Your prediction? Here come the USNWR updates

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is about the soon to be released, UPDATED (emphasis added) ranking for high schools.

I just checked, and the website states:

“U.S. News anticipates the next update of high school rankings will not be released until August 2025, closer to that year’s update of elementary and middle schools. . . .
Altogether, the rankings and data are intended to be one resource, not the final word, for parents considering educational opportunities for their children.”


Please don’t dilute the topic with the same old fights which dominate the other thread. My thread is about the upcoming rankings for public high schools, due out next month.

TIA!

My prediction: back to #1

With the new process eliminating the widespread cheating, TJ will be back on top.

Cheating? That sounds like news. Do you have links to any newspaper articles?

It was well covered here numerous times. You can use the search function to learn more.

No, you had a few teenagers on social media that were virtue signalling about how privileged they were to come from a family that could afford $3000/year after school program.

The cheating at TJ is probably about the same now as it was before and is probably about the same as it is among the former AAP cohort at every high school.

$3000 a year? Piano and a travel sport are $4000 each. and there are various hobby programs (chess, painting, summer camp etc) costing another $4000.

#wealthykidactivities

AKA Fairfax kid activities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are so lame for starting this. Don't you have better things to do? We all know what your agenda is and that is to target TJ. You are just dying to see if it fell further in rankings so you can blame it on some woke agenda and cause unnecessary strife. Get a life, OP.

DP
So we should not be checking on the progress of a highly controversial change to see if it was a good idea or more left wing buffoonery?

DP - what we shouldn't be doing is 1) ranking high schools in the first place; 2) relying on some outdated method of trying to compare schools that have completely different profiles that is put forth by a magazine that seemingly only still exists to do this set of rankings.

You're creating a false choice here. I agree that the change was highly controversial (I personally believe that there were a lot of positives and a few negatives that are starting to regulate themselves), but it's not appropriate to pretend that the USNWR rankings are some objective measure of the caliber of the school.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long list of indicators.

PSAT scores down over 100 points with SAT scores likely dropped a similar amount.

College acceptance significantly worse than in the past.

A tenfold increase in number of students returning to base school.

A mass email sent out by the math department expressing disappointment in student performance.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long lost of indicators.

I didn't know what real positives there are. There are a few superficial cosmetic positives but nothing real.

TJ students were just as affected by Covid as all other kids. PSAT scores and math are going to affected by school closings during COVID. TJ kids aren't immune to crisis in the world.

TJ kids going back to base school doesn't necessarily mean they didn't cut it at TJ. By design the new TJ admissions process is looking for well rounded kids who have interests outside of just academics. I can see how some kids may want to return to their base school to pursue interests that TJ doesn't offer or offers but not at the same level- football. choir, guitar, a particular language, etc.

College acceptances aren't worse they are more realistic. The change in the testing method was partially due to increasing economic diversity at the school. Bright kids would couldn't be penalized for not being able to afford test prep classes. And it worked! But that also means that these kids can't always afford private ivy colleges, or out of state schools. You will see more staying in state or taking full ride scholarships Mason- where they can stay home and not pay for dorms and food.

OP and people like OP aren't critical thinkers. They really don't look beyond surface level data to see what is really happening on the ground.

TJ is very much still a success story. FCPS schools are still very much some of the best in the country. And we are very lucky to have them for now... until people like OP shut them down.

Then why was TJ the only school that saw this sort of drop in PSAT scores, SOL scores? Why didn't Stuyvesant see this sort of COVID effect on their PSAT scores? Why didn't McLean or Chantilly or Woodson see this sort of drop in SOL scores? Nah, this was TJ specific phenomenon. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

The number of kids returning to base went from a small handful of 3 or 4 to ~40. They didn't come to TJ because they were interested in playing football, they didn't leave TJ because they wanted more football. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

College acceptances are pretty clearly worse and almost every highly selective university gives free rides to FARM kids. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

TJ is still a good school but it will have an average SAT score in the low 1400s instead of the 1500s.

Because TJ was the only school that saw a large increase in kids from low-income families.

SAT scores correlate with family wealth.

Wealth does not drive SAT scores.
Cognitive ability drives SAT scores,

If there is a correlation between wealth and SAT scores, that is because there is a correlation between wealth and cognitive ability.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are so lame for starting this. Don't you have better things to do? We all know what your agenda is and that is to target TJ. You are just dying to see if it fell further in rankings so you can blame it on some woke agenda and cause unnecessary strife. Get a life, OP.

