Comparing Catholic Schools in Arlington Diocese

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Twice this week actually walking to the church (the entire school walking 6 blocks both directions) is extra.

I assume this is Saint Mary's in Old Town?

Most schools have the church and school on the same campus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:^PP, do you have children of your own who are currently enrolled as students in a K-8 parochial school?

They graduated.

Your experience isn’t relevant to the current K-8 educational situation being discussed.

[Anonymous]

Mass again tomorrow. Plus a 2 hr delay today, bc of the “horrible” weather (ie, rain). It’s public school light, but costs a lot more.

[Anonymous]

Based on what I’m hearing from parents about the latest MAP test results, this school might strongly consider more “worksheets.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mass again tomorrow. Plus a 2 hr delay today, bc of the “horrible” weather (ie, rain). It’s public school light, but costs a lot more.

Why are you still there?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mass 2x a week seems to happen with some frequency at my school. Get this — on Thursday, May 29, they have mass, and then they have mass THE NEXT DAY as well. Then they’re expected to go to mass yet again on Sunday!

I don’t know ANYONE who goes to mass 3x a week, and I come from a very conservative Catholic area/family.

That is weird to *me.* You are from a very conservative Catholic family and you do not know one single person who goes to, say, daily Mass? My dad always has, and my grandparents did too. Our parish also has a large number of people who do. I do not always, but if I pop in from time to time, it certainly is far from being a complete ghost town.

Agree. I go to mass on an average of 4 days a week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mass again tomorrow. Plus a 2 hr delay today, bc of the “horrible” weather (ie, rain). It’s public school light, but costs a lot more.

What are you missing about it being a Catholic school? Mass is an integral part of being Catholic. Perhaps you'd be better off with your kids attending a secular private school or a public school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Based on what I’m hearing from parents about the latest MAP test results, this school might strongly consider more “worksheets.”

Maybe you need to pick a different school because from the 3-4 Arlington Diocese schools I have friends at and compare to what my friends in APS say their kids do, the kids in Catholic school do way more and way more prepared for HS.

Every kid that has come into my kids' catholic school from public school has been behind the catholic school kids. They also take 3-4 months to get a handle on the level work required, in school and out of school, to be effective.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Based on what I’m hearing from parents about the latest MAP test results, this school might strongly consider more “worksheets.”

Maybe you need to pick a different school because from the 3-4 Arlington Diocese schools I have friends at and compare to what my friends in APS say their kids do, the kids in Catholic school do way more and way more prepared for HS.

Every kid that has come into my kids' catholic school from public school has been behind the catholic school kids. They also take 3-4 months to get a handle on the level work required, in school and out of school, to be effective.

Noting that the kids are more prepared than their public counterparts is not a huge win - that is the expectation at a minimum. They should be FAR exceeding the public school curriculum and test results. The recent national report card testing results published just last week show a continued decline in reading and mathematics mastery (a trend that started in 2017) bolsters the impression of continuing to fail public schools. The concerns is that our parish schools have become public-school "lite". Chasing them with technology is not the win for our students - it is a race to the bottom. I'd love to see a Diocesan summary report of MAP testing trends over time. THAT would tell a story that parents want to hear. If the MAP testing is showing a similar trend, that exposes an issue that the curriculum and instruction need to be examined for where they are going wrong.

[Anonymous]

Is there a way to see a specific Catholic school's MAP results?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is there a way to see a specific Catholic school's MAP results?

lol. You think they’d ever publish that?? Not in a million years. If they did, they’d have a lot to answer for.

Catholic schools are NOT FOR MASS. Sundays are for mass. Catholic schools are there to TEACH skills and virtues and prepare children for life, through a Catholic lens.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there a way to see a specific Catholic school's MAP results?

lol. You think they’d ever publish that?? Not in a million years. If they did, they’d have a lot to answer for.

Catholic schools are NOT FOR MASS. Sundays are for mass. Catholic schools are there to TEACH skills and virtues and prepare children for life, through a Catholic lens.

I think most Catholic school parents (myself included) would say that Catholic Schools ARE for mass. That is part of the character formation. However - the rise and increase in tech use in the classroom has led to a reduction of classroom hours spent with actual teacher instruction, reading books (gasp!) and writing. Navigating apps and learning games on the computer is NOT an academic endeavor that can compete with the effectiveness of a teacher / expert at the front of the class teaching her students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there a way to see a specific Catholic school's MAP results?

lol. You think they’d ever publish that?? Not in a million years. If they did, they’d have a lot to answer for.

Catholic schools are NOT FOR MASS. Sundays are for mass. Catholic schools are there to TEACH skills and virtues and prepare children for life, through a Catholic lens.

OLGC (Vienna) https://www.olgcschool.org/admissions/test-scores

[Anonymous]

A Catholic school educates children without the separation of a time for learning or a time for faith formation. The time spent on academics can have faith woven into them and good Catholic schools do that successfully with data showing high test scores consistently.

If daily mass is so important to the parent, they can partner with the school in their child’s faith formation by attending 6am mass with their child.

As a current Catholic school parent, I want the school live out the faith as a community with respectful behavior of students, high standards for academic work, and making an impact in the community in positive ways/evangelization. Catholic schools parents should demand virtuous behavior be put into practice in all situations and demanded by the school community!

It shouldn’t be that a Catholic school thinks simply what makes it different is their religious education component.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is there a way to see a specific Catholic school's MAP results?

OLGC (Vienna) https://www.olgcschool.org/admissions/test-scores

Way to be transparent, OLGC (Vienna)! 👏