Underwhelming appearance by Principal Martin at Wilson HS Open House

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't have a dog in this fight anymore (which probably means I will now get snarky comments), but I think everyone's fretting over something that is almost impossible to fix. If a big enough group of kids at Wilson didn't care about the PARCC because they were worried about AP's, thought it was stupid, thought is didn't really matter to them, then DCPS and Wilson need to work together to figure out a way to make it matter, assuming they in fact think it really does. If the test scores reflect the level of academic rigor at Wilson, or the schools that feed into it, then DCPS as a whole needs to take a new look at their curriculum. Either way, DCPS has to think the scores are worth caring about more than just the 5 minutes after they see them.

I think it's worth noting, though, that kids all over the country thought the test was stupid. Call it test fatigue or irritation that no one does (or can do) anything to fix the curriculum or achievement gap, but kids in many schools either opted out or put little effort into it. Wilson has many issues, but they aren't really all that different in this regard.

Beyond that, well done, Banneker.

Whether students and parents think they are dumb, other states, including Maryland, New Jersey, are making PARCC a graduation requirement. Virginia doesn't use PARCC but has its SOLs.

What makes Wilson different is they are the only cohort of high school students in the city to have, apparently, purposefully tanked the test.

It's the wrong message to send. Testing doesn't end when you finish elementary, middle, and high school. There's the LSAT, GMAT, MCAT. Kids better get use to it. Parents may have counseled their children to bomb the PARCC and focus on the AP. But in the real world, I have a lot of competing priorities at my job, and I can't just leave one project because I think another one is more important.

Right - but DCPS is screwing up PARCC by overtesting everyone.

For the reasons you mention, PARCC is only supposed to be given once, in 10th grade for ELA and whenever the student takes Geometry (that could be 8th, 9th, 10th or 11th for some students). Yes, some students are already taking one AP in 10th, but most APs and SAT/ACTs happen junior and senior year.

For whatever reason DCPS is giving PARCC to everyone, over and over. That isn't what OSSE requires. Of course kids and parents are pushing back. Parents should ask why -- because it goes beyond the 'state' mandate and gives more $ to Pearson.

My now 10th grader at a charter took PARCC in 8th, no PARCC in 9th, and will do it again for the last time this coming spring. Both DC and I can live with that. His AP teachers are aware of the schedule and plan study sessions and practice tests well in advance.

I don't have kids in the testing age but that sounds like overkill. Is there a way for parents to raise this issue with the chancellor or someone else rather than have their kids purposely bomb the test?

Sounds like parents already raised the issue, and were ignored.

Essentially, Wilson students and their parents, of every race and ethnicity, gave a Big Middle Finger to DCPS and to the school administration.

Who's right, who's wrong, doesn't matter. Reflects poorly on the school.

Knowing the full story, I don't think it does and I have no personal connection to Wilson.

Well, knowing the full story, can you please share a few details?

That some students recognized that preparing for other tests was a better use of their time and tanked this one to divert their energies elsewhere. As Deputy Mayor Niles said, it was a rational decision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't have a dog in this fight anymore (which probably means I will now get snarky comments), but I think everyone's fretting over something that is almost impossible to fix. If a big enough group of kids at Wilson didn't care about the PARCC because they were worried about AP's, thought it was stupid, thought is didn't really matter to them, then DCPS and Wilson need to work together to figure out a way to make it matter, assuming they in fact think it really does. If the test scores reflect the level of academic rigor at Wilson, or the schools that feed into it, then DCPS as a whole needs to take a new look at their curriculum. Either way, DCPS has to think the scores are worth caring about more than just the 5 minutes after they see them.

I think it's worth noting, though, that kids all over the country thought the test was stupid. Call it test fatigue or irritation that no one does (or can do) anything to fix the curriculum or achievement gap, but kids in many schools either opted out or put little effort into it. Wilson has many issues, but they aren't really all that different in this regard.

Beyond that, well done, Banneker.