DP
So we should not be checking on the progress of a highly controversial change to see if it was a good idea or more left wing buffoonery?

DP - what we shouldn't be doing is 1) ranking high schools in the first place; 2) relying on some outdated method of trying to compare schools that have completely different profiles that is put forth by a magazine that seemingly only still exists to do this set of rankings.

You're creating a false choice here. I agree that the change was highly controversial (I personally believe that there were a lot of positives and a few negatives that are starting to regulate themselves), but it's not appropriate to pretend that the USNWR rankings are some objective measure of the caliber of the school.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long list of indicators.

PSAT scores down over 100 points with SAT scores likely dropped a similar amount.

College acceptance significantly worse than in the past.

A tenfold increase in number of students returning to base school.

A mass email sent out by the math department expressing disappointment in student performance.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long lost of indicators.

I didn't know what real positives there are. There are a few superficial cosmetic positives but nothing real.

TJ students were just as affected by Covid as all other kids. PSAT scores and math are going to affected by school closings during COVID. TJ kids aren't immune to crisis in the world.

TJ kids going back to base school doesn't necessarily mean they didn't cut it at TJ. By design the new TJ admissions process is looking for well rounded kids who have interests outside of just academics. I can see how some kids may want to return to their base school to pursue interests that TJ doesn't offer or offers but not at the same level- football. choir, guitar, a particular language, etc.

College acceptances aren't worse they are more realistic. The change in the testing method was partially due to increasing economic diversity at the school. Bright kids would couldn't be penalized for not being able to afford test prep classes. And it worked! But that also means that these kids can't always afford private ivy colleges, or out of state schools. You will see more staying in state or taking full ride scholarships Mason- where they can stay home and not pay for dorms and food.

OP and people like OP aren't critical thinkers. They really don't look beyond surface level data to see what is really happening on the ground.

TJ is very much still a success story. FCPS schools are still very much some of the best in the country. And we are very lucky to have them for now... until people like OP shut them down.

Then why was TJ the only school that saw this sort of drop in PSAT scores, SOL scores? Why didn't Stuyvesant see this sort of COVID effect on their PSAT scores? Why didn't McLean or Chantilly or Woodson see this sort of drop in SOL scores? Nah, this was TJ specific phenomenon. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

The number of kids returning to base went from a small handful of 3 or 4 to ~40. They didn't come to TJ because they were interested in playing football, they didn't leave TJ because they wanted more football. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

College acceptances are pretty clearly worse and almost every highly selective university gives free rides to FARM kids. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

TJ is still a good school but it will have an average SAT score in the low 1400s instead of the 1500s.

Because TJ was the only school that saw a large increase in kids from low-income families.

SAT scores correlate with family wealth.

The scores dropped because of “experience factor” points and the 1.5% dedicated to every middle school. Along with doing away with the admissions test that tested for MATH at a STEM school. This led to students with less academic ability getting into TJ and prevented more highly academically qualified students from being admitted.

The same thing would happen if the state championship football team decided that football drills/scrimmages aren’t the best method to determine top talent and switched to having players show off their soccer skills and then gave bonus points to kids in orchestra and theater because it isn’t fair that they haven’t been prepped for football and they should get a chance to play too. You would still get a lot of players who are great at football because that’s who would be trying out, but some of the best players would be missed because they aren’t fast enough runners or they aren’t able to show off their football throwing skills. The orchestra/theater kids who were the most athletic of their groups would get in because the coaches decided to make the bonus points high enough that a certain percent of orchestra/theater kids made the team to better reflect the student population.

The football team used to be state champions and win all of their games by a large margin. Now they are still a good team that has the best coaches, trainers, and practice facilities but the not so great football players would still be on the field and cause more turnovers and less touchdowns.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are so lame for starting this. Don't you have better things to do? We all know what your agenda is and that is to target TJ. You are just dying to see if it fell further in rankings so you can blame it on some woke agenda and cause unnecessary strife. Get a life, OP.

DP
So we should not be checking on the progress of a highly controversial change to see if it was a good idea or more left wing buffoonery?

