Spin off. African American families, do you avoid schools with lots of FARMs minorities?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agreed. You can't raise your children in a bubble. They are in school from 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. (on average) which means that they spend at least 30 hours per week at school with non-family members--and that's not including children who are in extended care which could increase the hours outside the home to 40-50 hours. If your child is at a school where families value education (i.e. attend parent-teacher conferences, volunteer a lot, show up for school functions, help children with homework), they are more likely to be successful. And children who attend schools where the families do not value education definitely have a harder way to go. I didn't say it was impossible for them to be successful, but it will be harder. To pretend otherwise is woefully naive.

Anonymous wrote:True, but peer effect is a real issue for all kids, and anyone who chooses to ignore it, is being unrealistic.

There will peer issues no matter where you go. Some people send their kids to religious schools to sort of control the influences but even then there can be peer pressure, kids that rebel etc. In schools with higher incomes there can be the entitlement, drugs, peer pressure with dating... No matter where you pick, there will be something. But I think specifically with academics, especially in the younger grades, the teachers and school itself can influence the child. School back when I went wasn't fun or exciting. If you weren't motivated to do well and your parents parents weren't on you if you did poorly, there was nothing about the work that would make you want to do it. I'm not saying it isn't easier for the school when kids come in motivated and their parents have already taught them the basics and are having them tutored to "get ahead" or solidify the foundation. But I would also say it is part of the school's job to reach kids where they are and perhaps find a method of delivery that is motivational. In case the kids don't have the most structured of home lives, the school may need to weave into the school culture the character education (e.g. BEARS - Be a thinker, Earn Respect, Always be Kind, Responsibility is Key, Safety First) where you are modeling and reinforcing positive behavior and see other kids using it too. Rather than a shut up and sit down, you are teaching kids to be responsible for their actions and to think about their actions from a young age and not making it a you are a good or bad child type of message, but a learning process in itself where you are learning to make better choices. I just hate to write off a whole group of kids when it is really the adults that are failing them on all fronts. And seriously, think about your job - if you have to give a presentation to someone that isn't technical and you have to cover a somewhat technical topic - can you blame the VP and say - oh he/she didn't study computers and study this topic before I presented OR do you think - wow I better figure out a way to present this so it will make sense to this person and addresses any fears they may have on whatever the topic of the presentation as well as motivate them to want to do this.

[Anonymous]

I went to a school with many low income Whites and African Americans (AA), but the school was predominantly African American, or at least, people of African descent. Well anyway, I bonded closer to the AA kids, and many (maybe most) of them had the worst attitudes towards school. I developed this sort of negative attitude, but my parents caught on and they moved heaven and earth to get us out of there. They bought a house in a very exclusive area with great schools. It was apparent that I had some catching up to do, but eventually, I got there.
Now that I have my two kids, I will stay clear away from unmotivated people (of any race). So for us, the short answer is yes, I will avoid a school where say 30 or 40 percent of the AA families look like "trouble", if I have to deduce that by looking at FARMS numbers (I don't think that they are available by race), then I will do so.

[Anonymous]

I wonder what the answers would be if this question was would you avoid highly regarded schools where there have been 3 drug arrests in one week?

[Anonymous]

Education policy professional. As much as I wish it weren't true, the proportion of free and reduced-price meal students is one of the best indicators of a school's quality (more free lunches = lower quality) in most domains. While the causal link can't be confirmed, most assume it has to do with the extra attention that those students can require from teachers because of (as pps have said) the lower parental ability to enagge in their education for any number of reasons.

Has nothing to do with race, though.

[Anonymous]

"Education policy professional. As much as I wish it weren't true, the proportion of free and reduced-price meal students is one of the best indicators of a school's quality (more free lunches = lower quality) in most domains. While the causal link can't be confirmed, most assume it has to do with the extra attention that those students can require from teachers because of (as pps have said) the lower parental ability to enagge in their education for any number of reasons.

Has nothing to do with race, though"

Could you please expand on what you mean by a "school's quality"? Do you mean test scores are lower, or do you mean teachers are somehow not as good because the students are poor? Do you mean the school doesn't get extras from a PTA of wealthy parents? Are the teachers good, but have to spend all their time dealing with unprepared kids?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to a school with many low income Whites and African Americans (AA), but the school was predominantly African American, or at least, people of African descent. Well anyway, I bonded closer to the AA kids, and many (maybe most) of them had the worst attitudes towards school. I developed this sort of negative attitude, but my parents caught on and they moved heaven and earth to get us out of there. They bought a house in a very exclusive area with great schools. It was apparent that I had some catching up to do, but eventually, I got there.
Now that I have my two kids, I will stay clear away from unmotivated people (of any race). So for us, the short answer is yes, I will avoid a school where say 30 or 40 percent of the AA families look like "trouble", if I have to deduce that by looking at FARMS numbers (I don't think that they are available by race), then I will do so.