Whether students and parents think they are dumb, other states, including Maryland, New Jersey, are making PARCC a graduation requirement. Virginia doesn't use PARCC but has its SOLs.

What makes Wilson different is they are the only cohort of high school students in the city to have, apparently, purposefully tanked the test.

It's the wrong message to send. Testing doesn't end when you finish elementary, middle, and high school. There's the LSAT, GMAT, MCAT. Kids better get use to it. Parents may have counseled their children to bomb the PARCC and focus on the AP. But in the real world, I have a lot of competing priorities at my job, and I can't just leave one project because I think another one is more important.

You must work for someone very dumb if they have you prioritizing things that have no bearing at all on what your job function is to the detriment of what your real tasks are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't have a dog in this fight anymore (which probably means I will now get snarky comments), but I think everyone's fretting over something that is almost impossible to fix. If a big enough group of kids at Wilson didn't care about the PARCC because they were worried about AP's, thought it was stupid, thought is didn't really matter to them, then DCPS and Wilson need to work together to figure out a way to make it matter, assuming they in fact think it really does. If the test scores reflect the level of academic rigor at Wilson, or the schools that feed into it, then DCPS as a whole needs to take a new look at their curriculum. Either way, DCPS has to think the scores are worth caring about more than just the 5 minutes after they see them.

I think it's worth noting, though, that kids all over the country thought the test was stupid. Call it test fatigue or irritation that no one does (or can do) anything to fix the curriculum or achievement gap, but kids in many schools either opted out or put little effort into it. Wilson has many issues, but they aren't really all that different in this regard.

Beyond that, well done, Banneker.

Whether students and parents think they are dumb, other states, including Maryland, New Jersey, are making PARCC a graduation requirement. Virginia doesn't use PARCC but has its SOLs.

What makes Wilson different is they are the only cohort of high school students in the city to have, apparently, purposefully tanked the test.

It's the wrong message to send. Testing doesn't end when you finish elementary, middle, and high school. There's the LSAT, GMAT, MCAT. Kids better get use to it. Parents may have counseled their children to bomb the PARCC and focus on the AP. But in the real world, I have a lot of competing priorities at my job, and I can't just leave one project because I think another one is more important.

Right - but DCPS is screwing up PARCC by overtesting everyone.

For the reasons you mention, PARCC is only supposed to be given once, in 10th grade for ELA and whenever the student takes Geometry (that could be 8th, 9th, 10th or 11th for some students). Yes, some students are already taking one AP in 10th, but most APs and SAT/ACTs happen junior and senior year.

For whatever reason DCPS is giving PARCC to everyone, over and over. That isn't what OSSE requires. Of course kids and parents are pushing back. Parents should ask why -- because it goes beyond the 'state' mandate and gives more $ to Pearson.

My now 10th grader at a charter took PARCC in 8th, no PARCC in 9th, and will do it again for the last time this coming spring. Both DC and I can live with that. His AP teachers are aware of the schedule and plan study sessions and practice tests well in advance.

I don't have kids in the testing age but that sounds like overkill. Is there a way for parents to raise this issue with the chancellor or someone else rather than have their kids purposely bomb the test?

Sounds like parents already raised the issue, and were ignored.

Essentially, Wilson students and their parents, of every race and ethnicity, gave a Big Middle Finger to DCPS and to the school administration.

Who's right, who's wrong, doesn't matter. Reflects poorly on the school.

Knowing the full story, I don't think it does and I have no personal connection to Wilson.

Well, knowing the full story, can you please share a few details?

That some students recognized that preparing for other tests was a better use of their time and tanked this one to divert their energies elsewhere. As Deputy Mayor Niles said, it was a rational decision.

Oh please. It was not SOME students. It was a broad majority of them, who (as rational as it might be for them) chose to make a show of the whole thing.

What I still don't get is how, or whether, this was a surprise to anyone. It's not as if the students were conspiring in some dark corner somewhere. This was obvious, and in allowing it DCPS put city-wide testing in jeopardy.

