APS Duran School Performance Email - Is Long Branch a Failing School?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:APS had an advanced math class already, pre-algebra. The law required kids scouting in the top 25% across the state to be in an advanced math class. APS could have pushed all those kids into pre-algebra, or mastered down that class to accommodate more kids. Instead. APS offered Math 6 Advanced so kids had more options. Pre-algebra in 6th is a tough course. Not all parents wanted that much for their kids. Arguably, not all kids were ready for that.

Saying the law is the only reason APS offers any advance math is wrong because APS offered pre-algebra previously. APS wasn’t required to add Math 6 advanced. They offered it to provide more differentiation.

No one said that the only reason APS offers advanced math is because of the new law. But the only reason that APS is offering Math 6 Advanced *is* because of the new law. That's clear from the committee notes. The lack of that class had been a problem for years and was discussed here many times, with some parents complaining that unprepared kids were being pushed into Pre-algebra and others complaining that Math 6 was too basic.

It's also clear that because of the law now 50% of APS 6th graders are taking advanced math instead of 15%. That's a huge increase.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:APS had an advanced math class already, pre-algebra. The law required kids scouting in the top 25% across the state to be in an advanced math class. APS could have pushed all those kids into pre-algebra, or mastered down that class to accommodate more kids. Instead. APS offered Math 6 Advanced so kids had more options. Pre-algebra in 6th is a tough course. Not all parents wanted that much for their kids. Arguably, not all kids were ready for that.

Saying the law is the only reason APS offers any advance math is wrong because APS offered pre-algebra previously. APS wasn’t required to add Math 6 advanced. They offered it to provide more differentiation.

No one is saying it’s the only reason they offer any advanced math class. People are saying it’s the reason they offer something in between pre-algebra (which is three years of middle school math in one year) and math 6. This was added in direct response to the law.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:APS had an advanced math class already, pre-algebra. The law required kids scouting in the top 25% across the state to be in an advanced math class. APS could have pushed all those kids into pre-algebra, or mastered down that class to accommodate more kids. Instead. APS offered Math 6 Advanced so kids had more options. Pre-algebra in 6th is a tough course. Not all parents wanted that much for their kids. Arguably, not all kids were ready for that.

Saying the law is the only reason APS offers any advance math is wrong because APS offered pre-algebra previously. APS wasn’t required to add Math 6 advanced. They offered it to provide more differentiation.

No one said that the only reason APS offers advanced math is because of the new law. But the only reason that APS is offering Math 6 Advanced *is* because of the new law. That's clear from the committee notes. The lack of that class had been a problem for years and was discussed here many times, with some parents complaining that unprepared kids were being pushed into Pre-algebra and others complaining that Math 6 was too basic.

It's also clear that because of the law now 50% of APS 6th graders are taking advanced math instead of 15%. That's a huge increase.

Plenty of people said the new law is the only reason APS offers advanced math. See the summary of 01/04/2026 13:16 if you don't want to go back to through the whole thread. Yes, the new law is the reason there is a 3rd math class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:APS had an advanced math class already, pre-algebra. The law required kids scouting in the top 25% across the state to be in an advanced math class. APS could have pushed all those kids into pre-algebra, or mastered down that class to accommodate more kids. Instead. APS offered Math 6 Advanced so kids had more options. Pre-algebra in 6th is a tough course. Not all parents wanted that much for their kids. Arguably, not all kids were ready for that.

Saying the law is the only reason APS offers any advance math is wrong because APS offered pre-algebra previously. APS wasn’t required to add Math 6 advanced. They offered it to provide more differentiation.

No one said that the only reason APS offers advanced math is because of the new law. But the only reason that APS is offering Math 6 Advanced *is* because of the new law. That's clear from the committee notes. The lack of that class had been a problem for years and was discussed here many times, with some parents complaining that unprepared kids were being pushed into Pre-algebra and others complaining that Math 6 was too basic.

It's also clear that because of the law now 50% of APS 6th graders are taking advanced math instead of 15%. That's a huge increase.

Plenty of people said the new law is the only reason APS offers advanced math. See the summary of 01/04/2026 13:16 if you don't want to go back to through the whole thread. Yes, the new law is the reason there is a 3rd math class.

