TJ Admissions

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“ MathCounts, AMC, Olympiads, ”

And those also aren’t offered everywhere. We aren’t in a “bad” pyramid either. Just a middle of the road one for FCPS.

Mathcounts allows students to sign up as non school competitors if their school isn't competing.
AMCs are offered by Fairfax math circle, FCAG, AoPS, and a number of other places.
Any motivated kid should be able to participate in both of these, even if it's not offered by their school.

But what if they can’t participate because they have to take care of their younger brother because both parents work?

If they're so overburdened with childcare or other responsibilities that they cannot even escape for a single day for an academic competition, how on earth are they going to have the time to be successful TJ students? TJ is a huge time sink, even for the kids who are minimally participating in all that TJ has to offer.

DP. That is for them to figure out, not for you to pretend concern over.

The idea that kids who have adversity to deal with should not have access to elite educational opportunities because they would take a different approach than you would is gross.

You do a disservice to people who are on your side when you make comments like this - making them appear uncaring and out of touch with reality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does FCPS offer free summer geometry?

But what if a kid has to watch their younger brother and can’t take free summer geometry?

The family has to figure it out.
Frequently this means extended family and friends helping out.

Are you honestly concerned or just trying to make excuses?
Because a lot of poor families make a lot of painful sacrifices to get the same opportunities that affluent families can take for granted and in the end, their kids simply will not get the same opportunities.
We are never going to make access to opportunity perfectly level in one generation but each generation has the ability to improve their position so that they can provide that opportunity to the next generation.

Most of the asian boomers and gen x born here were not wealthy growing up but their children generally have had all the resources necessary to access opportunity.

We see a similar generational improvement among hispanic millenials and gen z that were born here. They were frequently not born into affluent conditions but have the resources so their children can access opportunities.

The stubborn problem is the legacy black community. It is a very hard thing to excise the less helpful parts of your culture without losing the structural integrity of the culture. The culture is changing for black women but doesn't seem to be improving for black men.

Harry Jackson has entered the chat, ladies and gentlemen.

Children who are born into families that are able to and choose to prioritize academic enrichment from an early age already grow up with a cornucopia of otherwise unearned advantages. We should not be in the business of gatekeeping publicly-funded educational advancement opportunities from students with their own internal ambition and work ethic who do not carry those advantages for whatever reason.

It is a good thing that TJ is now a realistic possibility for economically disadvantaged families. It is a good thing that poor, education-focused Asian families are now able to dream about TJ in the same way that their affluent counterparts are able to, and it is beyond question that they could not realistically do so before.

The world is moving too fast. Children should not have to wait until the next generation comes along for their children to have opportunities. Equity is not perfectly achievable but to suggest it's anything other than a worthwhile goal when the resources exist to support it is tantamount to feudalism or casteism.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does FCPS offer free summer geometry?

But what if a kid has to watch their younger brother and can’t take free summer geometry?

The family has to figure it out.
Frequently this means extended family and friends helping out.

Are you honestly concerned or just trying to make excuses?
Because a lot of poor families make a lot of painful sacrifices to get the same opportunities that affluent families can take for granted and in the end, their kids simply will not get the same opportunities.
We are never going to make access to opportunity perfectly level in one generation but each generation has the ability to improve their position so that they can provide that opportunity to the next generation.

Most of the asian boomers and gen x born here were not wealthy growing up but their children generally have had all the resources necessary to access opportunity.

We see a similar generational improvement among hispanic millenials and gen z that were born here. They were frequently not born into affluent conditions but have the resources so their children can access opportunities.

The stubborn problem is the legacy black community. It is a very hard thing to excise the less helpful parts of your culture without losing the structural integrity of the culture. The culture is changing for black women but doesn't seem to be improving for black men.

Harry Jackson has entered the chat, ladies and gentlemen.

Children who are born into families that are able to and choose to prioritize academic enrichment from an early age already grow up with a cornucopia of otherwise unearned advantages. We should not be in the business of gatekeeping publicly-funded educational advancement opportunities from students with their own internal ambition and work ethic who do not carry those advantages for whatever reason.