Who will take PARCC seriously next time?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So the only way Wilson scores could have dropped is because the students purposely threw the test? No chance that the emperor has no clothes?

No way to know.

There's 2 possibilities here:

a) whatever happened at Wilson is way beyond the principal's pay grade

b) she personally opposes testing and accountability...and this was a very smart way to avoid it altogether

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't have a dog in this fight anymore (which probably means I will now get snarky comments), but I think everyone's fretting over something that is almost impossible to fix. If a big enough group of kids at Wilson didn't care about the PARCC because they were worried about AP's, thought it was stupid, thought is didn't really matter to them, then DCPS and Wilson need to work together to figure out a way to make it matter, assuming they in fact think it really does. If the test scores reflect the level of academic rigor at Wilson, or the schools that feed into it, then DCPS as a whole needs to take a new look at their curriculum. Either way, DCPS has to think the scores are worth caring about more than just the 5 minutes after they see them.

I think it's worth noting, though, that kids all over the country thought the test was stupid. Call it test fatigue or irritation that no one does (or can do) anything to fix the curriculum or achievement gap, but kids in many schools either opted out or put little effort into it. Wilson has many issues, but they aren't really all that different in this regard.

Beyond that, well done, Banneker.

Whether students and parents think they are dumb, other states, including Maryland, New Jersey, are making PARCC a graduation requirement. Virginia doesn't use PARCC but has its SOLs.

What makes Wilson different is they are the only cohort of high school students in the city to have, apparently, purposefully tanked the test.

It's the wrong message to send. Testing doesn't end when you finish elementary, middle, and high school. There's the LSAT, GMAT, MCAT. Kids better get use to it. Parents may have counseled their children to bomb the PARCC and focus on the AP. But in the real world, I have a lot of competing priorities at my job, and I can't just leave one project because I think another one is more important.

Right - but DCPS is screwing up PARCC by overtesting everyone.

For the reasons you mention, PARCC is only supposed to be given once, in 10th grade for ELA and whenever the student takes Geometry (that could be 8th, 9th, 10th or 11th for some students). Yes, some students are already taking one AP in 10th, but most APs and SAT/ACTs happen junior and senior year.

For whatever reason DCPS is giving PARCC to everyone, over and over. That isn't what OSSE requires. Of course kids and parents are pushing back. Parents should ask why -- because it goes beyond the 'state' mandate and gives more $ to Pearson.

My now 10th grader at a charter took PARCC in 8th, no PARCC in 9th, and will do it again for the last time this coming spring. Both DC and I can live with that. His AP teachers are aware of the schedule and plan study sessions and practice tests well in advance.

I don't have kids in the testing age but that sounds like overkill. Is there a way for parents to raise this issue with the chancellor or someone else rather than have their kids purposely bomb the test?

Sounds like parents already raised the issue, and were ignored.

Essentially, Wilson students and their parents, of every race and ethnicity, gave a Big Middle Finger to DCPS and to the school administration.

Who's right, who's wrong, doesn't matter. Reflects poorly on the school.

Knowing the full story, I don't think it does and I have no personal connection to Wilson.

Well, knowing the full story, can you please share a few details?

That some students recognized that preparing for other tests was a better use of their time and tanked this one to divert their energies elsewhere. As Deputy Mayor Niles said, it was a rational decision.

Oh please. It was not SOME students. It was a broad majority of them, who (as rational as it might be for them) chose to make a show of the whole thing.

What I still don't get is how, or whether, this was a surprise to anyone. It's not as if the students were conspiring in some dark corner somewhere. This was obvious, and in allowing it DCPS put city-wide testing in jeopardy.

Who will take PARCC seriously next time?

