Anyone here leave their private school for a highly gifted center program and regret it?

[Anonymous]

Umm...many kids to not apply to Middle Magnets because they are clustered on the other side of the county from Barnsley. My child had a near perfect score on the HGC center tests and did not appply to a middle magnet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Barnsley would not become your home school because you attend the HGC. You would be eligible to attend whatever your neighborhood middle is. About 50% of the kids go back to their home schools for middle school. My child had a good experience at Barnsley HGC (though I can't compare it to your private situation of course). Since PP did not provide any details about her concerns/issues with Barnsley so it is hard to know where she is coming from. I guess it depends on your reasons for choosing private to start with and how important the tution dollars are to you. I am guessing the kids at the HGCs representing the top 2-3% of MCPS kids would be hard to replicate at most private schools though.

Which just shows that 50% are not in the top of their class and can not get into Magnet. This is another reason the OP should not leave private. She obviously felt Barnsley was not a good fit for k-3rd. So why risk the chance of going to their middle school if they do not get accepted to Magnet after HGC. More people apply and want Magnet than HGC and parents are shocked when they realize their kids weren't the most desirable. If I had the money for private and lived in the Barnsley neighborhood, I would never go public. But that is just my opinion.

I know a number of kids who could not get in to HGC but were able to get into middle school magnets. FWIW, I think that about 20% of applicants are accepted to HGC and 20% to Eastern (but a lower percentage is accepted to Takoma Park).

From our HGC, 70 % of the class who applied was accepted to a middle school magnet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Which just shows that 50% are not in the top of their class and can not get into Magnet. This is another reason the OP should not leave private. She obviously felt Barnsley was not a good fit for k-3rd. So why risk the chance of going to their middle school if they do not get accepted to Magnet after HGC. More people apply and want Magnet than HGC and parents are shocked when they realize their kids weren't the most desirable. If I had the money for private and lived in the Barnsley neighborhood, I would never go public. But that is just my opinion.

I just looked up where Barnsley is. Now I understand the objection to Barnsley -- it's the "poor brown children = bad school" idea.

[Anonymous]

Every HGC and Magnet are in poor performing schools. It keeps their tests levels up. You don't have to be a rocket science to figure that out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Every HGC and Magnet are in poor performing schools. It keeps their tests levels up. You don't have to be a rocket science to figure that out.

Every HGC and magnet? Including the ones at Poolesville HS, Clearspring ES, College Gardens ES, Chevy Chase ES, Cold Spring ES, and Potomac ES? How about that.

[Anonymous]

Well when my child moved from a "good" school to Barnsley and we found a warm school with (mostly) good teachers, inolved parents, fun extra curriculars/field trips and great specials.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Which just shows that 50% are not in the top of their class and can not get into Magnet. This is another reason the OP should not leave private. She obviously felt Barnsley was not a good fit for k-3rd. So why risk the chance of going to their middle school if they do not get accepted to Magnet after HGC. More people apply and want Magnet than HGC and parents are shocked when they realize their kids weren't the most desirable. If I had the money for private and lived in the Barnsley neighborhood, I would never go public. But that is just my opinion.

I just looked up where Barnsley is. Now I understand the objection to Barnsley -- it's the "poor brown children = bad school" idea.

Really? That's a pretty solid middle-class area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Every HGC and Magnet are in poor performing schools. It keeps their tests levels up. You don't have to be a rocket science to figure that out.

Every HGC and magnet? Including the ones at Poolesville HS, Clearspring ES, College Gardens ES, Chevy Chase ES, Cold Spring ES, and Potomac ES? How about that.

Yes, they are the worst schools in their own cluster areas. The middle school magnets are all awful middle schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Which just shows that 50% are not in the top of their class and can not get into Magnet. This is another reason the OP should not leave private. She obviously felt Barnsley was not a good fit for k-3rd. So why risk the chance of going to their middle school if they do not get accepted to Magnet after HGC. More people apply and want Magnet than HGC and parents are shocked when they realize their kids weren't the most desirable. If I had the money for private and lived in the Barnsley neighborhood, I would never go public. But that is just my opinion.