It is a good thing that TJ is now a realistic possibility for economically disadvantaged families. It is a good thing that poor, education-focused Asian families are now able to dream about TJ in the same way that their affluent counterparts are able to, and it is beyond question that they could not realistically do so before.

The world is moving too fast. Children should not have to wait until the next generation comes along for their children to have opportunities. Equity is not perfectly achievable but to suggest it's anything other than a worthwhile goal when the resources exist to support it is tantamount to feudalism or casteism.

It is a good thing the county is finally fighting unearned Asian privilege and taking steps to remedy income inequality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does FCPS offer free summer geometry?

But what if a kid has to watch their younger brother and can’t take free summer geometry?

The family has to figure it out.
Frequently this means extended family and friends helping out.

Are you honestly concerned or just trying to make excuses?
Because a lot of poor families make a lot of painful sacrifices to get the same opportunities that affluent families can take for granted and in the end, their kids simply will not get the same opportunities.
We are never going to make access to opportunity perfectly level in one generation but each generation has the ability to improve their position so that they can provide that opportunity to the next generation.

Most of the asian boomers and gen x born here were not wealthy growing up but their children generally have had all the resources necessary to access opportunity.

We see a similar generational improvement among hispanic millenials and gen z that were born here. They were frequently not born into affluent conditions but have the resources so their children can access opportunities.

The stubborn problem is the legacy black community. It is a very hard thing to excise the less helpful parts of your culture without losing the structural integrity of the culture. The culture is changing for black women but doesn't seem to be improving for black men.

Harry Jackson has entered the chat, ladies and gentlemen.

Children who are born into families that are able to and choose to prioritize academic enrichment from an early age already grow up with a cornucopia of otherwise unearned advantages. We should not be in the business of gatekeeping publicly-funded educational advancement opportunities from students with their own internal ambition and work ethic who do not carry those advantages for whatever reason.

It is a good thing that TJ is now a realistic possibility for economically disadvantaged families. It is a good thing that poor, education-focused Asian families are now able to dream about TJ in the same way that their affluent counterparts are able to, and it is beyond question that they could not realistically do so before.

The world is moving too fast. Children should not have to wait until the next generation comes along for their children to have opportunities. Equity is not perfectly achievable but to suggest it's anything other than a worthwhile goal when the resources exist to support it is tantamount to feudalism or casteism.

Agree, it's a positive step in the right direction that TJ serves all residents not just a few who attend wealthy feeders like in years past.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“ MathCounts, AMC, Olympiads, ”

And those also aren’t offered everywhere. We aren’t in a “bad” pyramid either. Just a middle of the road one for FCPS.

Mathcounts allows students to sign up as non school competitors if their school isn't competing.
AMCs are offered by Fairfax math circle, FCAG, AoPS, and a number of other places.
Any motivated kid should be able to participate in both of these, even if it's not offered by their school.

But what if they can’t participate because they have to take care of their younger brother because both parents work?

If they're so overburdened with childcare or other responsibilities that they cannot even escape for a single day for an academic competition, how on earth are they going to have the time to be successful TJ students? TJ is a huge time sink, even for the kids who are minimally participating in all that TJ has to offer.

DP. That is for them to figure out, not for you to pretend concern over.

The idea that kids who have adversity to deal with should not have access to elite educational opportunities because they would take a different approach than you would is gross.

You do a disservice to people who are on your side when you make comments like this - making them appear uncaring and out of touch with reality.

I agree. We should get rid of these holistic criteria that only serve to exclude poorer kids.

This is where testing comes in.
You don't need expensive time consuming extracurriculars to paint a holistic picture. Just be smart.
Stuyvesant uses a single test and half the kids there are on free or reduced lunch.
Some FARM kid has good test scores, let them in, they will be able to catch up.
Their poverty is their extracurricular.
Being poor should count for as much as anything that money can buy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“ MathCounts, AMC, Olympiads, ”

And those also aren’t offered everywhere. We aren’t in a “bad” pyramid either. Just a middle of the road one for FCPS.