It was the opposite of a big show. Students just quietly ignored the PARCC to focus on more important things. It wasn't a giant organized effort. There wasn't protest marches and chants. It was just kids realizing that they had more important things to focus on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't have a dog in this fight anymore (which probably means I will now get snarky comments), but I think everyone's fretting over something that is almost impossible to fix. If a big enough group of kids at Wilson didn't care about the PARCC because they were worried about AP's, thought it was stupid, thought is didn't really matter to them, then DCPS and Wilson need to work together to figure out a way to make it matter, assuming they in fact think it really does. If the test scores reflect the level of academic rigor at Wilson, or the schools that feed into it, then DCPS as a whole needs to take a new look at their curriculum. Either way, DCPS has to think the scores are worth caring about more than just the 5 minutes after they see them.

I think it's worth noting, though, that kids all over the country thought the test was stupid. Call it test fatigue or irritation that no one does (or can do) anything to fix the curriculum or achievement gap, but kids in many schools either opted out or put little effort into it. Wilson has many issues, but they aren't really all that different in this regard.

Beyond that, well done, Banneker.

Whether students and parents think they are dumb, other states, including Maryland, New Jersey, are making PARCC a graduation requirement. Virginia doesn't use PARCC but has its SOLs.

What makes Wilson different is they are the only cohort of high school students in the city to have, apparently, purposefully tanked the test.

It's the wrong message to send. Testing doesn't end when you finish elementary, middle, and high school. There's the LSAT, GMAT, MCAT. Kids better get use to it. Parents may have counseled their children to bomb the PARCC and focus on the AP. But in the real world, I have a lot of competing priorities at my job, and I can't just leave one project because I think another one is more important.

Right - but DCPS is screwing up PARCC by overtesting everyone.

For the reasons you mention, PARCC is only supposed to be given once, in 10th grade for ELA and whenever the student takes Geometry (that could be 8th, 9th, 10th or 11th for some students). Yes, some students are already taking one AP in 10th, but most APs and SAT/ACTs happen junior and senior year.

For whatever reason DCPS is giving PARCC to everyone, over and over. That isn't what OSSE requires. Of course kids and parents are pushing back. Parents should ask why -- because it goes beyond the 'state' mandate and gives more $ to Pearson.

My now 10th grader at a charter took PARCC in 8th, no PARCC in 9th, and will do it again for the last time this coming spring. Both DC and I can live with that. His AP teachers are aware of the schedule and plan study sessions and practice tests well in advance.

I don't have kids in the testing age but that sounds like overkill. Is there a way for parents to raise this issue with the chancellor or someone else rather than have their kids purposely bomb the test?

Sounds like parents already raised the issue, and were ignored.

Essentially, Wilson students and their parents, of every race and ethnicity, gave a Big Middle Finger to DCPS and to the school administration.

Who's right, who's wrong, doesn't matter. Reflects poorly on the school.

Knowing the full story, I don't think it does and I have no personal connection to Wilson.

Well, knowing the full story, can you please share a few details?

That some students recognized that preparing for other tests was a better use of their time and tanked this one to divert their energies elsewhere. As Deputy Mayor Niles said, it was a rational decision.

Oh please. It was not SOME students. It was a broad majority of them, who (as rational as it might be for them) chose to make a show of the whole thing.

What I still don't get is how, or whether, this was a surprise to anyone. It's not as if the students were conspiring in some dark corner somewhere. This was obvious, and in allowing it DCPS put city-wide testing in jeopardy.

Who will take PARCC seriously next time?

It was the opposite of a big show. Students just quietly ignored the PARCC to focus on more important things. It wasn't a giant organized effort. There wasn't protest marches and chants. It was just kids realizing that they had more important things to focus on.

Well, sometimes simple actions speak louder than marches and chants. They just got a new WaPo story fully focused on what happened.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't have a dog in this fight anymore (which probably means I will now get snarky comments), but I think everyone's fretting over something that is almost impossible to fix. If a big enough group of kids at Wilson didn't care about the PARCC because they were worried about AP's, thought it was stupid, thought is didn't really matter to them, then DCPS and Wilson need to work together to figure out a way to make it matter, assuming they in fact think it really does. If the test scores reflect the level of academic rigor at Wilson, or the schools that feed into it, then DCPS as a whole needs to take a new look at their curriculum. Either way, DCPS has to think the scores are worth caring about more than just the 5 minutes after they see them.

