The true meaning of "equity"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of postings over the last few weeks on the 2nd grade AAP pool made me realize that many on this board don't actually know what "equity" means. It is NOT equal treatment for all. It is "right sizing" the treatment based on the needs of the population. (alt+p)

Equity means providing the Title I kids more benefits than the kids from the higher SES schools because the Title I kids theoretically need greater support to have an equal footing as the kids from the SES schools.

Totally irrelevant. The adult in the picture is NOT taller because they work harder. They were BORN earlier. Similarly, 3 same-age teenagers with different heights won't be relevant, either. They were BORN with the genes.

By FCPS "equity", they blatantly talk about penalizing hard work.

To FCPS, it means raising the fence to block the tall kid because they could never get stacked boxes to work for the short kid.

Lies.

Standards based grading and the cluster model suggest otherwise

Lies. Tall kids aren't blocked.

Sure, honors for all classes are absolutely taught at an honors level.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
The true meaning of "equity" is this:

I want what you have and am plotting to take it one way or another.

The true meaning of equity is this:

“I’d like to advance my own career by being appointed (fill in the gap) where I’ll implement some useless half baked ideas that have no impact whatsoever, but at the same time I’ll claim it’s for the benefit of the disadvantaged. If you don’t agree you’re racist/white supremacist/nazi. The more politically polarized the issue, the better, because you can count on support just from the hate towards the opposing party’s position.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So according to the poster, we should cut back any specials / G&T programs for advanced kids and only focus on the most disruptive kids in the class.

Well, yes, The G&T kids can already see the game, so you need to take away their boxes and give them to someone else.

So when applied to a school setting, the G&T kids who already meet basic minimum English and math standards should just be left to coast in class all year?!

True equity would mean giving EVERY child a meaningful opportunity to grow, no matter where they are. So you still make sure that advanced kids are challenged while also providing remedial support for kids who may be a little behind. Otherwise you're just dumbing everyone down to the lowest common denominator so no one gets jealous.

In practice, this is what progressives want.

They are required to advocate much much harder for the kids who are disadvantaged because conservatives tend to ascribe their being "a little behind" to some fault of themselves or their parents, when in fact there could be any number of reasons why they struggle. And sure, maybe it is their own fault in some cases.

The reality is, meeting every child where they are and providing the correct level of support for each requires a massive investment into public schools. If this is genuinely your goal, there is no excuse for voting for people who wish to tear down public schools. If you don't wish to make that investment, you can hardly blame a school system for spending its resources on the kids who need it the most rather than on kids who can get that additional enrichment elsewhere.

Your "reality" sounds a bit like a hostage situation: "We're going to hold your kids hostage until you agree to fork over enough money for us to take care of someone else's kids we think are more deserving first. And then we'll probably send you another hostage note, so keep saving your money."

The problem is you don't quite have the monopoly that would make this possible. You want it, which is why you bash every official or candidate who proposes alternatives, but even then people can still move or send their kids to privates.

Most don't buy any of that nonsense and realize FCPS schools are about as good as it gets but like to complain in the hope of getting special treatment.

The poorer schools get the special treatment and rather than acknowledge it they just demand more. Race to the bottom.

And they still perform poorly. I'm all for helping to level the playing field but there's also a point of diminishing returns because no amount of money will solve the underlying problems.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
The true meaning of "equity" is this:

I want what you have and am plotting to take it one way or another.

The true meaning of equity is this:

“I’d like to advance my own career by being appointed (fill in the gap) where I’ll implement some useless half baked ideas that have no impact whatsoever, but at the same time I’ll claim it’s for the benefit of the disadvantaged. If you don’t agree you’re racist/white supremacist/nazi. The more politically polarized the issue, the better, because you can count on support just from the hate towards the opposing party’s position.”

Exactly this

[Anonymous]

The recent budget presentation is fairly shocking.

FCPS is projecting for the 2023-24 SY the largest year-over-year increase in the percentage of FARMS and ESOL students in many years, and perhaps ever, up to about 35% FARMS and slightly over 20% FARMS overall.

They are projecting an increasing number of schools that will be over 60% FARMS.