Again, you're wrong. That poster said that APS previously had Pre-algebra, and that it's now offering a *new* advanced math class:

Last year there were two math classes for 6th graders: Math 6 and Pre-algebra for 6th graders. That.meant that 5-10% of 6th graders were taking an advanced math class. Because of the new law passed by Youngkin, APS was forced to offer a new math class so now 40-50% of 6th graders are taking an advanced math class. That's a HUGE improvement and something APS refused to do for years, despite being asked by parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is classic MAGA tactics. They try to take credit for things the Dems did. Like the law that was sponsored by a DEM.

All on a thread that tries to bash Duran. They now say they are happy about something Duran did while lying and saying it was forced by the state law. When it wasn't. Read the actual law. Don't believe their lies.

The notes from the Jan 20, 2025 Math Advisory Committee explicitly say that Math 6 Advanced was recommended in response to the new law. It’s in the very first yellow highlighted section. APS was not going to offer this class without the new law.

https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/sites/57/2025/05/Math-Advisory-Committee-Recommendation-2024-25-Updated-April-2025.pdf

Read the law. The law does not require it. The math advisory committee is just a bunch of APE parents now. Hardly experts.

Why are you such a troll? Here’s the discussion from the linked document. It very clearly lays out the requirements in the law and why a new course was created between math 6 and pre-algebra.

“ HB 2686 became state law this spring.1 It requires school districts to enroll all students
who score in the “top 25% in VA” on the 5th grade SOL into an advanced course in 6th grade.
MAC estimates, based on APS’s past SOL scores, that this will result in about 50% of APS’s 6th
graders being placed into an advanced course.
Currently APS offers two courses: Math 6 and 6th grade Prealgebra. Enrollment
recently has been split roughly 85% for Math 6 and 15% for Prealgebra. MAC does not believe
that the extra 35% of student that would be required by state law to be placed into an advanced
course would be successful in 6th grade Prealgebra. This provides APS with 3 options: (1)
Place the 35% of students into a course where they will struggle, (2) water down the course so
that the 35% can be successful but then the 15% are deprived of the course for their level and
neither set of students would be prepared to take Algebra 1 in 7th grade, or (3) create a third
course more suited to this 35% group of students. MAC strongly recommends this 3rd
option.”

That’s the advisory committee’s report. That leaves out some important parts of the law. It’s a false narrative. Why are you pushing it instead of looking to the actual law? I guess you want to push this narrative too. It’s obvious who you are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is classic MAGA tactics. They try to take credit for things the Dems did. Like the law that was sponsored by a DEM.

All on a thread that tries to bash Duran. They now say they are happy about something Duran did while lying and saying it was forced by the state law. When it wasn't. Read the actual law. Don't believe their lies.

The notes from the Jan 20, 2025 Math Advisory Committee explicitly say that Math 6 Advanced was recommended in response to the new law. It’s in the very first yellow highlighted section. APS was not going to offer this class without the new law.

https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/sites/57/2025/05/Math-Advisory-Committee-Recommendation-2024-25-Updated-April-2025.pdf

Read the law. The law does not require it. The math advisory committee is just a bunch of APE parents now. Hardly experts.

Why are you such a troll? Here’s the discussion from the linked document. It very clearly lays out the requirements in the law and why a new course was created between math 6 and pre-algebra.

“ HB 2686 became state law this spring.1 It requires school districts to enroll all students
who score in the “top 25% in VA” on the 5th grade SOL into an advanced course in 6th grade.
MAC estimates, based on APS’s past SOL scores, that this will result in about 50% of APS’s 6th
graders being placed into an advanced course.
Currently APS offers two courses: Math 6 and 6th grade Prealgebra. Enrollment
recently has been split roughly 85% for Math 6 and 15% for Prealgebra. MAC does not believe
that the extra 35% of student that would be required by state law to be placed into an advanced
course would be successful in 6th grade Prealgebra. This provides APS with 3 options: (1)
Place the 35% of students into a course where they will struggle, (2) water down the course so
that the 35% can be successful but then the 15% are deprived of the course for their level and
neither set of students would be prepared to take Algebra 1 in 7th grade, or (3) create a third
course more suited to this 35% group of students. MAC strongly recommends this 3rd
option.”

That’s the advisory committee’s report. That leaves out some important parts of the law. It’s a false narrative. Why are you pushing it instead of looking to the actual law? I guess you want to push this narrative too. It’s obvious who you are.

