bilingual and immersion schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Come on, posters don't hate YY. But there's an element of the ridiculous about their brand of immersion that gets pointed out. To sum it up:

School leadership (admins and parents) doesn't speak Chinese, year after year.
Chinese works to keep out the poors, but doesn't work to attract Chinese-speaking students.
Every kid gets good grades for speaking, but few speak well unless parents pay to supplement extensively. Nobody minds.
The next step, DCI, attracts no Chinese-speaking students.

So much misinformation in this post, mainly re: Chinese "keep[ing] out the poors" (seriously, how prejudiced are you PP? "The poors"??). There are many students who qualify for FARM. Not as high a % as most public schools in DC, but there are plenty students who do. Also the idea that few students speak Mandarin well unless they have tutors or native speaking nannies (another rumor that perpetuates despite it not being true).

By the way PP, what is your source for DCI attracting "no Chinese-speaking students"?

[Anonymous]

You're a Chinese speaker in a good position to judge? If yes, here's a suggestion: please go speak to the Chinese teachers at DCI (in Chinese, and in private). Ask them how many students there are in the DCI student body who speak Chinese at home in a dialect-speaking family. You'll get your answer in under a minute. Zilch. Zip. Nada. What a joke.

[Anonymous]

I think that DCI will be a halfway decent school for Chinese and other languages...in 10 or 15 years. It will never be MoCo however.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You're a Chinese speaker in a good position to judge? If yes, here's a suggestion: please go speak to the Chinese teachers at DCI (in Chinese, and in private). Ask them how many students there are in the DCI student body who speak Chinese at home in a dialect-speaking family. You'll get your answer in under a minute. Zilch. Zip. Nada. What a joke.

Since I know 2 families at DCI who fit that exact description and I don't even have kids enrolled there, I call BS on your post right away. And check this out: you don't have to actually speak Chinese yourself to have friends who are both native Chinese speakers and who have kids. Imagine that!

[Anonymous]

We love Cleveland -- 2 kids in the dual language (currently 2nd and PreK), and likely to stay through 5th.quite a few other families like us, and we enjoy the diversity of the families not like us. Join us!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You're a Chinese speaker in a good position to judge? If yes, here's a suggestion: please go speak to the Chinese teachers at DCI (in Chinese, and in private). Ask them how many students there are in the DCI student body who speak Chinese at home in a dialect-speaking family. You'll get your answer in under a minute. Zilch. Zip. Nada. What a joke.

Since I know 2 families at DCI who fit that exact description and I don't even have kids enrolled there, I call BS on your post right away. And check this out: you don't have to actually speak Chinese yourself to have friends who are both native Chinese speakers and who have kids. Imagine that!

Imagine this - one must speak Chinese to tell how well YY and DCI kids speak it. A few of the DCI parents speak dialects (not necessarily fluently), but not the kids. But as long as YY and DCI aren't evaluating kids for Chinese ability on entry, or making the data available to the public, anybody can claim whatever they want on this score. It's a system design to cover up inadequacies in a half-assed Chinese program. DCI can fudge it on Chinese until IB Diploma exams results start coming in, 4 or 5 years from now.

[Anonymous]

We can all pretend that DCI is a strong school offering serious language instruction. But it isn't so. It's just OK. Not sure why one thread after another explores the issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We can all pretend that DCI is a strong school offering serious language instruction. But it isn't so. It's just OK. Not sure why one thread after another explores the issue.

You're so cute in your obsession with discrediting DCI! Just for funsies, why don't you first define "strong school", and "serious language instruction" so we know what you're claiming it isn't.

Then offer your evidence that it's not those things.

Seriously, don't expect anyone to just take your word for this, define those terms and then explain your evidence or source that DCI does not measure up to your own definitions.

Otherwise we know you just are the cutest little anti-DCI gremlin ever, and we'll just pet you and try to remember not to feed you.