DP - what we shouldn't be doing is 1) ranking high schools in the first place; 2) relying on some outdated method of trying to compare schools that have completely different profiles that is put forth by a magazine that seemingly only still exists to do this set of rankings.

You're creating a false choice here. I agree that the change was highly controversial (I personally believe that there were a lot of positives and a few negatives that are starting to regulate themselves), but it's not appropriate to pretend that the USNWR rankings are some objective measure of the caliber of the school.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long list of indicators.

PSAT scores down over 100 points with SAT scores likely dropped a similar amount.

College acceptance significantly worse than in the past.

A tenfold increase in number of students returning to base school.

A mass email sent out by the math department expressing disappointment in student performance.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long lost of indicators.

I didn't know what real positives there are. There are a few superficial cosmetic positives but nothing real.

TJ students were just as affected by Covid as all other kids. PSAT scores and math are going to affected by school closings during COVID. TJ kids aren't immune to crisis in the world.

TJ kids going back to base school doesn't necessarily mean they didn't cut it at TJ. By design the new TJ admissions process is looking for well rounded kids who have interests outside of just academics. I can see how some kids may want to return to their base school to pursue interests that TJ doesn't offer or offers but not at the same level- football. choir, guitar, a particular language, etc.

College acceptances aren't worse they are more realistic. The change in the testing method was partially due to increasing economic diversity at the school. Bright kids would couldn't be penalized for not being able to afford test prep classes. And it worked! But that also means that these kids can't always afford private ivy colleges, or out of state schools. You will see more staying in state or taking full ride scholarships Mason- where they can stay home and not pay for dorms and food.

OP and people like OP aren't critical thinkers. They really don't look beyond surface level data to see what is really happening on the ground.

TJ is very much still a success story. FCPS schools are still very much some of the best in the country. And we are very lucky to have them for now... until people like OP shut them down.

Then why was TJ the only school that saw this sort of drop in PSAT scores, SOL scores? Why didn't Stuyvesant see this sort of COVID effect on their PSAT scores? Why didn't McLean or Chantilly or Woodson see this sort of drop in SOL scores? Nah, this was TJ specific phenomenon. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

The number of kids returning to base went from a small handful of 3 or 4 to ~40. They didn't come to TJ because they were interested in playing football, they didn't leave TJ because they wanted more football. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

College acceptances are pretty clearly worse and almost every highly selective university gives free rides to FARM kids. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

TJ is still a good school but it will have an average SAT score in the low 1400s instead of the 1500s.

Because TJ was the only school that saw a large increase in kids from low-income families.

SAT scores correlate with family wealth.

Wealth does not drive SAT scores.
Cognitive ability drives SAT scores,

If there is a correlation between wealth and SAT scores, that is because there is a correlation between wealth and cognitive ability.

100%. Cognitive ability leads to higher SAT scores. Parents are the most influential people when it comes to their children’s cognitive ability. Cognitive ability is partially genetic and the rest comes from your environment and what your are exposed to plus factors such as self motivation, academic disabilities. Parents who read to their children and speak to them from birth will have kids with higher IQs than if they plop their kids in front of a screen all day and ignore them. If parents are intelligent their children will learn vocabulary and new concepts from their parents. If the parents aren’t intelligent, children will learn that too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This thread is about the soon to be released, UPDATED (emphasis added) ranking for high schools.

I just checked, and the website states:

“U.S. News anticipates the next update of high school rankings will not be released until August 2025, closer to that year’s update of elementary and middle schools. . . .
Altogether, the rankings and data are intended to be one resource, not the final word, for parents considering educational opportunities for their children.”


Please don’t dilute the topic with the same old fights which dominate the other thread. My thread is about the upcoming rankings for public high schools, due out next month.

TIA!

I predict it will be more of the same kind of stupid. Ranking high schools is a special kind of stupid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is about the soon to be released, UPDATED (emphasis added) ranking for high schools.

I just checked, and the website states:

“U.S. News anticipates the next update of high school rankings will not be released until August 2025, closer to that year’s update of elementary and middle schools. . . .
Altogether, the rankings and data are intended to be one resource, not the final word, for parents considering educational opportunities for their children.”


Please don’t dilute the topic with the same old fights which dominate the other thread. My thread is about the upcoming rankings for public high schools, due out next month.

TIA!

My prediction: back to #1

With the new process eliminating the widespread cheating, TJ will be back on top.

