How to help child succeed at BASIS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid was a math star at BASIS, on track for BC Calc in 9th or 10th grade.

What I'd like to see in DC is the emergence of a BASIS type program that isn't run by a corporate entity thousands of miles away, with an appealing campus, a curriculum that respects achievement outside the realm of math, and leadership that isn't of the revolving door variant.

+1000

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid was a math star at BASIS, on track for BC Calc in 9th or 10th grade.

What I'd like to see in DC is the emergence of a BASIS type program that isn't run by a corporate entity thousands of miles away, with an appealing campus, a curriculum that respects achievement outside the realm of math, and leadership that isn't of the revolving door variant.

What I'd like to see a is a thread in which a poster can ask a simple question, get answers, and not turn into a condemnation-by-anonymous-post of an entire school.

You can always post on a Fairfax thread to get your wish.

DC public schools are just much too screwed up, at least past elementary school outside Cap Hill and Upper NW, for that to happen.

There aren't simple questions or answers where urban schools are concerned, not in this country, not in this century.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

Scored high at what? If you mean got 5s on the AP... that should be a given for kids accelerated 3+ years ahead of normal. These should be super genius math types. If you have kids who are accelerated at math by even a year who are not getting 5s on the APs, you are 100% doing it wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

The regular trajectory at Basis is calculus in 9th grade, right? My 7th grader has algebra this year, I think pre-calc in 8th and then calc in 9th? Which still seems crazy early to me (back in the dinosaur late 80s I took calc in 12th grade - and that was the advanced track).

Wrong. The regular trajectory is Calculus AB in 10th grade. Very advanced students can do it in 9th, but it is rare to get that placement, and Basis is very upfront about that. They also have a slower track that will have you do Calculus AB in 11th grade.

It's interesting that they super accelerate only to split calculus into two years. At most of the NYC magnets, kids do either AB Calculus or BC Calculus... a advanced math student would never do both. There is roughly a 50% overlap between the two curriculums and you can easily skip right to BC Calc with a strong foundation. (In fact, the BC Calculus AP test gives a subscore for AB Calc.) So I find it an interesting decision to super accelerate math but then drag calculus out. If you're a math kid who is more interested in a facet of math other than calculus (number theory, discrete math, abstract algebra, stats, formal logic), it seems a particularly weird choice (although I've admittedly never understood the absolute obsession with calculus in HS given that engineering, comp sci, etc are actually more discrete math heavy).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

The regular trajectory at Basis is calculus in 9th grade, right? My 7th grader has algebra this year, I think pre-calc in 8th and then calc in 9th? Which still seems crazy early to me (back in the dinosaur late 80s I took calc in 12th grade - and that was the advanced track).

Wrong. The regular trajectory is Calculus AB in 10th grade. Very advanced students can do it in 9th, but it is rare to get that placement, and Basis is very upfront about that. They also have a slower track that will have you do Calculus AB in 11th grade.

My child is in 8th and we were told that the standard was precalc in 9th and 10th and Calc AB in 11th, but that advanced students could do all of precalc in 9th, Calc AB in 10th, and Calc BC in 11th.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

The regular trajectory at Basis is calculus in 9th grade, right? My 7th grader has algebra this year, I think pre-calc in 8th and then calc in 9th? Which still seems crazy early to me (back in the dinosaur late 80s I took calc in 12th grade - and that was the advanced track).

Wrong. The regular trajectory is Calculus AB in 10th grade. Very advanced students can do it in 9th, but it is rare to get that placement, and Basis is very upfront about that. They also have a slower track that will have you do Calculus AB in 11th grade.

It's interesting that they super accelerate only to split calculus into two years. At most of the NYC magnets, kids do either AB Calculus or BC Calculus... a advanced math student would never do both. There is roughly a 50% overlap between the two curriculums and you can easily skip right to BC Calc with a strong foundation. (In fact, the BC Calculus AP test gives a subscore for AB Calc.) So I find it an interesting decision to super accelerate math but then drag calculus out. If you're a math kid who is more interested in a facet of math other than calculus (number theory, discrete math, abstract algebra, stats, formal logic), it seems a particularly weird choice (although I've admittedly never understood the absolute obsession with calculus in HS given that engineering, comp sci, etc are actually more discrete math heavy).