[Anonymous]

Strong language instruction emanates from two-way/dual immersion, not one-way immersion. The DCPSCB doesn't support dual immersion, claiming that federal charter law doesn't permit the practice (untrue, a number of states have passed charter laws supporting dual immersion charter programs without federal interference). They up beat on LAMB's admins on a regular basis for trying to offer dual immersion by courting Spanish speaking families. Until this changes, DCI can't offer serious language studies. Oyster can, DCI can't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Strong language instruction emanates from two-way/dual immersion, not one-way immersion. The DCPSCB doesn't support dual immersion, claiming that federal charter law doesn't permit the practice (untrue, a number of states have passed charter laws supporting dual immersion charter programs without federal interference). They up beat on LAMB's admins on a regular basis for trying to offer dual immersion by courting Spanish speaking families. Until this changes, DCI can't offer serious language studies. Oyster can, DCI can't. [/quote

I wouldn't hold Oyster as an example for anything positive. That school is a mess.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Strong language instruction emanates from two-way/dual immersion, not one-way immersion. The DCPSCB doesn't support dual immersion, claiming that federal charter law doesn't permit the practice (untrue, a number of states have passed charter laws supporting dual immersion charter programs without federal interference). They up beat on LAMB's admins on a regular basis for trying to offer dual immersion by courting Spanish speaking families. Until this changes, DCI can't offer serious language studies. Oyster can, DCI can't. [/quote

I wouldn't hold Oyster as an example for anything positive. That school is a mess.

We only lotteried for Oyster. Is it any worse than MV and DCI?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Strong language instruction emanates from two-way/dual immersion, not one-way immersion. The DCPSCB doesn't support dual immersion, claiming that federal charter law doesn't permit the practice (untrue, a number of states have passed charter laws supporting dual immersion charter programs without federal interference). They up beat on LAMB's admins on a regular basis for trying to offer dual immersion by courting Spanish speaking families. Until this changes, DCI can't offer serious language studies. Oyster can, DCI can't. [/quote

I wouldn't hold Oyster as an example for anything positive. That school is a mess.

We only lotteried for Oyster. Is it any worse than MV and DCI?

I'm an IB Oyster parent, and the school is wonderful! We are happy with the education our children are receiving, and they both LOVE the school. It's not perfect, but no place is faultless. That said, I really wish people would leave Oyster out of discussions concerning other immersion schools--especially when trying to bash said schools. Inevitably, Oyster's good name gets dragged into a fight that is not its own.

[Anonymous]

I'm an IB Oyster parent, and the school is wonderful! We are happy with the education our children are receiving, and they both LOVE the school. It's not perfect, but no place is faultless. That said, I really wish people would leave Oyster out of discussions concerning other immersion schools--especially when trying to bash said schools. Inevitably, Oyster's good name gets dragged into a fight that is not its o

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Strong language instruction emanates from two-way/dual immersion, not one-way immersion. The DCPSCB doesn't support dual immersion, claiming that federal charter law doesn't permit the practice (untrue, a number of states have passed charter laws supporting dual immersion charter programs without federal interference). They up beat on LAMB's admins on a regular basis for trying to offer dual immersion by courting Spanish speaking families. Until this changes, DCI can't offer serious language studies. Oyster can, DCI can't. [/quote

I wouldn't hold Oyster as an example for anything positive. That school is a mess.

We only lotteried for Oyster. Is it any worse than MV and DCI?

I'm an IB Oyster parent, and the school is wonderful! We are happy with the education our children are receiving, and they both LOVE the school. It's not perfect, but no place is faultless. That said, I really wish people would leave Oyster out of discussions concerning other immersion schools--especially when trying to bash said schools. Inevitably, Oyster's good name gets dragged into a fight that is not its own.

Come on. PP simply noted that Oyster offers dual immersion (best practices per immersion studies) while DCI doesn't because of the way the DC charter law is written and DCPSCB practices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Strong language instruction emanates from two-way/dual immersion, not one-way immersion. The DCPSCB doesn't support dual immersion, claiming that federal charter law doesn't permit the practice (untrue, a number of states have passed charter laws supporting dual immersion charter programs without federal interference). They up beat on LAMB's admins on a regular basis for trying to offer dual immersion by courting Spanish speaking families. Until this changes, DCI can't offer serious language studies. Oyster can, DCI can't. [/quote

I wouldn't hold Oyster as an example for anything positive. That school is a mess.

We only lotteried for Oyster. Is it any worse than MV and DCI?

I'm an IB Oyster parent, and the school is wonderful! We are happy with the education our children are receiving, and they both LOVE the school. It's not perfect, but no place is faultless. That said, I really wish people would leave Oyster out of discussions concerning other immersion schools--especially when trying to bash said schools. Inevitably, Oyster's good name gets dragged into a fight that is not its own.

Come on. PP simply noted that Oyster offers dual immersion (best practices per immersion studies) while DCI doesn't because of the way the DC charter law is written and DCPSCB practices.

I would not send my kid to Oyster. If you say anymore, you will be shouted down by Oyster parents. I would visit the school and see for yourself. Try to go during a time other than an open house. It's eye opening. I would strongly advise pretty much any other school.