Northern Virginia Magazine: August issue lists best elementary schools in NOVA

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The reason people here aren't interested in the exurbs is because they are not part of DC. This is DC urban moms and dads. Not that they aren't desirable or not as good as other counties closer to the city, but really they are their own areas and not just an outgrowth suburb of DC.

Get over yourself! This is the Virginia Public Schools forum. It's not like you live in DC either.

[Anonymous]

I was actually complementing those areas as being unique cities or areas themselves as in "Frederick" and "Manassas" are their own area and not necessarily just an outgrowth of DC. If you want to be offended by this go ahead. Perhaps we should start talking about Charlottesville and Harrisonburg Schools here too. I thought it was implied by being a forum subgroup of DC Urban Moms and Dads website that the talk is mostly for DC related suburbs.

[Anonymous]

I read it and I thought it was BS!! i hate that magazine anyway!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:can someone scan the article and post it

Pretty sure Jeff would take that down. Copyright violation and all that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone else surprised that Waynewood is not on the list? I always thought that Stratford Landing and WW were on par and many say Waynewood is better.

I'm surprised by that as well. We are at one of those schools and think it is fantastic for our children. From what I know the other school is just as great.

[Anonymous]

There are a lot of very good schools off that list. Make your own decisions on schools.

[Anonymous]

http://fairfax.homebyschool.com/best-elementary-schools/

US News Top High Schools & NoVa Magazine’s Best Elementary Schools

US News
Rank (Virginia) School Name Average
SOL Score
# 3 Marshall High 96
Westbriar Elementary 98
Westgate Elementary 98
# 4 Mclean High 98
Chesterbrook Elementary 98
Haycock Elementary 98
Kent Gardens Elementary 95
Sherman Elementary 97
# 5 Robinson High 96
Fairview Elementary 95
-
# 6 Langley High 98
Churchill Rd Elementary 97
Colvin Run Elementary 98
Forestville Elementary 96
Great Falls Elementary 98
Spring Hill Elementary 97
# 7 Woodson High 97
Canterbury Woods Elem 96
Mantua Elementary 95
# 8 Madison High 97
Archer Elementary 97
Vienna Elementary 95
Wolftrap Elementary 97
-
# 9 Oakton High 98
Fox Mill Elementary 98
Mosby Woods Elementary 95
Oakton Elementary 97
# 11 Lake Braddock High 95
Sangster Elementary 97
White Oaks Elementary 94
# 12 West Springfield High 96
Hunt Valley Elementary 97
Keene Mill Elementary 94
West Springfield Elementary 94
-
# 13 Fairfax High 95
Fairfax Villa Elementary 97
Willow Springs Elementary 98
# 15 Chantilly High 96
Greenbriar West Elementary 98
Lee’s Corner Elementary 95
Oak Hill Elementary 97
# 16 Westfield High 94
Floris Elementary 97
Virginia Run Elementary 95
-
Unranked South Lakes High 90
Hunter Woods Elementary 96
Unranked Lee High 87
Springfield Estates Elementary 95
Unranked West Potomac High 87
Stratford Landing Elementary 96

[Anonymous]

Some of the elementaries feed into several high schools. Wolftrap feeds into both Madison and Marshall, Colvin Run feeds into both Langley and McLean, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can someone please list the schools? Would really appreciate it.

Why don't you just buy the magazine?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:can someone scan the article and post it

Are you really that cheap? Go out and buy it. Geez.

[Anonymous]

Why isn't FCC's Mount Daniel on the list?

[Anonymous]

Just out of curiosity I wen to the the website and the article is right there (no subscription needed)

http://www.northernvirginiamag.com/best-elementary-schools-public/

[Anonymous]

Thanks for posting the link. It seems the methodology was how well the overall student population scored on the SOLs, not just AP kids. This sounds reasonable as a way to determine how well the schools are teaching the material. Our school has a high population of immigrants and just under 30% on free or reduced lunches. And guess what, it is on the list. We have some of the best teachers and extremely involved parents. Sorry to those whose school has less immigrants and poor kids and still didn't make the list. Too bad!

[Anonymous]

PP: Actually, SOL passing is probably not a reasonable measure. That is telling how many kids hit the minimum standard, and has little to do with how much the kids learn.

A much better measure would be how much the children learn during the year.

I also think these scores should be weighted for demographics (when determining which school is the best). I would expect ESOL, special ed, etc to do worse on the test, and AAP to do better.

Louise Archer (DD's school) scores very well, 97% passing. But, from 3-6 grade, there are 4 classes of AAP to 2 General Ed. Assuming all of the AAP students pass. Based on the 5th grade class lists, there are about 110 kids in AAP and 45 in general ed. So about 90% of the gen ed students pass, which is not bad, but not 97%

[Anonymous]

I guess it depends on your take of NCLB. It was, IMHO, the only good thing Bush 2 did. For the record, our school, Mosby Woods, has 2 aap in 5th and 3 gen Ed. In fact, we have more gen. Ed than aap in every grade. So it is a good indicator for our school. I think SOLs are a great way to measure student success. I also think parents need to take on a more active role in their child's learning and not rely 100% on the schools to educate. The Washington Post had an interesting article on children's learning and successes in the Outlook page yesterday. "What matters more to my kids' future: Their school or my time?". I made the snide comment "too bad" as too many folks think if their school is "wealthier" their kids are better off. Our school's scores and this article show this isn't always so. Peace.