You're accusing an APS committee of creating a false narrative that doesn't benefit APS? That makes no sense. If you were paying attention, you'd understand that the committee summary is entirely accurate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:APS had an advanced math class already, pre-algebra. The law required kids scouting in the top 25% across the state to be in an advanced math class. APS could have pushed all those kids into pre-algebra, or mastered down that class to accommodate more kids. Instead. APS offered Math 6 Advanced so kids had more options. Pre-algebra in 6th is a tough course. Not all parents wanted that much for their kids. Arguably, not all kids were ready for that.

Saying the law is the only reason APS offers any advance math is wrong because APS offered pre-algebra previously. APS wasn’t required to add Math 6 advanced. They offered it to provide more differentiation.

No one is saying it’s the only reason they offer any advanced math class. People are saying it’s the reason they offer something in between pre-algebra (which is three years of middle school math in one year) and math 6. This was added in direct response to the law.

So much backtracking now that you got presented with facts.

Again the new law does not require this new class. Plenty of people right here said it did. The new law does require mandatory enrollment for high scoring students in existing advanced classes but only subject to availability. This new class wS a decision by APS. I think it was a good one. Give credit where it belongs which is APS not the stats and certainly not Youngkin as was wrongly claimed. This is what the maga apes do, don’t ever believe them!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is classic MAGA tactics. They try to take credit for things the Dems did. Like the law that was sponsored by a DEM.

All on a thread that tries to bash Duran. They now say they are happy about something Duran did while lying and saying it was forced by the state law. When it wasn't. Read the actual law. Don't believe their lies.

The notes from the Jan 20, 2025 Math Advisory Committee explicitly say that Math 6 Advanced was recommended in response to the new law. It’s in the very first yellow highlighted section. APS was not going to offer this class without the new law.

https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/sites/57/2025/05/Math-Advisory-Committee-Recommendation-2024-25-Updated-April-2025.pdf

Read the law. The law does not require it. The math advisory committee is just a bunch of APE parents now. Hardly experts.

Why are you such a troll? Here’s the discussion from the linked document. It very clearly lays out the requirements in the law and why a new course was created between math 6 and pre-algebra.

“ HB 2686 became state law this spring.1 It requires school districts to enroll all students
who score in the “top 25% in VA” on the 5th grade SOL into an advanced course in 6th grade.
MAC estimates, based on APS’s past SOL scores, that this will result in about 50% of APS’s 6th
graders being placed into an advanced course.
Currently APS offers two courses: Math 6 and 6th grade Prealgebra. Enrollment
recently has been split roughly 85% for Math 6 and 15% for Prealgebra. MAC does not believe
that the extra 35% of student that would be required by state law to be placed into an advanced
course would be successful in 6th grade Prealgebra. This provides APS with 3 options: (1)
Place the 35% of students into a course where they will struggle, (2) water down the course so
that the 35% can be successful but then the 15% are deprived of the course for their level and
neither set of students would be prepared to take Algebra 1 in 7th grade, or (3) create a third
course more suited to this 35% group of students. MAC strongly recommends this 3rd
option.”

That’s the advisory committee’s report. That leaves out some important parts of the law. It’s a false narrative. Why are you pushing it instead of looking to the actual law? I guess you want to push this narrative too. It’s obvious who you are.

You're accusing an APS committee of creating a false narrative that doesn't benefit APS? That makes no sense. If you were paying attention, you'd understand that the committee summary is entirely accurate.

Read the law and compare it to the committee summary. Either the committee is incompetent or pushing a false narrative. You’re on the committee obviously.

[Anonymous]

The maga ape tactics are something else. First you lie snd claim this class is because of Youngkins law. After it was pointed out the law was sponsored by a dem you just come up with more lies. Anything to avoid credit to Duran who apes hate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is classic MAGA tactics. They try to take credit for things the Dems did. Like the law that was sponsored by a DEM.

All on a thread that tries to bash Duran. They now say they are happy about something Duran did while lying and saying it was forced by the state law. When it wasn't. Read the actual law. Don't believe their lies.

The notes from the Jan 20, 2025 Math Advisory Committee explicitly say that Math 6 Advanced was recommended in response to the new law. It’s in the very first yellow highlighted section. APS was not going to offer this class without the new law.

https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/sites/57/2025/05/Math-Advisory-Committee-Recommendation-2024-25-Updated-April-2025.pdf

Read the law. The law does not require it. The math advisory committee is just a bunch of APE parents now. Hardly experts.

Why are you such a troll? Here’s the discussion from the linked document. It very clearly lays out the requirements in the law and why a new course was created between math 6 and pre-algebra.