My guess is it's because Basis ties its grades to AP classes/tests, and there aren't many APs offered in those discrete subjects.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

The regular trajectory at Basis is calculus in 9th grade, right? My 7th grader has algebra this year, I think pre-calc in 8th and then calc in 9th? Which still seems crazy early to me (back in the dinosaur late 80s I took calc in 12th grade - and that was the advanced track).

Wrong. The regular trajectory is Calculus AB in 10th grade. Very advanced students can do it in 9th, but it is rare to get that placement, and Basis is very upfront about that. They also have a slower track that will have you do Calculus AB in 11th grade.

My child is in 8th and we were told that the standard was precalc in 9th and 10th and Calc AB in 11th, but that advanced students could do all of precalc in 9th, Calc AB in 10th, and Calc BC in 11th.

That's the slowest track at Basis, but I wouldn't be surprised if most kids end up in that track. After all, this isn't a gifted and talented/admissions school. It's just a lottery.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

The regular trajectory at Basis is calculus in 9th grade, right? My 7th grader has algebra this year, I think pre-calc in 8th and then calc in 9th? Which still seems crazy early to me (back in the dinosaur late 80s I took calc in 12th grade - and that was the advanced track).

Wrong. The regular trajectory is Calculus AB in 10th grade. Very advanced students can do it in 9th, but it is rare to get that placement, and Basis is very upfront about that. They also have a slower track that will have you do Calculus AB in 11th grade.

My child is in 8th and we were told that the standard was precalc in 9th and 10th and Calc AB in 11th, but that advanced students could do all of precalc in 9th, Calc AB in 10th, and Calc BC in 11th.

That's the slowest track at Basis, but I wouldn't be surprised if most kids end up in that track. After all, this isn't a gifted and talented/admissions school. It's just a lottery.

They have VERY MUCH stemmed the flow of kids who take the advanced path. Only 3 of the current 6th graders are taking 7th grade math.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

The regular trajectory at Basis is calculus in 9th grade, right? My 7th grader has algebra this year, I think pre-calc in 8th and then calc in 9th? Which still seems crazy early to me (back in the dinosaur late 80s I took calc in 12th grade - and that was the advanced track).

Wrong. The regular trajectory is Calculus AB in 10th grade. Very advanced students can do it in 9th, but it is rare to get that placement, and Basis is very upfront about that. They also have a slower track that will have you do Calculus AB in 11th grade.

It's interesting that they super accelerate only to split calculus into two years. At most of the NYC magnets, kids do either AB Calculus or BC Calculus... a advanced math student would never do both. There is roughly a 50% overlap between the two curriculums and you can easily skip right to BC Calc with a strong foundation. (In fact, the BC Calculus AP test gives a subscore for AB Calc.) So I find it an interesting decision to super accelerate math but then drag calculus out. If you're a math kid who is more interested in a facet of math other than calculus (number theory, discrete math, abstract algebra, stats, formal logic), it seems a particularly weird choice (although I've admittedly never understood the absolute obsession with calculus in HS given that engineering, comp sci, etc are actually more discrete math heavy).

My guess is it's because Basis ties its grades to AP classes/tests, and there aren't many APs offered in those discrete subjects.

Exactly, the BASIS curriculum is geared toward scoring 4s and 5s on AP exams, as many as possible. This is why BASIS doesn't offer advanced language: it's not difficult to score high on an AP language exam junior year, after having studied a language for just 4 years. More than 80% of AP Chinese takers nationwide score 5s. Wilson/Jackson-Reed is the only DC public HS offering both post-AP language and post-BC Calc math.

What BASIS seems to be missing is that it can be very difficult for East Coast high SES white and Asian students to stand out in college admissions without post-AP academics outside math, or impressive school-sponsored/financed extra curriculars either. This is true even if applicants are DC public school students getting something of a break in college admissions that local private students don't enjoy. Many of the highest-achieving UMC white and Asian seniors who reached for colleges admitting in the single digits were shot down this year, something of a rude awakening on the part of parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

The regular trajectory at Basis is calculus in 9th grade, right? My 7th grader has algebra this year, I think pre-calc in 8th and then calc in 9th? Which still seems crazy early to me (back in the dinosaur late 80s I took calc in 12th grade - and that was the advanced track).

