s/o Gifted classes in DC schools

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Now tell me why nearly one-quarter of the kids still can't pass proficiency tests so easy that my 3rd grader scored 100% on the DC-CAS.

Who cares?

Um, lots high-SES parents in the city. How much can kids get of of studying the Renaissance etc. when they can barely read? Again, too much instructor time and energy going to reach kids lacking basic skills. You hear Latin teachers claim "Oh, but the kids we don't serve well are those who are behind; the advanced kids aren't shortchanged." Not buying it.

The high octane CK sequence cannot work well when at least two thirds of the kids in any given 5th grade Latin class are unable to score advanced on the CAS, and nearly a third are unable to score proficient. I didn't grasp how easy the DC-CAS actually is until my 3rd grader, who is no genius, scored 100%. This April, I kept her home on testing days.










How would you know anything about the relative benefits of offering a content-rich curriculum? Are you an educator? Have you read any of the studies about urban schools and districts that use CK?

I've taught CK for several years to students from grades 1 through 8. I routinely run into my former students. They never fail to tell me how much they gained from the things we studied. Not one student or parent has told me, "gee it was such a waste of time to study the Renaissance, or read A Midsummer Night's Dream."

As for your high-achieving child, mazel tov.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

How would you know anything about the relative benefits of offering a content-rich curriculum? Are you an educator? Have you read any of the studies about urban schools and districts that use CK?

I've taught CK for several years to students from grades 1 through 8. I routinely run into my former students. They never fail to tell me how much they gained from the things we studied. Not one student or parent has told me, "gee it was such a waste of time to study the Renaissance, or read A Midsummer Night's Dream."

As for your high-achieving child, mazel tov.

Yes, educator, teach undergraduate economics. Read studies about K-12 curricula. Graduated from Hunter College HS in NYC and Ivy, product of GT programs. Raised in housing project by single mother, domestic worker. Don't want my preteen in class with same age-peers whose writing skills are too weak to complete basic written assignments. The lowest-performing students at Latin are sometimes tested orally while other kids submit essays.

As for my high-achieving child, she shouldn't have to end up in a private or MoCo program to take advantage of MS honors class.

[Anonymous]

Hmmm. 11:08--while I do not presume to know about how all the students at Latin are tested, I do know for a fact that they sometimes do oral testing instead of essay tests for their ELL learners---which is actually a good way to determine whether an ELL student is comprehending the content being taught. So I would not necessarily make the broad generalization that Latin orally tests "low performing" kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Read studies about K-12 curricula.

Name some

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

How would you know anything about the relative benefits of offering a content-rich curriculum? Are you an educator? Have you read any of the studies about urban schools and districts that use CK?

I've taught CK for several years to students from grades 1 through 8. I routinely run into my former students. They never fail to tell me how much they gained from the things we studied. Not one student or parent has told me, "gee it was such a waste of time to study the Renaissance, or read A Midsummer Night's Dream."

As for your high-achieving child, mazel tov.

Yes, educator, teach undergraduate economics. Read studies about K-12 curricula. Graduated from Hunter College HS in NYC and Ivy, product of GT programs. Raised in housing project by single mother, domestic worker. Don't want my preteen in class with same age-peers whose writing skills are too weak to complete basic written assignments. The lowest-performing students at Latin are sometimes tested orally while other kids submit essays.

As for my high-achieving child, she shouldn't have to end up in a private or MoCo program to take advantage of MS honors class.







It's unfortunate that you are not satisfied with your experience at Latin.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hmmm. 11:08--while I do not presume to know about how all the students at Latin are tested, I do know for a fact that they sometimes do oral testing instead of essay tests for their ELL learners---which is actually a good way to determine whether an ELL student is comprehending the content being taught. So I would not necessarily make the broad generalization that Latin orally tests "low performing" kids.

I'm German. In Germany, no way. Students write essays when they are tested. If a child cannot write well in German, the child takes a German as a second language class until he can. He does not take the highest level English class for the designated age group, as in Latin's middle school.

[Anonymous]

The PP who posted this article presented it as evidence that tracking is wrong-headed when what the author does is make the case that wrong-headed acceleration is harmful to students.