“ HB 2686 became state law this spring.1 It requires school districts to enroll all students
who score in the “top 25% in VA” on the 5th grade SOL into an advanced course in 6th grade.
MAC estimates, based on APS’s past SOL scores, that this will result in about 50% of APS’s 6th
graders being placed into an advanced course.
Currently APS offers two courses: Math 6 and 6th grade Prealgebra. Enrollment
recently has been split roughly 85% for Math 6 and 15% for Prealgebra. MAC does not believe
that the extra 35% of student that would be required by state law to be placed into an advanced
course would be successful in 6th grade Prealgebra. This provides APS with 3 options: (1)
Place the 35% of students into a course where they will struggle, (2) water down the course so
that the 35% can be successful but then the 15% are deprived of the course for their level and
neither set of students would be prepared to take Algebra 1 in 7th grade, or (3) create a third
course more suited to this 35% group of students. MAC strongly recommends this 3rd
option.”

That’s the advisory committee’s report. That leaves out some important parts of the law. It’s a false narrative. Why are you pushing it instead of looking to the actual law? I guess you want to push this narrative too. It’s obvious who you are.

You're accusing an APS committee of creating a false narrative that doesn't benefit APS? That makes no sense. If you were paying attention, you'd understand that the committee summary is entirely accurate.

Read the law and compare it to the committee summary. Either the committee is incompetent or pushing a false narrative. You’re on the committee obviously.

The law and the committee summary aren't going to be the same. The committee summary is about implementing the law, whereas the law is the law. No one expects them to be identical. That's not how it works

[Anonymous]

NP. Trolls are out of control on this thread.
The fact is, prior to this year, APS did a lot of gate keeping to make it so few kids “qualified” for pre-algebra in 6th grade. They frequently changed (& didn’t publicize in advance) the test score cut-offs, implied that teacher input was considered when it was really all decided by the APS math office, did not advertise that parents could override their recommendations, and were anything but transparent about exactly how the placements were made.

Because of the new (bipartisan) law, a certain percentage of kids are REQUIRED to be offered advanced math. And this number of kids is much higher than the previous number being placed in advanced math. This is a good thing.

[Anonymous]

My understanding is that school districts had until SY25-26 to implement the law if they already offered an advanced or accelerated class (e.g., APS 6th grade because APS already offered pre-algebra) but that school districts get an extra year to implement the law if they don't already offer an advanced or accelerated class (e.g., APS 5th grade).

All elementary school parents should be paying close attention to how APS changes math for 5th graders, which should be implemented starting next fall (SY26-27). The plan will need to be proposed by Duran and approved by the school board. It's unclear if there'll be any opportunity for parent, teacher or community input.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is that school districts had until SY25-26 to implement the law if they already offered an advanced or accelerated class (e.g., APS 6th grade because APS already offered pre-algebra) but that school districts get an extra year to implement the law if they don't already offer an advanced or accelerated class (e.g., APS 5th grade).

All elementary school parents should be paying close attention to how APS changes math for 5th graders, which should be implemented starting next fall (SY26-27). The plan will need to be proposed by Duran and approved by the school board. It's unclear if there'll be any opportunity for parent, teacher or community input.

Here's the link and text from Virginia Department of Education:

Divisions which currently have acceleration pathways and policies in place may choose to begin the auto-enrollment process beginning with the 2025-2026 school year. If divisions currently do not have acceleration pathways or policies in place, then the division can leverage the released state upper quartile 2025 Mathematics Standards of Learning (SOL) assessment data and the resources linked below to inform policy development for full implementation in the 2026-2027 school year.

https://www.doe.virginia.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/62992/638943908317530000

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is classic MAGA tactics. They try to take credit for things the Dems did. Like the law that was sponsored by a DEM.

All on a thread that tries to bash Duran. They now say they are happy about something Duran did while lying and saying it was forced by the state law. When it wasn't. Read the actual law. Don't believe their lies.

The notes from the Jan 20, 2025 Math Advisory Committee explicitly say that Math 6 Advanced was recommended in response to the new law. It’s in the very first yellow highlighted section. APS was not going to offer this class without the new law.

https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/sites/57/2025/05/Math-Advisory-Committee-Recommendation-2024-25-Updated-April-2025.pdf

Read the law. The law does not require it. The math advisory committee is just a bunch of APE parents now. Hardly experts.