Wrong. The regular trajectory is Calculus AB in 10th grade. Very advanced students can do it in 9th, but it is rare to get that placement, and Basis is very upfront about that. They also have a slower track that will have you do Calculus AB in 11th grade.

My child is in 8th and we were told that the standard was precalc in 9th and 10th and Calc AB in 11th, but that advanced students could do all of precalc in 9th, Calc AB in 10th, and Calc BC in 11th.

That's the slowest track at Basis, but I wouldn't be surprised if most kids end up in that track. After all, this isn't a gifted and talented/admissions school. It's just a lottery.

They have VERY MUCH stemmed the flow of kids who take the advanced path. Only 3 of the current 6th graders are taking 7th grade math.

Four of the current 6th graders….

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

The regular trajectory at Basis is calculus in 9th grade, right? My 7th grader has algebra this year, I think pre-calc in 8th and then calc in 9th? Which still seems crazy early to me (back in the dinosaur late 80s I took calc in 12th grade - and that was the advanced track).

Wrong. The regular trajectory is Calculus AB in 10th grade. Very advanced students can do it in 9th, but it is rare to get that placement, and Basis is very upfront about that. They also have a slower track that will have you do Calculus AB in 11th grade.

Someone already posted that…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

The regular trajectory at Basis is calculus in 9th grade, right? My 7th grader has algebra this year, I think pre-calc in 8th and then calc in 9th? Which still seems crazy early to me (back in the dinosaur late 80s I took calc in 12th grade - and that was the advanced track).

Wrong. The regular trajectory is Calculus AB in 10th grade. Very advanced students can do it in 9th, but it is rare to get that placement, and Basis is very upfront about that. They also have a slower track that will have you do Calculus AB in 11th grade.

It's interesting that they super accelerate only to split calculus into two years. At most of the NYC magnets, kids do either AB Calculus or BC Calculus... a advanced math student would never do both. There is roughly a 50% overlap between the two curriculums and you can easily skip right to BC Calc with a strong foundation. (In fact, the BC Calculus AP test gives a subscore for AB Calc.) So I find it an interesting decision to super accelerate math but then drag calculus out. If you're a math kid who is more interested in a facet of math other than calculus (number theory, discrete math, abstract algebra, stats, formal logic), it seems a particularly weird choice (although I've admittedly never understood the absolute obsession with calculus in HS given that engineering, comp sci, etc are actually more discrete math heavy).

My guess is it's because Basis ties its grades to AP classes/tests, and there aren't many APs offered in those discrete subjects.

Exactly, the BASIS curriculum is geared toward scoring 4s and 5s on AP exams, as many as possible. This is why BASIS doesn't offer advanced language: it's not difficult to score high on an AP language exam junior year, after having studied a language for just 4 years. More than 80% of AP Chinese takers nationwide score 5s. Wilson/Jackson-Reed is the only DC public HS offering both post-AP language and post-BC Calc math.

What BASIS seems to be missing is that it can be very difficult for East Coast high SES white and Asian students to stand out in college admissions without post-AP academics outside math, or impressive school-sponsored/financed extra curriculars either. This is true even if applicants are DC public school students getting something of a break in college admissions that local private students don't enjoy. Many of the highest-achieving UMC white and Asian seniors who reached for colleges admitting in the single digits were shot down this year, something of a rude awakening on the part of parents.

Basis does offer post AP math senior year. Currently it offers stats and multivariable calc

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid was a math star at BASIS, on track for BC Calc in 9th or 10th grade.

What I'd like to see in DC is the emergence of a BASIS type program that isn't run by a corporate entity thousands of miles away, with an appealing campus, a curriculum that respects achievement outside the realm of math, and leadership that isn't of the revolving door variant.

Disgruntled former Basis parent strikes (out) again!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

The regular trajectory at Basis is calculus in 9th grade, right? My 7th grader has algebra this year, I think pre-calc in 8th and then calc in 9th? Which still seems crazy early to me (back in the dinosaur late 80s I took calc in 12th grade - and that was the advanced track).

Wrong. The regular trajectory is Calculus AB in 10th grade. Very advanced students can do it in 9th, but it is rare to get that placement, and Basis is very upfront about that. They also have a slower track that will have you do Calculus AB in 11th grade.