Mathcounts allows students to sign up as non school competitors if their school isn't competing.
AMCs are offered by Fairfax math circle, FCAG, AoPS, and a number of other places.
Any motivated kid should be able to participate in both of these, even if it's not offered by their school.

But what if they can’t participate because they have to take care of their younger brother because both parents work?

If they're so overburdened with childcare or other responsibilities that they cannot even escape for a single day for an academic competition, how on earth are they going to have the time to be successful TJ students? TJ is a huge time sink, even for the kids who are minimally participating in all that TJ has to offer.

DP. That is for them to figure out, not for you to pretend concern over.

The idea that kids who have adversity to deal with should not have access to elite educational opportunities because they would take a different approach than you would is gross.

You do a disservice to people who are on your side when you make comments like this - making them appear uncaring and out of touch with reality.

I agree. We should get rid of these holistic criteria that only serve to exclude poorer kids.

This is where testing comes in.
You don't need expensive time consuming extracurriculars to paint a holistic picture. Just be smart.
Stuyvesant uses a single test and half the kids there are on free or reduced lunch.
Some FARM kid has good test scores, let them in, they will be able to catch up.
Their poverty is their extracurricular.
Being poor should count for as much as anything that money can buy.

This isn’t about tests or income. It’s about family values.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“ MathCounts, AMC, Olympiads, ”

And those also aren’t offered everywhere. We aren’t in a “bad” pyramid either. Just a middle of the road one for FCPS.

Mathcounts allows students to sign up as non school competitors if their school isn't competing.
AMCs are offered by Fairfax math circle, FCAG, AoPS, and a number of other places.
Any motivated kid should be able to participate in both of these, even if it's not offered by their school.

But what if they can’t participate because they have to take care of their younger brother because both parents work?

If they're so overburdened with childcare or other responsibilities that they cannot even escape for a single day for an academic competition, how on earth are they going to have the time to be successful TJ students? TJ is a huge time sink, even for the kids who are minimally participating in all that TJ has to offer.

DP. That is for them to figure out, not for you to pretend concern over.

The idea that kids who have adversity to deal with should not have access to elite educational opportunities because they would take a different approach than you would is gross.

You do a disservice to people who are on your side when you make comments like this - making them appear uncaring and out of touch with reality.

That's not the idea. The idea is that when you eliminate all testing, because you feel that poor kids are incapable of prepping themselves, you eliminate all consideration of extracurricular achievements, because poor kids might be stuck babysitting the siblings, you eliminate consideration of math level, because even though 7th grade Algebra I is offered at every middle school and every single bright FCPS kid should have reasonable access, you feel that poor kids simply can't make it work, you eliminate teacher recommendations, because they might be biased, and you don't even require the kids to take all honors, because poor kids might not opt into them for whatever reason, there isn't much left.

You can either admit a broad spectrum of kids and accept that there will be high attrition at TJ, or you can admit a narrower group of kids and minimize attrition. Neither view is specifically incorrect. It comes down to whether you think it's worse to bar kids from TJ who have obstacles and haven't yet demonstrated that they can rise above those obstacles, or whether you think it's worse to set up a bunch of kids to wash out of TJ. For my part, I'm not a fan of setting kids up for failure or using kids to score political points. I hope all of the kids who are admitted understand what they're getting into and whether they really are prepared for the rigor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does FCPS offer free summer geometry?

But what if a kid has to watch their younger brother and can’t take free summer geometry?

The family has to figure it out.
Frequently this means extended family and friends helping out.

Are you honestly concerned or just trying to make excuses?
Because a lot of poor families make a lot of painful sacrifices to get the same opportunities that affluent families can take for granted and in the end, their kids simply will not get the same opportunities.
We are never going to make access to opportunity perfectly level in one generation but each generation has the ability to improve their position so that they can provide that opportunity to the next generation.

Most of the asian boomers and gen x born here were not wealthy growing up but their children generally have had all the resources necessary to access opportunity.