Why are you such a troll? Here’s the discussion from the linked document. It very clearly lays out the requirements in the law and why a new course was created between math 6 and pre-algebra.

“ HB 2686 became state law this spring.1 It requires school districts to enroll all students
who score in the “top 25% in VA” on the 5th grade SOL into an advanced course in 6th grade.
MAC estimates, based on APS’s past SOL scores, that this will result in about 50% of APS’s 6th
graders being placed into an advanced course.
Currently APS offers two courses: Math 6 and 6th grade Prealgebra. Enrollment
recently has been split roughly 85% for Math 6 and 15% for Prealgebra. MAC does not believe
that the extra 35% of student that would be required by state law to be placed into an advanced
course would be successful in 6th grade Prealgebra. This provides APS with 3 options: (1)
Place the 35% of students into a course where they will struggle, (2) water down the course so
that the 35% can be successful but then the 15% are deprived of the course for their level and
neither set of students would be prepared to take Algebra 1 in 7th grade, or (3) create a third
course more suited to this 35% group of students. MAC strongly recommends this 3rd
option.”

That’s the advisory committee’s report. That leaves out some important parts of the law. It’s a false narrative. Why are you pushing it instead of looking to the actual law? I guess you want to push this narrative too. It’s obvious who you are.

You're accusing an APS committee of creating a false narrative that doesn't benefit APS? That makes no sense. If you were paying attention, you'd understand that the committee summary is entirely accurate.

Read the law and compare it to the committee summary. Either the committee is incompetent or pushing a false narrative. You’re on the committee obviously.

The law and the committee summary aren't going to be the same. The committee summary is about implementing the law, whereas the law is the law. No one expects them to be identical. That's not how it works

The report left out a crucial part for implementing. I think intentionally.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is classic MAGA tactics. They try to take credit for things the Dems did. Like the law that was sponsored by a DEM.

All on a thread that tries to bash Duran. They now say they are happy about something Duran did while lying and saying it was forced by the state law. When it wasn't. Read the actual law. Don't believe their lies.

The notes from the Jan 20, 2025 Math Advisory Committee explicitly say that Math 6 Advanced was recommended in response to the new law. It’s in the very first yellow highlighted section. APS was not going to offer this class without the new law.

https://www.apsva.us/wp-content/uploads/sites/57/2025/05/Math-Advisory-Committee-Recommendation-2024-25-Updated-April-2025.pdf

Read the law. The law does not require it. The math advisory committee is just a bunch of APE parents now. Hardly experts.

Why are you such a troll? Here’s the discussion from the linked document. It very clearly lays out the requirements in the law and why a new course was created between math 6 and pre-algebra.

“ HB 2686 became state law this spring.1 It requires school districts to enroll all students
who score in the “top 25% in VA” on the 5th grade SOL into an advanced course in 6th grade.
MAC estimates, based on APS’s past SOL scores, that this will result in about 50% of APS’s 6th
graders being placed into an advanced course.
Currently APS offers two courses: Math 6 and 6th grade Prealgebra. Enrollment
recently has been split roughly 85% for Math 6 and 15% for Prealgebra. MAC does not believe
that the extra 35% of student that would be required by state law to be placed into an advanced
course would be successful in 6th grade Prealgebra. This provides APS with 3 options: (1)
Place the 35% of students into a course where they will struggle, (2) water down the course so
that the 35% can be successful but then the 15% are deprived of the course for their level and
neither set of students would be prepared to take Algebra 1 in 7th grade, or (3) create a third
course more suited to this 35% group of students. MAC strongly recommends this 3rd
option.”

That’s the advisory committee’s report. That leaves out some important parts of the law. It’s a false narrative. Why are you pushing it instead of looking to the actual law? I guess you want to push this narrative too. It’s obvious who you are.

You're accusing an APS committee of creating a false narrative that doesn't benefit APS? That makes no sense. If you were paying attention, you'd understand that the committee summary is entirely accurate.

Read the law and compare it to the committee summary. Either the committee is incompetent or pushing a false narrative. You’re on the committee obviously.

The law and the committee summary aren't going to be the same. The committee summary is about implementing the law, whereas the law is the law. No one expects them to be identical. That's not how it works

The report left out a crucial part for implementing. I think intentionally.

The Virginia Department of Education has set implementation guidelines that aren't in the law. That's how legislation and implementation works.

https://www.doe.virginia.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/62992/638943908317530000