Cheating? That sounds like news. Do you have links to any newspaper articles?

It was well covered here numerous times. You can use the search function to learn more.

No, you had a few teenagers on social media that were virtue signalling about how privileged they were to come from a family that could afford $3000/year after school program.

The cheating at TJ is probably about the same now as it was before and is probably about the same as it is among the former AAP cohort at every high school.

$3000 a year? Piano and a travel sport are $4000 each. and there are various hobby programs (chess, painting, summer camp etc) costing another $4000.

$3000/year is about how much curie costs.

Tae kwon do is about $4000/ year too.

With the special add-on classes and question Bank access, I heard it can run up to 30 grand if you want the full package

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is about the soon to be released, UPDATED (emphasis added) ranking for high schools.

I just checked, and the website states:

“U.S. News anticipates the next update of high school rankings will not be released until August 2025, closer to that year’s update of elementary and middle schools. . . .
Altogether, the rankings and data are intended to be one resource, not the final word, for parents considering educational opportunities for their children.”


Please don’t dilute the topic with the same old fights which dominate the other thread. My thread is about the upcoming rankings for public high schools, due out next month.

TIA!

My prediction: back to #1

With the new process eliminating the widespread cheating, TJ will be back on top.

Cheating? That sounds like news. Do you have links to any newspaper articles?

It was well covered here numerous times. You can use the search function to learn more.

No, you had a few teenagers on social media that were virtue signalling about how privileged they were to come from a family that could afford $3000/year after school program.

The cheating at TJ is probably about the same now as it was before and is probably about the same as it is among the former AAP cohort at every high school.

$3000 a year? Piano and a travel sport are $4000 each. and there are various hobby programs (chess, painting, summer camp etc) costing another $4000.

$3000/year is about how much curie costs.

Tae kwon do is about $4000/ year too.

With the special add-on classes and question Bank access, I heard it can run up to 30 grand if you want the full package

You "heard" that? The way Trump "heard" the things he presents as facts and uses as the basis for policy and executive orders?

The only add on class is a test prep class with 6 sessions for $300.

[Anonymous]

These loons are here to push a specific narrative- that the new TJ admissions process is rigged because of prep programs. It isn't.

There is no way to prep for the essay based entrance exam. You should know to write in complete sentences with proper grammar and punctuation. You should know to answer a question directly. You should know to pursue your interests to make yourself a well rounded person. These are things you learn in elementary and middle school. If your kid doesn't know, then they aren't TJ material. A short prep course isn't going to help your kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are so lame for starting this. Don't you have better things to do? We all know what your agenda is and that is to target TJ. You are just dying to see if it fell further in rankings so you can blame it on some woke agenda and cause unnecessary strife. Get a life, OP.

DP
So we should not be checking on the progress of a highly controversial change to see if it was a good idea or more left wing buffoonery?

DP - what we shouldn't be doing is 1) ranking high schools in the first place; 2) relying on some outdated method of trying to compare schools that have completely different profiles that is put forth by a magazine that seemingly only still exists to do this set of rankings.

You're creating a false choice here. I agree that the change was highly controversial (I personally believe that there were a lot of positives and a few negatives that are starting to regulate themselves), but it's not appropriate to pretend that the USNWR rankings are some objective measure of the caliber of the school.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long list of indicators.

PSAT scores down over 100 points with SAT scores likely dropped a similar amount.

College acceptance significantly worse than in the past.

A tenfold increase in number of students returning to base school.

A mass email sent out by the math department expressing disappointment in student performance.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long lost of indicators.

I didn't know what real positives there are. There are a few superficial cosmetic positives but nothing real.

TJ students were just as affected by Covid as all other kids. PSAT scores and math are going to affected by school closings during COVID. TJ kids aren't immune to crisis in the world.

TJ kids going back to base school doesn't necessarily mean they didn't cut it at TJ. By design the new TJ admissions process is looking for well rounded kids who have interests outside of just academics. I can see how some kids may want to return to their base school to pursue interests that TJ doesn't offer or offers but not at the same level- football. choir, guitar, a particular language, etc.

College acceptances aren't worse they are more realistic. The change in the testing method was partially due to increasing economic diversity at the school. Bright kids would couldn't be penalized for not being able to afford test prep classes. And it worked! But that also means that these kids can't always afford private ivy colleges, or out of state schools. You will see more staying in state or taking full ride scholarships Mason- where they can stay home and not pay for dorms and food.