Accelerating too much, or for the wrong children, is obviously as harmful as not accelerating appropriately for the right children. Tracking, done thoughtfully, helps all learners, a lot, helping explain why it's back in fashion in elementary and middle schools all over the country. Teachers like it, parents like it, kids like it. Only DCPS, DCPC and a few holdout states and counties don't like it.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/06/11/teachers-why-so-many-kids-are-flunking-final-exams-in-montgomery-county/

[Anonymous]

Latin obviously has a different take on handling ELL than you're used to. So if you don't like the integrative approach, and feel like your kid is somehow shortchanged because of it, then don't attend Latin. The reality is that all charters, not just Latin, have to handle a variety of student needs---whether it be ELL or special Ed---and do not have the staff to offer full-day pull-out instruction for every student with a special need even if they were in pedagogical agreement with you, which I don't necessarily think they are. So they balance all of those needs to the best extent possible.

[Anonymous]

As a highly trained ELL teacher, I can assure you that best practice is EXACTLY what Latin is doing. An ELL student who can cognitively handle the rigorous material verbally should not be held back by a weakness in written English. While they are working on writing skills, these students should be accommodated with verbal assessments. I don't care what they do in Germany. Here we do everything possible to allow students to access rich and cognitively appropriate content while they are learning English

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

How would you know anything about the relative benefits of offering a content-rich curriculum? Are you an educator? Have you read any of the studies about urban schools and districts that use CK?

I've taught CK for several years to students from grades 1 through 8. I routinely run into my former students. They never fail to tell me how much they gained from the things we studied. Not one student or parent has told me, "gee it was such a waste of time to study the Renaissance, or read A Midsummer Night's Dream."

As for your high-achieving child, mazel tov.

Yes, educator, teach undergraduate economics. Read studies about K-12 curricula. Graduated from Hunter College HS in NYC and Ivy, product of GT programs. Raised in housing project by single mother, domestic worker. Don't want my preteen in class with same age-peers whose writing skills are too weak to complete basic written assignments. The lowest-performing students at Latin are sometimes tested orally while other kids submit essays.

As for my high-achieving child, she shouldn't have to end up in a private or MoCo program to take advantage of MS honors class.




Please send your child to BASIS DC. They track even English starting in 7th grade, and put kids in the proper math class based on diagnostic tests administered before school starts. We felt the same way about Washington Latin, made the leap of faith to go to BASIS this year and have not been disappointed. My dd is in a high enough grade so that many of the kids who could not keep up will fail the comprehensive exams and not return next year. It is not a test in school, but it is a school that you can actually flunk out of!

[Anonymous]

Birds of a feather will flock together. Enjoy each other there at Basis. Sounds like a lovely place. Not.

[Anonymous]

Gifted and Talented: Jessica Cutler and Ted Kaczinski

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: Yea, we're too picky, snooty, whatever.

Good, it sounds like you've identified the root of the problem.

I assure you that s/he hasn't identified it. The root of the problem is parents like you making do instead of demanding what's healthy and normal a few miles away, across the MD and VA lines: tracking to meet the academic needs of all the middle school kids.

what's healthy and normal in MD may not actually be healthy or normal

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/06/11/teachers-why-so-many-kids-are-flunking-final-exams-in-montgomery-county/

Intersting article. When you go to the MD board all you hear is whining about how preshus snowflake can't take accelerated math so it's good to see some data about why acceleration and honors for anyone with a parent who whines about it is not going to create great math students.

[Anonymous]

OTOH, I have out of morbid curiosity been following the threads on kids trying to test in to AAP (I think in VA, their version of G&T that seems to start in 3rd grade), and it does sound like a bunch of white folks gaming the system - people are being told to take the WISC if they had not before and reapply, the names of certain people who administer the tests are being repeated over and over again, and those tests are expensive and if the school system does not pay for them there is a problem from the get go. Furthermore, people are posting their kids scores and grades and accepted or rejected, and it seems very arbitrary, even to those parents whose kids got accepted. I know a lot of people do exaggerate on DCUM, having just been called a fake poster, but these parents who post high scores and good grades and then "rejected" where other parents commiserate, just don't seem to have much reason to lie.

As mentioned before the existence of honors/gifted/accelerated learning for young children with undeveloped minds really does create that lake wobegone effect with UMC parents can't accept that maybe their kid isn't the smartest person int he room so they they will lie, cheat, and complain their way into getting their child ahead, whether or not the kid really will benefit from it or not.

[Anonymous]

Wow, some of you truly spend far too much time engaged in wild angst-filled fantasy.

Regards, from a happy BASIS family.