Wherever possible, it's clear they will try to starve the higher SES schools to pay for this. The message to these families is that you're basically on your own, because we have so many high-needs kids. They'll offer the facade of an education, but one that's heavily dependent on some families paying twice (higher taxes + supplementation on the side) to put their kids in any position to do well after HS graduation.

These are the demographics that one could expect given the politicians currently running the county. However, this is a vicious cycle - more higher-income families will pull their kids out of FCPS, FCPS will keep doing more of what it's doing to short-change the higher SES communities where it can get away with it, and within a decade FCPS will have a low-achieving, majority FARMS, heavily ESOL school system. Forget about Youngkin and the voucher schemes - regardless of whether they ever get traction more private schools will open or expand and there will be an enormous market for alternatives to FCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The recent budget presentation is fairly shocking.

FCPS is projecting for the 2023-24 SY the largest year-over-year increase in the percentage of FARMS and ESOL students in many years, and perhaps ever, up to about 35% FARMS and slightly over 20% FARMS overall.

They are projecting an increasing number of schools that will be over 60% FARMS.

Wherever possible, it's clear they will try to starve the higher SES schools to pay for this. The message to these families is that you're basically on your own, because we have so many high-needs kids. They'll offer the facade of an education, but one that's heavily dependent on some families paying twice (higher taxes + supplementation on the side) to put their kids in any position to do well after HS graduation.

These are the demographics that one could expect given the politicians currently running the county. However, this is a vicious cycle - more higher-income families will pull their kids out of FCPS, FCPS will keep doing more of what it's doing to short-change the higher SES communities where it can get away with it, and within a decade FCPS will have a low-achieving, majority FARMS, heavily ESOL school system. Forget about Youngkin and the voucher schemes - regardless of whether they ever get traction more private schools will open or expand and there will be an enormous market for alternatives to FCPS.

Can you please explain how a child attending Great Falls elementary is being shortchanged by the county in order to lavish attention on students at Mt Vernon Woods? What is the former lacking that the later gets?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The recent budget presentation is fairly shocking.

FCPS is projecting for the 2023-24 SY the largest year-over-year increase in the percentage of FARMS and ESOL students in many years, and perhaps ever, up to about 35% FARMS and slightly over 20% FARMS overall.

They are projecting an increasing number of schools that will be over 60% FARMS.

Wherever possible, it's clear they will try to starve the higher SES schools to pay for this. The message to these families is that you're basically on your own, because we have so many high-needs kids. They'll offer the facade of an education, but one that's heavily dependent on some families paying twice (higher taxes + supplementation on the side) to put their kids in any position to do well after HS graduation.

These are the demographics that one could expect given the politicians currently running the county. However, this is a vicious cycle - more higher-income families will pull their kids out of FCPS, FCPS will keep doing more of what it's doing to short-change the higher SES communities where it can get away with it, and within a decade FCPS will have a low-achieving, majority FARMS, heavily ESOL school system. Forget about Youngkin and the voucher schemes - regardless of whether they ever get traction more private schools will open or expand and there will be an enormous market for alternatives to FCPS.

You are full of crap.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of postings over the last few weeks on the 2nd grade AAP pool made me realize that many on this board don't actually know what "equity" means. It is NOT equal treatment for all. It is "right sizing" the treatment based on the needs of the population. (alt+p)

Equity means providing the Title I kids more benefits than the kids from the higher SES schools because the Title I kids theoretically need greater support to have an equal footing as the kids from the SES schools.

Totally irrelevant. The adult in the picture is NOT taller because they work harder. They were BORN earlier. Similarly, 3 same-age teenagers with different heights won't be relevant, either. They were BORN with the genes.

By FCPS "equity", they blatantly talk about penalizing hard work.

To FCPS, it means raising the fence to block the tall kid because they could never get stacked boxes to work for the short kid.

Lies.

Standards based grading and the cluster model suggest otherwise

Lies. Tall kids aren't blocked.

Sure, honors for all classes are absolutely taught at an honors level.

Honors classes are honors classes. Open enrollment doesn't mean that everyone will take honors.

Tall kids are fine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The recent budget presentation is fairly shocking.