We see a similar generational improvement among hispanic millenials and gen z that were born here. They were frequently not born into affluent conditions but have the resources so their children can access opportunities.

The stubborn problem is the legacy black community. It is a very hard thing to excise the less helpful parts of your culture without losing the structural integrity of the culture. The culture is changing for black women but doesn't seem to be improving for black men.

Harry Jackson has entered the chat, ladies and gentlemen.

Children who are born into families that are able to and choose to prioritize academic enrichment from an early age already grow up with a cornucopia of otherwise unearned advantages. We should not be in the business of gatekeeping publicly-funded educational advancement opportunities from students with their own internal ambition and work ethic who do not carry those advantages for whatever reason.

It is a good thing that TJ is now a realistic possibility for economically disadvantaged families. It is a good thing that poor, education-focused Asian families are now able to dream about TJ in the same way that their affluent counterparts are able to, and it is beyond question that they could not realistically do so before.

The world is moving too fast. Children should not have to wait until the next generation comes along for their children to have opportunities. Equity is not perfectly achievable but to suggest it's anything other than a worthwhile goal when the resources exist to support it is tantamount to feudalism or casteism.

You may not understand what TJ (and schools like TJ) represents.
TJ is not a prize, it's not a ticket out of poverty.
You are not made smarter or more successful merely by getting into TJ and you are not made smarter by merely graduating from TJ.
Getting into TJ is no more useful to the unqualified student than getting into seal training is for the unqualified candidate, you're just taking up a spot that should go to someone else.

The resources do not exist to support discarding the hierarchy of merit for marxist notions of equity.
Those resources will never exist.
We cannot select poor kids in this way for these sort of spots at a societal level in the hopes that it will somehow even things out.

Poverty is not a permanent condition in this country, not even close.
This isn't caste, this isn't feudalism. You have to be blindingly privileged to think something as stupid as that.
Immigrant wave after immigrant wave achieves the american dream every generation.
Generational poverty today is not society's fault.
If people cannot be arsed to make a better life for their own kids then perhaps their kids will be less shortsighted and make the necessary sacrifices for their own children.
If their children don't do that, then the poverty will continue for another generation.

If you think things are unfair and want more poor kids then eliminate holistic admissions.
Rewarding wealthy mediocrity is how we end up with situations like this: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/YrXXTF6bsAk

The specialized science high schools in NYC are majority FARM students and those three schools have produced 19 nobel laureates and more than its share of turing, fields, and wolf awards.
Admissions are based solely on a single test, the SHSAT, the same test we used to use.
If equity is so important to people like you then why are so many of you so dead set against a method that seems to work better for poor kids than holistic admissions.
Get rid of essays that amount to "what I did during my summer vacation"
Every FARM student that got into the "pool" under the old method should get into TJ but what happened was that the chances of being selected out of the pool was way lower for poorer kids than it was for wealthier kids.

And if after all that, poor kids still don't get in then figure out why that is and address THAT, don't shoehorn unqualified poor kids where they don't belong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does FCPS offer free summer geometry?

But what if a kid has to watch their younger brother and can’t take free summer geometry?

The family has to figure it out.
Frequently this means extended family and friends helping out.

Are you honestly concerned or just trying to make excuses?
Because a lot of poor families make a lot of painful sacrifices to get the same opportunities that affluent families can take for granted and in the end, their kids simply will not get the same opportunities.
We are never going to make access to opportunity perfectly level in one generation but each generation has the ability to improve their position so that they can provide that opportunity to the next generation.

Most of the asian boomers and gen x born here were not wealthy growing up but their children generally have had all the resources necessary to access opportunity.

We see a similar generational improvement among hispanic millenials and gen z that were born here. They were frequently not born into affluent conditions but have the resources so their children can access opportunities.

The stubborn problem is the legacy black community. It is a very hard thing to excise the less helpful parts of your culture without losing the structural integrity of the culture. The culture is changing for black women but doesn't seem to be improving for black men.