Since this poster decided to be honest, I will too. I went to a high school that sounds a lot like the description above and I would not want my children attending it either. Although I did very well and avoided negative influences, it was not without being called all sorts of names (I'm sure most AA parents can guess what I'm talking about) and really questioning my identity. I have no problem sending my kids to a predominately AA school (I went to an HBCU myself), but I want my kids to be in an environment where AA children like them are visibly succeeding. I think this is ESPECIALLY important for boys. Life is hard enough, I refuse to gamble with my DCs educations for purposes of political correctness.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a school with many low income Whites and African Americans (AA), but the school was predominantly African American, or at least, people of African descent. Well anyway, I bonded closer to the AA kids, and many (maybe most) of them had the worst attitudes towards school. I developed this sort of negative attitude, but my parents caught on and they moved heaven and earth to get us out of there. They bought a house in a very exclusive area with great schools. It was apparent that I had some catching up to do, but eventually, I got there.
Now that I have my two kids, I will stay clear away from unmotivated people (of any race). So for us, the short answer is yes, I will avoid a school where say 30 or 40 percent of the AA families look like "trouble", if I have to deduce that by looking at FARMS numbers (I don't think that they are available by race), then I will do so.

Since this poster decided to be honest, I will too. I went to a high school that sounds a lot like the description above and I would not want my children attending it either. Although I did very well and avoided negative influences, it was not without being called all sorts of names (I'm sure most AA parents can guess what I'm talking about) and really questioning my identity. I have no problem sending my kids to a predominately AA school (I went to an HBCU myself), but I want my kids to be in an environment where AA children like them are visibly succeeding. I think this is ESPECIALLY important for boys. Life is hard enough, I refuse to gamble with my DCs educations for purposes of political correctness.

Another AA parent here. I want the same thing. The question is, where do I find that in this area? What schools/areas have a critical mass of high-achieving minorities? At least in my experience in the DC metro area (I am a native but have only lived in MoCo as a parent), it is hard to find a school with a good percentage of middle/upper-middle class AAs that does not also have a decent population of FARMs AAs.

[Anonymous]

As an AA mom, it is sad to say, but IME, it makes a difference if the AA FARMS families are immigrant families. If a high percentage of the school's AA population are ESOL, that is a good indication that they are African immigrant families. The African immigrant families at our school are much more involved and have higher achieving students with fewer behvior problems than many of the black American families.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder what the answers would be if this question was would you avoid highly regarded schools where there have been 3 drug arrests in one week?

If the school is highly regarded, probably not as it must be just a blip. Also, I would look at who exactly is getting arrested and what the nature of the crime was. Kids in the DCPS that I attended were arrested from time to time, but it had no bearing on me because they were not kids I associated with (in some cases I was glad they were arrested because they were scary!)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder what the answers would be if this question was would you avoid highly regarded schools where there have been 3 drug arrests in one week?

My AA son will avoid Georgetown, but not for those reasons.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a school with many low income Whites and African Americans (AA), but the school was predominantly African American, or at least, people of African descent. Well anyway, I bonded closer to the AA kids, and many (maybe most) of them had the worst attitudes towards school. I developed this sort of negative attitude, but my parents caught on and they moved heaven and earth to get us out of there. They bought a house in a very exclusive area with great schools. It was apparent that I had some catching up to do, but eventually, I got there.
Now that I have my two kids, I will stay clear away from unmotivated people (of any race). So for us, the short answer is yes, I will avoid a school where say 30 or 40 percent of the AA families look like "trouble", if I have to deduce that by looking at FARMS numbers (I don't think that they are available by race), then I will do so.

Since this poster decided to be honest, I will too. I went to a high school that sounds a lot like the description above and I would not want my children attending it either. Although I did very well and avoided negative influences, it was not without being called all sorts of names (I'm sure most AA parents can guess what I'm talking about) and really questioning my identity. I have no problem sending my kids to a predominately AA school (I went to an HBCU myself), but I want my kids to be in an environment where AA children like them are visibly succeeding. I think this is ESPECIALLY important for boys. Life is hard enough, I refuse to gamble with my DCs educations for purposes of political correctness.

Another AA parent here. I want the same thing. The question is, where do I find that in this area? What schools/areas have a critical mass of high-achieving minorities? At least in my experience in the DC metro area (I am a native but have only lived in MoCo as a parent), it is hard to find a school with a good percentage of middle/upper-middle class AAs that does not also have a decent population of FARMs AAs.

Yes, that is the ultimate question, where do you find a school with a large chunk of high performing AA kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that is the ultimate question, where do you find a school with a large chunk of high performing AA kids.

421 P Street, NW
4801 Benning Road, SE
2600 Douglass Road, SE

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, that is the ultimate question, where do you find a school with a large chunk of high performing AA kids.

421 P Street, NW
4801 Benning Road, SE
2600 Douglass Road, SE

Is there also a complementary set that is not quite so motivated?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Education policy professional. As much as I wish it weren't true, the proportion of free and reduced-price meal students is one of the best indicators of a school's quality (more free lunches = lower quality) in most domains. While the causal link can't be confirmed, most assume it has to do with the extra attention that those students can require from teachers because of (as pps have said) the lower parental ability to enagge in their education for any number of reasons.

Has nothing to do with race, though"

Anonymous wrote:"Could you please expand on what you mean by a "school's quality"? Do you mean test scores are lower, or do you mean teachers are somehow not as good because the students are poor? Do you mean the school doesn't get extras from a PTA of wealthy parents? Are the teachers good, but have to spend all their time dealing with unprepared kids?

Yes, I'd like to know what you mean by "school quality", too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder what the answers would be if this question was would you avoid highly regarded schools where there have been 3 drug arrests in one week?

Or a meth lab being operated out of the dorms?