I think it's worth noting, though, that kids all over the country thought the test was stupid. Call it test fatigue or irritation that no one does (or can do) anything to fix the curriculum or achievement gap, but kids in many schools either opted out or put little effort into it. Wilson has many issues, but they aren't really all that different in this regard.

Beyond that, well done, Banneker.

Whether students and parents think they are dumb, other states, including Maryland, New Jersey, are making PARCC a graduation requirement. Virginia doesn't use PARCC but has its SOLs.

What makes Wilson different is they are the only cohort of high school students in the city to have, apparently, purposefully tanked the test.

It's the wrong message to send. Testing doesn't end when you finish elementary, middle, and high school. There's the LSAT, GMAT, MCAT. Kids better get use to it. Parents may have counseled their children to bomb the PARCC and focus on the AP. But in the real world, I have a lot of competing priorities at my job, and I can't just leave one project because I think another one is more important.

Right - but DCPS is screwing up PARCC by overtesting everyone.

For the reasons you mention, PARCC is only supposed to be given once, in 10th grade for ELA and whenever the student takes Geometry (that could be 8th, 9th, 10th or 11th for some students). Yes, some students are already taking one AP in 10th, but most APs and SAT/ACTs happen junior and senior year.

For whatever reason DCPS is giving PARCC to everyone, over and over. That isn't what OSSE requires. Of course kids and parents are pushing back. Parents should ask why -- because it goes beyond the 'state' mandate and gives more $ to Pearson.

My now 10th grader at a charter took PARCC in 8th, no PARCC in 9th, and will do it again for the last time this coming spring. Both DC and I can live with that. His AP teachers are aware of the schedule and plan study sessions and practice tests well in advance.

I don't have kids in the testing age but that sounds like overkill. Is there a way for parents to raise this issue with the chancellor or someone else rather than have their kids purposely bomb the test?

Sounds like parents already raised the issue, and were ignored.

Essentially, Wilson students and their parents, of every race and ethnicity, gave a Big Middle Finger to DCPS and to the school administration.

Who's right, who's wrong, doesn't matter. Reflects poorly on the school.

Knowing the full story, I don't think it does and I have no personal connection to Wilson.

Well, knowing the full story, can you please share a few details?

That some students recognized that preparing for other tests was a better use of their time and tanked this one to divert their energies elsewhere. As Deputy Mayor Niles said, it was a rational decision.

Oh please. It was not SOME students. It was a broad majority of them, who (as rational as it might be for them) chose to make a show of the whole thing.

What I still don't get is how, or whether, this was a surprise to anyone. It's not as if the students were conspiring in some dark corner somewhere. This was obvious, and in allowing it DCPS put city-wide testing in jeopardy.

Who will take PARCC seriously next time?

Oh Please??? Listen, I don't give enough of a fuck to quibble if it was SOME or many. I was just answering the question of the PP who is too dense to RTFF.

[Anonymous]

So kids just wander around at Wilson and no one knows or cares where they are?
Or where they are supposed to be?

[Anonymous]

There were also PARCC makeup days? No one went to the girl in the Post (sho didn't take it at all) and tell her to go take the darn test?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't have a dog in this fight anymore (which probably means I will now get snarky comments), but I think everyone's fretting over something that is almost impossible to fix. If a big enough group of kids at Wilson didn't care about the PARCC because they were worried about AP's, thought it was stupid, thought is didn't really matter to them, then DCPS and Wilson need to work together to figure out a way to make it matter, assuming they in fact think it really does. If the test scores reflect the level of academic rigor at Wilson, or the schools that feed into it, then DCPS as a whole needs to take a new look at their curriculum. Either way, DCPS has to think the scores are worth caring about more than just the 5 minutes after they see them.

I think it's worth noting, though, that kids all over the country thought the test was stupid. Call it test fatigue or irritation that no one does (or can do) anything to fix the curriculum or achievement gap, but kids in many schools either opted out or put little effort into it. Wilson has many issues, but they aren't really all that different in this regard.