FCPS is projecting for the 2023-24 SY the largest year-over-year increase in the percentage of FARMS and ESOL students in many years, and perhaps ever, up to about 35% FARMS and slightly over 20% FARMS overall.

They are projecting an increasing number of schools that will be over 60% FARMS.

Wherever possible, it's clear they will try to starve the higher SES schools to pay for this. The message to these families is that you're basically on your own, because we have so many high-needs kids. They'll offer the facade of an education, but one that's heavily dependent on some families paying twice (higher taxes + supplementation on the side) to put their kids in any position to do well after HS graduation.

These are the demographics that one could expect given the politicians currently running the county. However, this is a vicious cycle - more higher-income families will pull their kids out of FCPS, FCPS will keep doing more of what it's doing to short-change the higher SES communities where it can get away with it, and within a decade FCPS will have a low-achieving, majority FARMS, heavily ESOL school system. Forget about Youngkin and the voucher schemes - regardless of whether they ever get traction more private schools will open or expand and there will be an enormous market for alternatives to FCPS.

You are full of crap.

They are doing it already, and they will continue to do more of it if the equity warriors get their way.

The main lever is always personnel - fewer teachers and administrators assigned to higher SES schools so larger class sizes and fewer staff to handle problems and serve as intermediaries with teachers. You just don't notice it because of how much supplementation is already taking place on the side, so the higher SES schools still have kids with high standardized test scores, although they have been declining in many of the higher SES pyramids in recent years.

[Anonymous]

Corbett-Sanders nailed it at the work session on the budget when she said FCPS is now essentially an urban school district, not a suburban one.

Its peers in a few years aren't going to be suburban districts like Loudoun or Howard but rather urban systems like DCPS and Baltimore City Public Schools.

Probably not what most had in mind when they moved to Fairfax County, but a school system reflects the jurisdiction it serves, and the elected county officials have been wanting to urbanize Fairfax for years. Their work is finally coming to fruition and we have the high FARMS, high ESOL urban school system to prove it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A lot of postings over the last few weeks on the 2nd grade AAP pool made me realize that many on this board don't actually know what "equity" means. It is NOT equal treatment for all. It is "right sizing" the treatment based on the needs of the population. (alt+p)

Equity means providing the Title I kids more benefits than the kids from the higher SES schools because the Title I kids theoretically need greater support to have an equal footing as the kids from the SES schools.

Totally irrelevant. The adult in the picture is NOT taller because they work harder. They were BORN earlier. Similarly, 3 same-age teenagers with different heights won't be relevant, either. They were BORN with the genes.

By FCPS "equity", they blatantly talk about penalizing hard work.

To FCPS, it means raising the fence to block the tall kid because they could never get stacked boxes to work for the short kid.

Lies.

Standards based grading and the cluster model suggest otherwise

Lies. Tall kids aren't blocked.

Sure, honors for all classes are absolutely taught at an honors level.

Honors classes are honors classes. Open enrollment doesn't mean that everyone will take honors.

Tall kids are fine.

There is a difference between open enrollment and forced enrollment. When you force everyone to do honors, it's no longer honors

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The recent budget presentation is fairly shocking.

FCPS is projecting for the 2023-24 SY the largest year-over-year increase in the percentage of FARMS and ESOL students in many years, and perhaps ever, up to about 35% FARMS and slightly over 20% FARMS overall.

They are projecting an increasing number of schools that will be over 60% FARMS.

Wherever possible, it's clear they will try to starve the higher SES schools to pay for this. The message to these families is that you're basically on your own, because we have so many high-needs kids. They'll offer the facade of an education, but one that's heavily dependent on some families paying twice (higher taxes + supplementation on the side) to put their kids in any position to do well after HS graduation.

These are the demographics that one could expect given the politicians currently running the county. However, this is a vicious cycle - more higher-income families will pull their kids out of FCPS, FCPS will keep doing more of what it's doing to short-change the higher SES communities where it can get away with it, and within a decade FCPS will have a low-achieving, majority FARMS, heavily ESOL school system. Forget about Youngkin and the voucher schemes - regardless of whether they ever get traction more private schools will open or expand and there will be an enormous market for alternatives to FCPS.