I just looked up where Barnsley is. Now I understand the objection to Barnsley -- it's the "poor brown children = bad school" idea.

Really? That's a pretty solid middle-class area.

Don't be ridiculous. Reality is irrelevant here! It's the perception that matters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Which just shows that 50% are not in the top of their class and can not get into Magnet. This is another reason the OP should not leave private. She obviously felt Barnsley was not a good fit for k-3rd. So why risk the chance of going to their middle school if they do not get accepted to Magnet after HGC. More people apply and want Magnet than HGC and parents are shocked when they realize their kids weren't the most desirable. If I had the money for private and lived in the Barnsley neighborhood, I would never go public. But that is just my opinion.

I just looked up where Barnsley is. Now I understand the objection to Barnsley -- it's the "poor brown children = bad school" idea.

Really? That's a pretty solid middle-class area.

Don't be ridiculous. Reality is irrelevant here! It's the perception that matters.

Oh right, my bad!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Every HGC and Magnet are in poor performing schools. It keeps their tests levels up. You don't have to be a rocket science to figure that out.

Every HGC and magnet? Including the ones at Poolesville HS, Clearspring ES, College Gardens ES, Chevy Chase ES, Cold Spring ES, and Potomac ES? How about that.

Yes, they are the worst schools in their own cluster areas. The middle school magnets are all awful middle schools.

I am so confused. I mean, I guess that Poolesville HS is the worst school in the Poolesville cluster -- although it's also the best school in the Poolesville cluster. But Clearspring ES is not the worst school (meaning, the school with the most poor kids) in the Damascus cluster. And if Potomac ES is the worst school in the Churchill cluster, how can you tell?

[Anonymous]

Is Barnsley the worst ES with HGC?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Which just shows that 50% are not in the top of their class and can not get into Magnet. This is another reason the OP should not leave private. She obviously felt Barnsley was not a good fit for k-3rd. So why risk the chance of going to their middle school if they do not get accepted to Magnet after HGC. More people apply and want Magnet than HGC and parents are shocked when they realize their kids weren't the most desirable. If I had the money for private and lived in the Barnsley neighborhood, I would never go public. But that is just my opinion.

I just looked up where Barnsley is. Now I understand the objection to Barnsley -- it's the "poor brown children = bad school" idea.

Really? That's a pretty solid middle-class area.

NP here.

Not to go too far off topic, but I wanted to respond to this because Barnsley is our home school, and I have two kids who attend. Yes, it is a pretty solidly middle-class area. And, Barnsley is a FABULOUS school. The principal is great. The teachers (most of them) really care about the students, and want them to do well. There is an active PTA, and they sponsor some great, well-attended family events throughout the year. The Spooktacular at Halloween is tons of fun for the kids. Last month was our Bingo Night, and it was PACKED. They do a Science Fair/Math Nigh/Reading Night, etc.

I don't know what the PPs objection is to Barnsley. Maybe the other PP is right, that she feels that the FARMS rate is too high? Well, she's entitled to that opinion, but I'll give my point of view. I have volunteered at the school for years, and can tell you that the kids are (for the most part) pretty great kids. You know those 'poor brown children' (not my words!).... well, their parents understand that their kids' key to success is their education. And, most of them REALLY want their kids to do well. They show respect for the teachers, and there is none of the 'entitled parent/student' mentality that I often hear about from teachers in other areas of the county.

And, we're not a Title 1 school, but my DD's Kindergarten class last year had 18 students. My DD came home learning sign language because Barnsley has the Deaf Program, and she has picked up tons of Spanish from those 'brown kids' (again, NOT my description).

I just wanted to post in case someone else comes across this thread and sees the PP bashing Barnsley. I have no problem with posters complaining about a school where their child attends. But, if PPs child doesn't even attend Barnsley, how can she bad mouth it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is Barnsley the worst ES with HGC?

Define "worst", please.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is Barnsley the worst ES with HGC?

Define "worst", please.

Oak View is a Title I school with around 70% FARMS. The HGC has been a great fit for our child.