Is Basis really as hard as people think?

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01/19/2013 10:31

Subject: Is Basis really as hard as people think?

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Anonymous

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Am I the only one who questions the value of homework? By 5th grade, I probably had some math problems most nights (it's so long ago, I may not remember correctly) but that's probably all. I was ten years old. I did not have an hour or more per night and 5 hours on the weekend. I got into an Ivy anyway. Is all of this work of actual instructional value? The Finns don't do this to their children, and they're among the top scorers in the world. Does anyone else wonder if we're beating the love of learning out of our children, instead of encouraging it?

Keep in mind that the BASIS curriculum in accelerated. A BASIS fifth grader should probably be doing the same amount of homework as a sixth or seventh grader at another school. Also, that BASIS fifth grader can usually graduate after 111th grade with up 10 APs under his belt, so he can probably skip most of freshman year at college as well.

See but this is where I think the BASIS model is out of whack, despite possessing some strong traits as a school. What is the purpose of elementary and secondary school? Is it to prepare for and then take the most amount of APs by 11th grade, and position oneself to graduate from college in 3 years? Yes perhaps from some parents point of view. Almost always no if you put yourself in the shoes of the child. APs are not without worth. They show colleges an objective score, like the SAT. But having 12 4s and 5s is not 3x better than having 4 4s and 5s. Colleges want interesting kids. Extracurriculars and community service and other growth experiences will be much more important than piling on the APs, and this is something BASIS doesn't seem to get (although perhaps it only becomes a problem in the later grades). Additionally, though the brochures don't mention it, I assure you that all classes teach to the test. In AP courses this is a given, but in lower school teachers are evaluated primarily on comp pass rates. Again, the AP is not a bad test in itself, but they are multiple choice heavy and the writing components are quite superficial exercises.

BASIS is not an elementary school, though. BASIS is a public charter prep school. The goal of the BASIS upper school is to prepare its students to be admitted to graduate from top-tier four-year colleges. The goal of the BASIS lower school is to prepare its students, many of whom come from under-performing elementary schools, for the rigorous upper school curriculum. I note also that the BASIS lower school originally started with the sixth grade. The fifth grade was added later, apparently as a remedial year, and fifth graders do not have to pass comprehensive exams to be promoted, as students in every other grade must.

One way to prepare kids for college is, well, to teach them college-level material. The AP exam serves two roles. First, it provides objective evidence that the student has mastered the material. Preparing students for the AP Chemistry exam is not "teaching to the test", it is "teaching chemistry." Second, it keeps the student from having to cover the material again in college and allows him or her to move on to move advanced classes.

As for extracurriculars, BASIS students pursue them both at school and out of school. An academically rigorous curriculum and extracurricular activities are not mutually exclusive. BASIS offers up to two hours of extracurricular activities each day after school, and many if not most BASIS students participate. Due to the rigors of the curriculum, BASIS students develop strong work ethics and time management skills that serve them well in other areas of their lives.

Oh, and BASIS students go on to top private and public colleges and universities, so BASIS seems to "get it".

If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it. The more things you do, the more you can do.
-Lucille Ball

See this is where, as a high school history teacher and Amherst grad I'd have to respectfully disagree. Yes, the AP like the SAT provides an important objective evaluation of the student. This is a good thing. And the APs are fine academic exercises. Learn some stuff, fill in some bubbles, move along. But it is a very passive and superficial experience at core. This is why private schools look down on the AP or at least certainly make it only one part of the high school experience.

Perhaps with the exception of math and maybe the sciences, it is not helpful to think of AP courses as "covering" or "replacing" college material. No top tier college accepts AP credit although state schools may because their intro classes are so often remedial rather than truly introductory. The problem with BASIS is that it seems to think that high school is about learning stuff, when in fact it should really be primarily about learning how and why to learn stuff. Basing an entire high school curriculum on APs (the more the merrier) therefore in my opinion is a mistake. Some will burn out & leave, others that stay may develop passive resigned attitude to their studies, others will simply want to know what is on the test. Absolutely most all who get through BASIS will get into colleges, including some top tier. But will their high school experience have been all that it could/should have been? This I seriously doubt.