OP and people like OP aren't critical thinkers. They really don't look beyond surface level data to see what is really happening on the ground.

TJ is very much still a success story. FCPS schools are still very much some of the best in the country. And we are very lucky to have them for now... until people like OP shut them down.

Then why was TJ the only school that saw this sort of drop in PSAT scores, SOL scores? Why didn't Stuyvesant see this sort of COVID effect on their PSAT scores? Why didn't McLean or Chantilly or Woodson see this sort of drop in SOL scores? Nah, this was TJ specific phenomenon. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

The number of kids returning to base went from a small handful of 3 or 4 to ~40. They didn't come to TJ because they were interested in playing football, they didn't leave TJ because they wanted more football. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

College acceptances are pretty clearly worse and almost every highly selective university gives free rides to FARM kids. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

TJ is still a good school but it will have an average SAT score in the low 1400s instead of the 1500s.

Because TJ was the only school that saw a large increase in kids from low-income families.

SAT scores correlate with family wealth.

The scores dropped because of “experience factor” points and the 1.5% dedicated to every middle school. Along with doing away with the admissions test that tested for MATH at a STEM school. This led to students with less academic ability getting into TJ and prevented more highly academically qualified students from being admitted.

The same thing would happen if the state championship football team decided that football drills/scrimmages aren’t the best method to determine top talent and switched to having players show off their soccer skills and then gave bonus points to kids in orchestra and theater because it isn’t fair that they haven’t been prepped for football and they should get a chance to play too. You would still get a lot of players who are great at football because that’s who would be trying out, but some of the best players would be missed because they aren’t fast enough runners or they aren’t able to show off their football throwing skills. The orchestra/theater kids who were the most athletic of their groups would get in because the coaches decided to make the bonus points high enough that a certain percent of orchestra/theater kids made the team to better reflect the student population.

The football team used to be state champions and win all of their games by a large margin. Now they are still a good team that has the best coaches, trainers, and practice facilities but the not so great football players would still be on the field and cause more turnovers and less touchdowns.

Great analogy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are so lame for starting this. Don't you have better things to do? We all know what your agenda is and that is to target TJ. You are just dying to see if it fell further in rankings so you can blame it on some woke agenda and cause unnecessary strife. Get a life, OP.

DP
So we should not be checking on the progress of a highly controversial change to see if it was a good idea or more left wing buffoonery?

DP - what we shouldn't be doing is 1) ranking high schools in the first place; 2) relying on some outdated method of trying to compare schools that have completely different profiles that is put forth by a magazine that seemingly only still exists to do this set of rankings.

You're creating a false choice here. I agree that the change was highly controversial (I personally believe that there were a lot of positives and a few negatives that are starting to regulate themselves), but it's not appropriate to pretend that the USNWR rankings are some objective measure of the caliber of the school.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long list of indicators.

PSAT scores down over 100 points with SAT scores likely dropped a similar amount.

College acceptance significantly worse than in the past.

A tenfold increase in number of students returning to base school.

A mass email sent out by the math department expressing disappointment in student performance.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long lost of indicators.

I didn't know what real positives there are. There are a few superficial cosmetic positives but nothing real.

TJ students were just as affected by Covid as all other kids. PSAT scores and math are going to affected by school closings during COVID. TJ kids aren't immune to crisis in the world.

TJ kids going back to base school doesn't necessarily mean they didn't cut it at TJ. By design the new TJ admissions process is looking for well rounded kids who have interests outside of just academics. I can see how some kids may want to return to their base school to pursue interests that TJ doesn't offer or offers but not at the same level- football. choir, guitar, a particular language, etc.

College acceptances aren't worse they are more realistic. The change in the testing method was partially due to increasing economic diversity at the school. Bright kids would couldn't be penalized for not being able to afford test prep classes. And it worked! But that also means that these kids can't always afford private ivy colleges, or out of state schools. You will see more staying in state or taking full ride scholarships Mason- where they can stay home and not pay for dorms and food.

OP and people like OP aren't critical thinkers. They really don't look beyond surface level data to see what is really happening on the ground.

TJ is very much still a success story. FCPS schools are still very much some of the best in the country. And we are very lucky to have them for now... until people like OP shut them down.