It's interesting that they super accelerate only to split calculus into two years. At most of the NYC magnets, kids do either AB Calculus or BC Calculus... a advanced math student would never do both. There is roughly a 50% overlap between the two curriculums and you can easily skip right to BC Calc with a strong foundation. (In fact, the BC Calculus AP test gives a subscore for AB Calc.) So I find it an interesting decision to super accelerate math but then drag calculus out. If you're a math kid who is more interested in a facet of math other than calculus (number theory, discrete math, abstract algebra, stats, formal logic), it seems a particularly weird choice (although I've admittedly never understood the absolute obsession with calculus in HS given that engineering, comp sci, etc are actually more discrete math heavy).

My guess is it's because Basis ties its grades to AP classes/tests, and there aren't many APs offered in those discrete subjects.

Exactly, the BASIS curriculum is geared toward scoring 4s and 5s on AP exams, as many as possible. This is why BASIS doesn't offer advanced language: it's not difficult to score high on an AP language exam junior year, after having studied a language for just 4 years. More than 80% of AP Chinese takers nationwide score 5s. Wilson/Jackson-Reed is the only DC public HS offering both post-AP language and post-BC Calc math.

What BASIS seems to be missing is that it can be very difficult for East Coast high SES white and Asian students to stand out in college admissions without post-AP academics outside math, or impressive school-sponsored/financed extra curriculars either. This is true even if applicants are DC public school students getting something of a break in college admissions that local private students don't enjoy. Many of the highest-achieving UMC white and Asian seniors who reached for colleges admitting in the single digits were shot down this year, something of a rude awakening on the part of parents.

Huh, maybe the goal of Basis is to provide an excellent education to prepare all DC kids for college. Not to be a cog in the mentally unhealthy wheel of "high SES white and Asian" college admissions grievance anxiety spiral.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that's right. A couple of this year's Ivy League-bound seniors took AP Calculus AB in 8th grade and BC in 9th grade. They scored high.

The regular trajectory at Basis is calculus in 9th grade, right? My 7th grader has algebra this year, I think pre-calc in 8th and then calc in 9th? Which still seems crazy early to me (back in the dinosaur late 80s I took calc in 12th grade - and that was the advanced track).

Wrong. The regular trajectory is Calculus AB in 10th grade. Very advanced students can do it in 9th, but it is rare to get that placement, and Basis is very upfront about that. They also have a slower track that will have you do Calculus AB in 11th grade.

It's interesting that they super accelerate only to split calculus into two years. At most of the NYC magnets, kids do either AB Calculus or BC Calculus... a advanced math student would never do both. There is roughly a 50% overlap between the two curriculums and you can easily skip right to BC Calc with a strong foundation. (In fact, the BC Calculus AP test gives a subscore for AB Calc.) So I find it an interesting decision to super accelerate math but then drag calculus out. If you're a math kid who is more interested in a facet of math other than calculus (number theory, discrete math, abstract algebra, stats, formal logic), it seems a particularly weird choice (although I've admittedly never understood the absolute obsession with calculus in HS given that engineering, comp sci, etc are actually more discrete math heavy).

My guess is it's because Basis ties its grades to AP classes/tests, and there aren't many APs offered in those discrete subjects.

Exactly, the BASIS curriculum is geared toward scoring 4s and 5s on AP exams, as many as possible. This is why BASIS doesn't offer advanced language: it's not difficult to score high on an AP language exam junior year, after having studied a language for just 4 years. More than 80% of AP Chinese takers nationwide score 5s. Wilson/Jackson-Reed is the only DC public HS offering both post-AP language and post-BC Calc math.

What BASIS seems to be missing is that it can be very difficult for East Coast high SES white and Asian students to stand out in college admissions without post-AP academics outside math, or impressive school-sponsored/financed extra curriculars either. This is true even if applicants are DC public school students getting something of a break in college admissions that local private students don't enjoy. Many of the highest-achieving UMC white and Asian seniors who reached for colleges admitting in the single digits were shot down this year, something of a rude awakening on the part of parents.

The Chinese AP test scores are high solely because most of the test takers are native speakers. Among the "standard group" which is learning in school, the median score is a 3, which is typical for AP language tests.