Beyond that, well done, Banneker.

Whether students and parents think they are dumb, other states, including Maryland, New Jersey, are making PARCC a graduation requirement. Virginia doesn't use PARCC but has its SOLs.

What makes Wilson different is they are the only cohort of high school students in the city to have, apparently, purposefully tanked the test.

It's the wrong message to send. Testing doesn't end when you finish elementary, middle, and high school. There's the LSAT, GMAT, MCAT. Kids better get use to it. Parents may have counseled their children to bomb the PARCC and focus on the AP. But in the real world, I have a lot of competing priorities at my job, and I can't just leave one project because I think another one is more important.

Right - but DCPS is screwing up PARCC by overtesting everyone.

For the reasons you mention, PARCC is only supposed to be given once, in 10th grade for ELA and whenever the student takes Geometry (that could be 8th, 9th, 10th or 11th for some students). Yes, some students are already taking one AP in 10th, but most APs and SAT/ACTs happen junior and senior year.

For whatever reason DCPS is giving PARCC to everyone, over and over. That isn't what OSSE requires. Of course kids and parents are pushing back. Parents should ask why -- because it goes beyond the 'state' mandate and gives more $ to Pearson.

My now 10th grader at a charter took PARCC in 8th, no PARCC in 9th, and will do it again for the last time this coming spring. Both DC and I can live with that. His AP teachers are aware of the schedule and plan study sessions and practice tests well in advance.

I don't have kids in the testing age but that sounds like overkill. Is there a way for parents to raise this issue with the chancellor or someone else rather than have their kids purposely bomb the test?

Sounds like parents already raised the issue, and were ignored.

Essentially, Wilson students and their parents, of every race and ethnicity, gave a Big Middle Finger to DCPS and to the school administration.

Who's right, who's wrong, doesn't matter. Reflects poorly on the school.

Knowing the full story, I don't think it does and I have no personal connection to Wilson.

Well, knowing the full story, can you please share a few details?

That some students recognized that preparing for other tests was a better use of their time and tanked this one to divert their energies elsewhere. As Deputy Mayor Niles said, it was a rational decision.

Oh please. It was not SOME students. It was a broad majority of them, who (as rational as it might be for them) chose to make a show of the whole thing.

What I still don't get is how, or whether, this was a surprise to anyone. It's not as if the students were conspiring in some dark corner somewhere. This was obvious, and in allowing it DCPS put city-wide testing in jeopardy.

Who will take PARCC seriously next time?

Oh Please??? Listen, I don't give enough of a fuck to quibble if it was SOME or many. I was just answering the question of the PP who is too dense to RTFF.

If you work on your language before you graduate, you may have a chance at going to a good college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There were also PARCC makeup days? No one went to the girl in the Post (sho didn't take it at all) and tell her to go take the darn test?

Great question.

I suspect there will be a follow-up article to the follow-up article.

[Anonymous]

What I don't understand is why Wilson claims the test scores dropped because students either didn't take the test or didn't take it seriously. Yet at SWW, with 99% of students taking the test, they had a big drop too. And yet Banneker had a big increase. Does anyone in Dcps have any idea what really happened with the test when the results are all over the place?

[Anonymous]

Parents, where are your kids right now? Get them home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What I don't understand is why Wilson claims the test scores dropped because students either didn't take the test or didn't take it seriously. Yet at SWW, with 99% of students taking the test, they had a big drop too. And yet Banneker had a big increase. Does anyone in Dcps have any idea what really happened with the test when the results are all over the place?

+1

[Anonymous]

I think all of these "changes" are going to fall into place once Kaya is out of the picture once and for all. The dead weight will (hopefully) be dropped and real leaders will move these struggling schools out of the slump they have been in. All of these years after Rhee's reforms and DCPS STILL has schools that are scoring in the single digits for ELA AND Math???? that is insanity! New York is a harder place to live and even NYC doesn't see the kinds of scores that DCPS produces.