Then why was TJ the only school that saw this sort of drop in PSAT scores, SOL scores? Why didn't Stuyvesant see this sort of COVID effect on their PSAT scores? Why didn't McLean or Chantilly or Woodson see this sort of drop in SOL scores? Nah, this was TJ specific phenomenon. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

The number of kids returning to base went from a small handful of 3 or 4 to ~40. They didn't come to TJ because they were interested in playing football, they didn't leave TJ because they wanted more football. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

College acceptances are pretty clearly worse and almost every highly selective university gives free rides to FARM kids. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

TJ is still a good school but it will have an average SAT score in the low 1400s instead of the 1500s.

Because TJ was the only school that saw a large increase in kids from low-income families.

SAT scores correlate with family wealth.

The scores dropped because of “experience factor” points and the 1.5% dedicated to every middle school. Along with doing away with the admissions test that tested for MATH at a STEM school. This led to students with less academic ability getting into TJ and prevented more highly academically qualified students from being admitted.

The same thing would happen if the state championship football team decided that football drills/scrimmages aren’t the best method to determine top talent and switched to having players show off their soccer skills and then gave bonus points to kids in orchestra and theater because it isn’t fair that they haven’t been prepped for football and they should get a chance to play too. You would still get a lot of players who are great at football because that’s who would be trying out, but some of the best players would be missed because they aren’t fast enough runners or they aren’t able to show off their football throwing skills. The orchestra/theater kids who were the most athletic of their groups would get in because the coaches decided to make the bonus points high enough that a certain percent of orchestra/theater kids made the team to better reflect the student population.

The football team used to be state champions and win all of their games by a large margin. Now they are still a good team that has the best coaches, trainers, and practice facilities but the not so great football players would still be on the field and cause more turnovers and less touchdowns.

Great analogy.

This is by far the best critique of the TJ Admission changes. Thank you for writing this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You are so lame for starting this. Don't you have better things to do? We all know what your agenda is and that is to target TJ. You are just dying to see if it fell further in rankings so you can blame it on some woke agenda and cause unnecessary strife. Get a life, OP.

DP
So we should not be checking on the progress of a highly controversial change to see if it was a good idea or more left wing buffoonery?

DP - what we shouldn't be doing is 1) ranking high schools in the first place; 2) relying on some outdated method of trying to compare schools that have completely different profiles that is put forth by a magazine that seemingly only still exists to do this set of rankings.

You're creating a false choice here. I agree that the change was highly controversial (I personally believe that there were a lot of positives and a few negatives that are starting to regulate themselves), but it's not appropriate to pretend that the USNWR rankings are some objective measure of the caliber of the school.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long list of indicators.

PSAT scores down over 100 points with SAT scores likely dropped a similar amount.

College acceptance significantly worse than in the past.

A tenfold increase in number of students returning to base school.

A mass email sent out by the math department expressing disappointment in student performance.

The USNWR ranking is just one of a long lost of indicators.

I didn't know what real positives there are. There are a few superficial cosmetic positives but nothing real.

TJ students were just as affected by Covid as all other kids. PSAT scores and math are going to affected by school closings during COVID. TJ kids aren't immune to crisis in the world.

TJ kids going back to base school doesn't necessarily mean they didn't cut it at TJ. By design the new TJ admissions process is looking for well rounded kids who have interests outside of just academics. I can see how some kids may want to return to their base school to pursue interests that TJ doesn't offer or offers but not at the same level- football. choir, guitar, a particular language, etc.

College acceptances aren't worse they are more realistic. The change in the testing method was partially due to increasing economic diversity at the school. Bright kids would couldn't be penalized for not being able to afford test prep classes. And it worked! But that also means that these kids can't always afford private ivy colleges, or out of state schools. You will see more staying in state or taking full ride scholarships Mason- where they can stay home and not pay for dorms and food.

OP and people like OP aren't critical thinkers. They really don't look beyond surface level data to see what is really happening on the ground.

TJ is very much still a success story. FCPS schools are still very much some of the best in the country. And we are very lucky to have them for now... until people like OP shut them down.