Harry Jackson has entered the chat, ladies and gentlemen.

Children who are born into families that are able to and choose to prioritize academic enrichment from an early age already grow up with a cornucopia of otherwise unearned advantages. We should not be in the business of gatekeeping publicly-funded educational advancement opportunities from students with their own internal ambition and work ethic who do not carry those advantages for whatever reason.

It is a good thing that TJ is now a realistic possibility for economically disadvantaged families. It is a good thing that poor, education-focused Asian families are now able to dream about TJ in the same way that their affluent counterparts are able to, and it is beyond question that they could not realistically do so before.

The world is moving too fast. Children should not have to wait until the next generation comes along for their children to have opportunities. Equity is not perfectly achievable but to suggest it's anything other than a worthwhile goal when the resources exist to support it is tantamount to feudalism or casteism.

It is a good thing the county is finally fighting unearned Asian privilege and taking steps to remedy income inequality.

What unearned asian privilege?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does FCPS offer free summer geometry?

But what if a kid has to watch their younger brother and can’t take free summer geometry?

The family has to figure it out.
Frequently this means extended family and friends helping out.

Are you honestly concerned or just trying to make excuses?
Because a lot of poor families make a lot of painful sacrifices to get the same opportunities that affluent families can take for granted and in the end, their kids simply will not get the same opportunities.
We are never going to make access to opportunity perfectly level in one generation but each generation has the ability to improve their position so that they can provide that opportunity to the next generation.

Most of the asian boomers and gen x born here were not wealthy growing up but their children generally have had all the resources necessary to access opportunity.

We see a similar generational improvement among hispanic millenials and gen z that were born here. They were frequently not born into affluent conditions but have the resources so their children can access opportunities.

The stubborn problem is the legacy black community. It is a very hard thing to excise the less helpful parts of your culture without losing the structural integrity of the culture. The culture is changing for black women but doesn't seem to be improving for black men.

Harry Jackson has entered the chat, ladies and gentlemen.

Children who are born into families that are able to and choose to prioritize academic enrichment from an early age already grow up with a cornucopia of otherwise unearned advantages. We should not be in the business of gatekeeping publicly-funded educational advancement opportunities from students with their own internal ambition and work ethic who do not carry those advantages for whatever reason.

It is a good thing that TJ is now a realistic possibility for economically disadvantaged families. It is a good thing that poor, education-focused Asian families are now able to dream about TJ in the same way that their affluent counterparts are able to, and it is beyond question that they could not realistically do so before.

The world is moving too fast. Children should not have to wait until the next generation comes along for their children to have opportunities. Equity is not perfectly achievable but to suggest it's anything other than a worthwhile goal when the resources exist to support it is tantamount to feudalism or casteism.

Agree, it's a positive step in the right direction that TJ serves all residents not just a few who attend wealthy feeders like in years past.

Academic ability is not spread evenly across every school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does FCPS offer free summer geometry?

But what if a kid has to watch their younger brother and can’t take free summer geometry?

The family has to figure it out.
Frequently this means extended family and friends helping out.

Are you honestly concerned or just trying to make excuses?
Because a lot of poor families make a lot of painful sacrifices to get the same opportunities that affluent families can take for granted and in the end, their kids simply will not get the same opportunities.
We are never going to make access to opportunity perfectly level in one generation but each generation has the ability to improve their position so that they can provide that opportunity to the next generation.

Most of the asian boomers and gen x born here were not wealthy growing up but their children generally have had all the resources necessary to access opportunity.

We see a similar generational improvement among hispanic millenials and gen z that were born here. They were frequently not born into affluent conditions but have the resources so their children can access opportunities.

The stubborn problem is the legacy black community. It is a very hard thing to excise the less helpful parts of your culture without losing the structural integrity of the culture. The culture is changing for black women but doesn't seem to be improving for black men.

Harry Jackson has entered the chat, ladies and gentlemen.

