The vast majority of the kids at TJ could have their needs met at a neighborhood school. TJ is a classic exercise in supply-induced demand, with the added twist that it has systemically favored kids whose parents come from test-prep cultures or are otherwise wealthy and pushy and has excluded kids from less privileged backgrounds.

That's your opinion. If your kid is happy at a neighborhood school, let them go there and don't worry about those who choose to apply to and attend TJ.

TJ has negative externalities for the county by reinforcing stereotypes about who is smart and deserving and by inefficiently using space that could be used to educate more county students. We pay a heavy price for the educational equivalent of a tacky McMansion.

Defund aap and support all elementary schools.

I hope you get defuned. This useless slogans yours is clearly here to stir stuff up.

I think it’s a good idea to devote more resources to struggling schools and aap is really a way to have a segregated schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to be clear, one of the reasons that TJ is beneficial for high-scoring kids is because it represents a place where their creativity will be recognized and appreciated for what it is, allowing them to learn in an environment in which they will thrive. The accusation against "prepping" is cynical in that it essentially argues that, if a kid demonstrates their academic aptitude by performing well on tests, that should be taken as evidence that their original thinking should be dismissed and disregarded. It's actually pretty offensive, if you stop and think about it.

When administrators push to end merit-based admissions in favor of their preferred feudal dynamics, this is the part that they fundamentally don't understand. They view TJ as a success-granting resource which should be leveraged to the benefit of whichever group they want to serve, without realizing why it might have happenned to serve that purpose and who they might end up failing as a result.

The vast majority of the kids at TJ could have their needs met at a neighborhood school. TJ is a classic exercise in supply-induced demand, with the added twist that it has systemically favored kids whose parents come from test-prep cultures or are otherwise wealthy and pushy and has excluded kids from less privileged backgrounds.

That's your opinion. If your kid is happy at a neighborhood school, let them go there and don't worry about those who choose to apply to and attend TJ.

TJ has negative externalities for the county by reinforcing stereotypes about who is smart and deserving and by inefficiently using space that could be used to educate more county students. We pay a heavy price for the educational equivalent of a tacky McMansion.

Defund aap and support all elementary schools.

I hope you get defuned. This useless slogans yours is clearly here to stir stuff up.

I think it’s a good idea to devote more resources to struggling schools and aap is really a way to have a segregated schools.

What's an acceptable amount of resources for you? Struggling schools are usually poor, and therefore Title I schools, which means than in addition to county and state funds they also get federal funds. They are still struggling. The gap is not there because of school funding. The gap is there because of SES and all of the attributes that come with different SES levels.

The entire school system can be revamped to help more students. For example, in elementary school, instead of spending 3 hours a day discussing topics that are clearly political, the kids can spend time doing homework for their core subjects, and the teachers can be there to help. This will improve performance across the board. Getting rid of AAP will not solve anything. As long as kids waste time learning about the fast paced environment and don't learn actual core skills, and learn them well, there will be a problem. Parents will always be a pushing force, but at least the school will do more for equality.

When you're at work, you don't push paper around for 8 hours to come home and do the actual work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to be clear, one of the reasons that TJ is beneficial for high-scoring kids is because it represents a place where their creativity will be recognized and appreciated for what it is, allowing them to learn in an environment in which they will thrive. The accusation against "prepping" is cynical in that it essentially argues that, if a kid demonstrates their academic aptitude by performing well on tests, that should be taken as evidence that their original thinking should be dismissed and disregarded. It's actually pretty offensive, if you stop and think about it.

When administrators push to end merit-based admissions in favor of their preferred feudal dynamics, this is the part that they fundamentally don't understand. They view TJ as a success-granting resource which should be leveraged to the benefit of whichever group they want to serve, without realizing why it might have happenned to serve that purpose and who they might end up failing as a result.

The vast majority of the kids at TJ could have their needs met at a neighborhood school. TJ is a classic exercise in supply-induced demand, with the added twist that it has systemically favored kids whose parents come from test-prep cultures or are otherwise wealthy and pushy and has excluded kids from less privileged backgrounds.

That's your opinion. If your kid is happy at a neighborhood school, let them go there and don't worry about those who choose to apply to and attend TJ.

TJ has negative externalities for the county by reinforcing stereotypes about who is smart and deserving and by inefficiently using space that could be used to educate more county students. We pay a heavy price for the educational equivalent of a tacky McMansion.

Defund aap and support all elementary schools.

I hope you get defuned. This useless slogans yours is clearly here to stir stuff up.

I think it’s a good idea to devote more resources to struggling schools and aap is really a way to have a segregated schools.

Why sacrifice one group of kids (AAP) for another (struggling students)?IF you want certain schools to have more advocate for it but not at the expense of other children. Ask for additional funds. Your post reads as jealousy.