Then why was TJ the only school that saw this sort of drop in PSAT scores, SOL scores? Why didn't Stuyvesant see this sort of COVID effect on their PSAT scores? Why didn't McLean or Chantilly or Woodson see this sort of drop in SOL scores? Nah, this was TJ specific phenomenon. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

The number of kids returning to base went from a small handful of 3 or 4 to ~40. They didn't come to TJ because they were interested in playing football, they didn't leave TJ because they wanted more football. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

College acceptances are pretty clearly worse and almost every highly selective university gives free rides to FARM kids. How stupid are you or how stupid do you think we are?

TJ is still a good school but it will have an average SAT score in the low 1400s instead of the 1500s.

Because TJ was the only school that saw a large increase in kids from low-income families.

SAT scores correlate with family wealth.

The scores dropped because of “experience factor” points and the 1.5% dedicated to every middle school. Along with doing away with the admissions test that tested for MATH at a STEM school. This led to students with less academic ability getting into TJ and prevented more highly academically qualified students from being admitted.

The same thing would happen if the state championship football team decided that football drills/scrimmages aren’t the best method to determine top talent and switched to having players show off their soccer skills and then gave bonus points to kids in orchestra and theater because it isn’t fair that they haven’t been prepped for football and they should get a chance to play too. You would still get a lot of players who are great at football because that’s who would be trying out, but some of the best players would be missed because they aren’t fast enough runners or they aren’t able to show off their football throwing skills. The orchestra/theater kids who were the most athletic of their groups would get in because the coaches decided to make the bonus points high enough that a certain percent of orchestra/theater kids made the team to better reflect the student population.

The football team used to be state champions and win all of their games by a large margin. Now they are still a good team that has the best coaches, trainers, and practice facilities but the not so great football players would still be on the field and cause more turnovers and less touchdowns.

Great analogy.

This is by far the best critique of the TJ Admission changes. Thank you for writing this.

Commenting on your own post twice?
TJ is nothing like your pathetic words of salad analogy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These loons are here to push a specific narrative- that the new TJ admissions process is rigged because of prep programs. It isn't.

There is no way to prep for the essay based entrance exam. You should know to write in complete sentences with proper grammar and punctuation. You should know to answer a question directly. You should know to pursue your interests to make yourself a well rounded person. These are things you learn in elementary and middle school. If your kid doesn't know, then they aren't TJ material. A short prep course isn't going to help your kid.

It isn't anymore but it was. The wealthy feeders dominated admissions even more largely because many students had early access to the entrance test. This is a matter of public record and been covered here many times.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This thread is about the soon to be released, UPDATED (emphasis added) ranking for high schools.

I just checked, and the website states:

“U.S. News anticipates the next update of high school rankings will not be released until August 2025, closer to that year’s update of elementary and middle schools. . . .
Altogether, the rankings and data are intended to be one resource, not the final word, for parents considering educational opportunities for their children.”


Please don’t dilute the topic with the same old fights which dominate the other thread. My thread is about the upcoming rankings for public high schools, due out next month.

TIA!

After the county addressed the the mass cheating with its changes to the process TJ is now less toxic and stronger than ever. It will be back on top for sure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These loons are here to push a specific narrative- that the new TJ admissions process is rigged because of prep programs. It isn't.

There is no way to prep for the essay based entrance exam. You should know to write in complete sentences with proper grammar and punctuation. You should know to answer a question directly. You should know to pursue your interests to make yourself a well rounded person. These are things you learn in elementary and middle school. If your kid doesn't know, then they aren't TJ material. A short prep course isn't going to help your kid.

It isn't anymore but it was. The wealthy feeders dominated admissions even more largely because many students had early access to the entrance test. This is a matter of public record and been covered here many times.

This is obviously a lie

What is shameful is that the supporters of racial discrimination in TJ admissions let this lie persist even though they know it is not true.

This is how you know there is no such thing as "good" racism. The "good" racists don't engage in honest ways.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This thread is about the soon to be released, UPDATED (emphasis added) ranking for high schools.

I just checked, and the website states:

“U.S. News anticipates the next update of high school rankings will not be released until August 2025, closer to that year’s update of elementary and middle schools. . . .
Altogether, the rankings and data are intended to be one resource, not the final word, for parents considering educational opportunities for their children.”


Please don’t dilute the topic with the same old fights which dominate the other thread. My thread is about the upcoming rankings for public high schools, due out next month.

TIA!

After the county addressed the the mass cheating with its changes to the process TJ is now less toxic and stronger than ever. It will be back on top for sure.

You sound like trump.