Children who are born into families that are able to and choose to prioritize academic enrichment from an early age already grow up with a cornucopia of otherwise unearned advantages. We should not be in the business of gatekeeping publicly-funded educational advancement opportunities from students with their own internal ambition and work ethic who do not carry those advantages for whatever reason.

It is a good thing that TJ is now a realistic possibility for economically disadvantaged families. It is a good thing that poor, education-focused Asian families are now able to dream about TJ in the same way that their affluent counterparts are able to, and it is beyond question that they could not realistically do so before.

The world is moving too fast. Children should not have to wait until the next generation comes along for their children to have opportunities. Equity is not perfectly achievable but to suggest it's anything other than a worthwhile goal when the resources exist to support it is tantamount to feudalism or casteism.

Agree, it's a positive step in the right direction that TJ serves all residents not just a few who attend wealthy feeders like in years past.

Academic ability is not spread evenly across every school.

Academic ability can't be acquired evenly until FCPS addresses attendance issues at low performing schools. But apparently TJ is the answer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“ FCPS acknowledges that the same four top middle schools are where advanced STEM talent is nurtured to not just meet the TJ rigor but enroll in advanced courses there.”

DC has been doing great at TJ but still won’t have as much schedule space as others because she “only” started at Math 3 level (Alg 2). She could definitely have skipped a year and done Alg 1 in 6th but not all the centers do that - she would have had to go to the secondary school for that and no clue how transpiration for that would have worked. Not all centers have the same opportunity for the full acceleration spectrum that the “feeder” schools offer.

The majority of TJ students have always started HS with Algebra 2.
They take calculus in their junior year and they take electives in their senior year.
That is very typical.

No they have not. There are not that many kids taking Algebra 2 in MS. I ran the SOL numbers for the last three years. I actually went back and ran the numbers for a 10 year period, 2021 was the first year to have over 200 students take the Algebra 2 SOL in 8th grade. I am not going to hand jam the numbers though.

Algebra 1 in 6th grade:
2021-2022: 22 FCPS students
2022-2023: 31 FCPS Students
2023-2024: 25 FCPS students

Algebra 2 in 8th grade:
2021-2022: 221 FCPS students
2022-2023: 210 FCPS students
2023-2024 201 FCPS students

I would say that the majority of kids at TJ have had Geometry and are taking Algebra 2. Very few kids are offered the path to Algebra 1 in 5th grade and a small group of kids choose to take Geometry in the summer. If you read the various summer threads on Geometry in the summer it is either not that hard for a kid but a time suck or stupidly hard and the kids drop it or expunge the grade. It feels like a 50/50 split but there is going to be a bias based on who chooses to post.

Most of the kids at TJ will take Calculus as Juniors about a quarter will take Calculus as Sophomores.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“ FCPS acknowledges that the same four top middle schools are where advanced STEM talent is nurtured to not just meet the TJ rigor but enroll in advanced courses there.”

DC has been doing great at TJ but still won’t have as much schedule space as others because she “only” started at Math 3 level (Alg 2). She could definitely have skipped a year and done Alg 1 in 6th but not all the centers do that - she would have had to go to the secondary school for that and no clue how transpiration for that would have worked. Not all centers have the same opportunity for the full acceleration spectrum that the “feeder” schools offer.

The majority of TJ students have always started HS with Algebra 2.
They take calculus in their junior year and they take electives in their senior year.
That is very typical.

No they have not. There are not that many kids taking Algebra 2 in MS. I ran the SOL numbers for the last three years. I actually went back and ran the numbers for a 10 year period, 2021 was the first year to have over 200 students take the Algebra 2 SOL in 8th grade. I am not going to hand jam the numbers though.

Algebra 1 in 6th grade:
2021-2022: 22 FCPS students
2022-2023: 31 FCPS Students
2023-2024: 25 FCPS students

Algebra 2 in 8th grade:
2021-2022: 221 FCPS students
2022-2023: 210 FCPS students
2023-2024 201 FCPS students

I would say that the majority of kids at TJ have had Geometry and are taking Algebra 2. Very few kids are offered the path to Algebra 1 in 5th grade and a small group of kids choose to take Geometry in the summer. If you read the various summer threads on Geometry in the summer it is either not that hard for a kid but a time suck or stupidly hard and the kids drop it or expunge the grade. It feels like a 50/50 split but there is going to be a bias based on who chooses to post.