[Anonymous]

You can tell the mindset of many TJ parents from some of the preceding posts: “you can’t possibly expect us to send our kids to school with Title I kids or kids who weren’t in AAP, do you?”

Enough is enough. Shut that miserable place down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can tell the mindset of many TJ parents from some of the preceding posts: “you can’t possibly expect us to send our kids to school with Title I kids or kids who weren’t in AAP, do you?”

Enough is enough. Shut that miserable place down.

Shut down the miserable aap.

[Anonymous]

You can tell the mindset of many petty parents from some of the preceding posts: "my kids cant get in so shut it down"

Mind your own business and worry about your own child, not others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can tell the mindset of many TJ parents from some of the preceding posts: “you can’t possibly expect us to send our kids to school with Title I kids or kids who weren’t in AAP, do you?”

Enough is enough. Shut that miserable place down.

Shut down the miserable aap.

Increase rigor, increase homework in elementary, and add a GT program alongside AAP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:TJ Parent here who supports reform.

I have additional thoughts on the FARMS rate.

First, I agree that the SES of families provides a tremendous admissions boost, whether that consists of educated parents who know how to game the system to affording extracurricular activities/enrichment for STEM.

But I also believe that some logistical aspects of TJ discourage FARMS families from applying and need to be looked at. For example, the longer school day means that it is very hard for kids to have after school jobs to contribute to family income or for kids to provide childcare for younger siblings. Second, the transportation (no late buses) means that kids can't participate in sports or band or clubs (outside of 8th period) unless their parents can come pick them up.

Not sure what to do about this, but think that every aspect of TJ needs a hard look to increase diversity.

Who cares about diversity I want the smartest kids in there period

They aren't the smartest. They are the best prepped.

I recently watched a DNA documentary, and they said that intelligence and intellectual abilities are passed through the genes. However, they said that if a genetically intelligent person doesn’t study and read and spends their days doing nothing, a person with not so great genes can study hard and surpass. Taking this into account, if a genetically more intelligent child whose parents were allowed to come here because of their superior technical skills studies hard, they will have better results than a person of an average intelligence. Therefore it’s so hard to compete with the hardworking children of immigrants who were invited to the US exactly because of their extraordinary intellectual abilities.

The Chinese have to steal our inventions and everything on our production lines because they are not innovative or creative. They learn by rote.

I agree that they steal because my father was an engineer and inventor in the Soviet Union. Several years after its collapse, he and his colleagues were hired by China in order to share and teach them Soviet technologies (which were no longer top secret, but not publicized anywhere). However, this is irrelevant to this thread. Here we are competing not with an average Chinese, but with the best and brightest and most hard working people because this is what immigrants are. They have to work hard in order to succeed in a foreign country, and they had to demonstrate extraordinary abilities in order to be allowed entry to the US.

LOL that's knowledge transfer, not theft, dummy. If the Americans could invite anyone to teach them what they don't know, they'd do so in an instant, oh wait they already do. You must think that dozens of Russian skating coaches at American ice rinks means America is stealing Russia's figure skating secrets? Hard work and learning what worked elsewhere is the answer, it always is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can tell the mindset of many petty parents from some of the preceding posts: "my kids cant get in so shut it down"

Mind your own business and worry about your own child, not others.

It’s everyone in the county’s business that FCPS is running a segregated school. This school must change or end.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Just an idea: What if FCPS put in each elementary school with the highest numbers of free/reduced lunch 2 full time teachers with STEM backgrounds whose job was ONLY to run free/reduced cost STEM after school activities? These teachers would work from 3-9pm. For instance, 45 minute math classes grouped on ability, not age, going over more challenging math starting in 2nd grade and material needed for AMC8/Math Counts for older/more advanced kids. These two teachers could do Science Olympiad starting with 3/4 grade in A level and B level for 5/6th grade..Java/Python/ASCL taught for 5/6th grade grouped on advanced ability, scratch for beginner kids. There are many other STEM activities that could be done, like Quiz Bowl or any number of small engineering build projects. Having a student participate in activities like this will build up their stem background, math ability, reading level, and problem solving. Many wealthier FCPS elementary schools have a parent run system like this. However, in a poor elementary school it’s unrealistic to think a household with adults working 2 jobs each can volunteer the hours needed. Many of these parents want this for their kids but lack the stem background to volunteer to run/teach these groups.

Interesting. My kid's Title I school has had free Science Olympiad for the last many years, run entirely by the AART. Last year, there was a free after school GEMS club, which is a girls science activities club, run by the STEAM lab teachers. They also do the MOEMS competition within the advanced math classrooms for grades 3-6. There's also a strong Young Scholars program, that runs free summer camps and other activities. It's entirely possible for poor schools to offer activities like this if they prioritize doing so.