You are full of crap.

They are doing it already, and they will continue to do more of it if the equity warriors get their way.

The main lever is always personnel - fewer teachers and administrators assigned to higher SES schools so larger class sizes and fewer staff to handle problems and serve as intermediaries with teachers. You just don't notice it because of how much supplementation is already taking place on the side, so the higher SES schools still have kids with high standardized test scores, although they have been declining in many of the higher SES pyramids in recent years.

you forgot to add in a fictional alternate reality

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The recent budget presentation is fairly shocking.

FCPS is projecting for the 2023-24 SY the largest year-over-year increase in the percentage of FARMS and ESOL students in many years, and perhaps ever, up to about 35% FARMS and slightly over 20% FARMS overall.

They are projecting an increasing number of schools that will be over 60% FARMS.

Wherever possible, it's clear they will try to starve the higher SES schools to pay for this. The message to these families is that you're basically on your own, because we have so many high-needs kids. They'll offer the facade of an education, but one that's heavily dependent on some families paying twice (higher taxes + supplementation on the side) to put their kids in any position to do well after HS graduation.

These are the demographics that one could expect given the politicians currently running the county. However, this is a vicious cycle - more higher-income families will pull their kids out of FCPS, FCPS will keep doing more of what it's doing to short-change the higher SES communities where it can get away with it, and within a decade FCPS will have a low-achieving, majority FARMS, heavily ESOL school system. Forget about Youngkin and the voucher schemes - regardless of whether they ever get traction more private schools will open or expand and there will be an enormous market for alternatives to FCPS.

You are full of crap.

They are doing it already, and they will continue to do more of it if the equity warriors get their way.

The main lever is always personnel - fewer teachers and administrators assigned to higher SES schools so larger class sizes and fewer staff to handle problems and serve as intermediaries with teachers. You just don't notice it because of how much supplementation is already taking place on the side, so the higher SES schools still have kids with high standardized test scores, although they have been declining in many of the higher SES pyramids in recent years.

you forgot to add in a fictional alternate reality

Nope, it's the world, or at least the county, we're living in right now and it's why FCPS is trending the way it is. They could have looked at MCPS and tried to avoid what's been happening there and instead they go down exactly the same path with a slight time lag.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So according to the poster, we should cut back any specials / G&T programs for advanced kids and only focus on the most disruptive kids in the class.

Well, yes, The G&T kids can already see the game, so you need to take away their boxes and give them to someone else.

So when applied to a school setting, the G&T kids who already meet basic minimum English and math standards should just be left to coast in class all year?!

True equity would mean giving EVERY child a meaningful opportunity to grow, no matter where they are. So you still make sure that advanced kids are challenged while also providing remedial support for kids who may be a little behind. Otherwise you're just dumbing everyone down to the lowest common denominator so no one gets jealous.

In practice, this is what progressives want.

They are required to advocate much much harder for the kids who are disadvantaged because conservatives tend to ascribe their being "a little behind" to some fault of themselves or their parents, when in fact there could be any number of reasons why they struggle. And sure, maybe it is their own fault in some cases.

The reality is, meeting every child where they are and providing the correct level of support for each requires a massive investment into public schools. If this is genuinely your goal, there is no excuse for voting for people who wish to tear down public schools. If you don't wish to make that investment, you can hardly blame a school system for spending its resources on the kids who need it the most rather than on kids who can get that additional enrichment elsewhere.

Your "reality" sounds a bit like a hostage situation: "We're going to hold your kids hostage until you agree to fork over enough money for us to take care of someone else's kids we think are more deserving first. And then we'll probably send you another hostage note, so keep saving your money."

The problem is you don't quite have the monopoly that would make this possible. You want it, which is why you bash every official or candidate who proposes alternatives, but even then people can still move or send their kids to privates.

Exhibit A: San Francisco

One of the most wonderful cities in the USA. I think it was the #1 city for tourism last year. People love that place.

Charles Barkley talking about a Golden State game. 'You know the problem with all this rain we've been having? Why couldn't it have rained in San Francisco. ... All the homelessness, San Francisco needs a good washing."