Most of the kids at TJ will take Calculus as Juniors about a quarter will take Calculus as Sophomores.

Yup.

60% of the class of 2024 took geometry in 8th, per FCAG.

34% took algebra 2+.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“ MathCounts, AMC, Olympiads, ”

And those also aren’t offered everywhere. We aren’t in a “bad” pyramid either. Just a middle of the road one for FCPS.

Mathcounts allows students to sign up as non school competitors if their school isn't competing.
AMCs are offered by Fairfax math circle, FCAG, AoPS, and a number of other places.
Any motivated kid should be able to participate in both of these, even if it's not offered by their school.

But what if they can’t participate because they have to take care of their younger brother because both parents work?

If they're so overburdened with childcare or other responsibilities that they cannot even escape for a single day for an academic competition, how on earth are they going to have the time to be successful TJ students? TJ is a huge time sink, even for the kids who are minimally participating in all that TJ has to offer.

DP. That is for them to figure out, not for you to pretend concern over.

The idea that kids who have adversity to deal with should not have access to elite educational opportunities because they would take a different approach than you would is gross.

You do a disservice to people who are on your side when you make comments like this - making them appear uncaring and out of touch with reality.

I agree. We should get rid of these holistic criteria that only serve to exclude poorer kids.

This is where testing comes in.
You don't need expensive time consuming extracurriculars to paint a holistic picture. Just be smart.
Stuyvesant uses a single test and half the kids there are on free or reduced lunch.
Some FARM kid has good test scores, let them in, they will be able to catch up.
Their poverty is their extracurricular.
Being poor should count for as much as anything that money can buy.

This isn’t about tests or income. It’s about family values.

I disagree, it's about income.
Holistic factors are far more income driven than test results.
Sure you can get extra enrichment if you can afford it but you still have to perform well on the test.
But you can get to the top of mount everest on the backs of a thousand sherpa.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“ FCPS acknowledges that the same four top middle schools are where advanced STEM talent is nurtured to not just meet the TJ rigor but enroll in advanced courses there.”

DC has been doing great at TJ but still won’t have as much schedule space as others because she “only” started at Math 3 level (Alg 2). She could definitely have skipped a year and done Alg 1 in 6th but not all the centers do that - she would have had to go to the secondary school for that and no clue how transpiration for that would have worked. Not all centers have the same opportunity for the full acceleration spectrum that the “feeder” schools offer.

The majority of TJ students have always started HS with Algebra 2.
They take calculus in their junior year and they take electives in their senior year.
That is very typical.

No they have not. There are not that many kids taking Algebra 2 in MS. I ran the SOL numbers for the last three years. I actually went back and ran the numbers for a 10 year period, 2021 was the first year to have over 200 students take the Algebra 2 SOL in 8th grade. I am not going to hand jam the numbers though.

Algebra 1 in 6th grade:
2021-2022: 22 FCPS students
2022-2023: 31 FCPS Students
2023-2024: 25 FCPS students

Algebra 2 in 8th grade:
2021-2022: 221 FCPS students
2022-2023: 210 FCPS students
2023-2024 201 FCPS students

I would say that the majority of kids at TJ have had Geometry and are taking Algebra 2. Very few kids are offered the path to Algebra 1 in 5th grade and a small group of kids choose to take Geometry in the summer. If you read the various summer threads on Geometry in the summer it is either not that hard for a kid but a time suck or stupidly hard and the kids drop it or expunge the grade. It feels like a 50/50 split but there is going to be a bias based on who chooses to post.

Most of the kids at TJ will take Calculus as Juniors about a quarter will take Calculus as Sophomores.

I think he is saying the same thing you are. They Start TJ in their freshman year with algebra 2, take calculus in their junior year and electives in their senior year.