Deal parent finding DCPS curriculum so uninspiring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sounds a lot like Shepherd.

I was thinking the same. IB makes everyone feel good, but has anyone ever stopped to listen to how those teachers are speaking to the students there (above PreK)? That does more damage to them than anything, and no one seems to care in the name of "We are IB" and our wait list is long. Take a day and observe and you'd be amazed at how those classes are run.

[Anonymous]

What I saw of ib, (at Shepherd, which is a school I did like), was a lot of buzzwords, rubrics and gobbledeleygook. Every month they had themes about... Knowledge and inquiry? It all seemed to involve a lot of very dry non-fiction work sheet reading and test prep. It wasn't all bad at all--they definitely were working hard to make sure all kids were up to speed--but it was joyless and not very creative.

[Anonymous]

We have had two who have gone from Deal to Big 3. What you are experiencing is not our experience at all. They were well prepared and have excelled-- without supplemental help or CTY or anything else. My last is in Deal now and we are sorry to leave the school behind. He has been accepted into 4 private high schools. I think my kids are smart but they aren't standouts at all. They are just hard workers and well prepared.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Charters.

Not for middle or high school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have had two who have gone from Deal to Big 3. What you are experiencing is not our experience at all. They were well prepared and have excelled-- without supplemental help or CTY or anything else. My last is in Deal now and we are sorry to leave the school behind. He has been accepted into 4 private high schools. I think my kids are smart but they aren't standouts at all. They are just hard workers and well prepared.

I agree, all of the things OP says she isn't seeing, I am seeing at Deal.

[Anonymous]

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have had two who have gone from Deal to Big 3. What you are experiencing is not our experience at all. They were well prepared and have excelled-- without supplemental help or CTY or anything else. My last is in Deal now and we are sorry to leave the school behind. He has been accepted into 4 private high schools. I think my kids are smart but they aren't standouts at all. They are just hard workers and well prepared.

This doesn't actually rebut what the OP said, though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have had two who have gone from Deal to Big 3. What you are experiencing is not our experience at all. They were well prepared and have excelled-- without supplemental help or CTY or anything else. My last is in Deal now and we are sorry to leave the school behind. He has been accepted into 4 private high schools. I think my kids are smart but they aren't standouts at all. They are just hard workers and well prepared.

This doesn't actually rebut what the OP said, though.

Everyone's experience is different. Every year is different, every team is different, every teacher is different, every class mix is different, every child is different. No one is discounting OP's experiences. These other posters are just saying this has not been their experience at Deal.

I'm a new poster. I have a kid at Deal and two more headed that way. The school is very well run administratively and my oldest absolutely loves it. She's learning and growing and is mostly engaged (as previously noted, you're going to run into a few dud teachers everywhere). I would certainly recommend the school to anyone who has access.

Of course, if you feel your kid isn't challenged, then as a parent, it's your duty to figure out how to make that happen whether that involves supplementing or meeting with the school's administration to see if anything can be done there. However, you should understand, that what described is "your" experience. It may or may not necessarily point to an issue with the school or its curriculum, just as the fact that my kid is thriving, doesn't mean the school is perfect.

[Anonymous]

I'm sure OP really feels this way, and I wouldn't presume to discount her experience. So as PP suggests, I was one who wondered which team, because it really is so vastly off from my DC's experience as to seem incredible.

[Anonymous]

I have a sixth grader at deal. We are seven months into
School and they've read exactly two
Books... And if your kids are readers they had already read those two books. I hear about constant behavioral disruptions in class where the teachers are given permission to call students parents on speaker phone to embarrass the unruly kids. Math is math... Seven seems not that far from six but with less problem children. Ugh... I'm depressed writing this. I know the smart kids get into big threes at the end of it all but it's not an inspiring curriculum ...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a sixth grader at deal. We are seven months into
School and they've read exactly two
Books... And if your kids are readers they had already read those two books. I hear about constant behavioral disruptions in class where the teachers are given permission to call students parents on speaker phone to embarrass the unruly kids. Math is math... Seven seems not that far from six but with less problem children. Ugh... I'm depressed writing this. I know the smart kids get into big threes at the end of it all but it's not an inspiring curriculum ...

Same thing at Wilson with the books: 7 months in, 3 books read in English class (honors level). The academic level is nothing close to schools where we used to live (NYC suburb). I know that some kids come out of Deal and Wilson and go on to great success, but I am starting to think that it's despite Deal and Wilson, not because of them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a sixth grader at deal. We are seven months into
School and they've read exactly two
Books... And if your kids are readers they had already read those two books. I hear about constant behavioral disruptions in class where the teachers are given permission to call students parents on speaker phone to embarrass the unruly kids. Math is math... Seven seems not that far from six but with less problem children. Ugh... I'm depressed writing this. I know the smart kids get into big threes at the end of it all but it's not an inspiring curriculum ...

Two books? Doesn't the teacher give you a list of independent reading books related to the class topic that your child is supposed to use and incorporate into the class discussions and assignments? My DC has read 20+ books per unit (avid reader), but the vast majority are from lists provided by the teacher.

[Anonymous]

Yes my child reads at home all the time. I'm talking about books they read as a class to discuss.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes my child reads at home all the time. I'm talking about books they read as a class to discuss.

ELA is more than literature. So whether I'd be concerns depends on what else they are or are not doing in English. For example are they only going through those books (very slowly) or working on writing mechanics, grammar, etc. Are they reading nonfiction essays or books as well?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a sixth grader at deal. We are seven months into
School and they've read exactly two
Books... And if your kids are readers they had already read those two books. I hear about constant behavioral disruptions in class where the teachers are given permission to call students parents on speaker phone to embarrass the unruly kids. Math is math... Seven seems not that far from six but with less problem children. Ugh... I'm depressed writing this. I know the smart kids get into big threes at the end of it all but it's not an inspiring curriculum ...

Same thing at Wilson with the books: 7 months in, 3 books read in English class (honors level). The academic level is nothing close to schools where we used to live (NYC suburb). I know that some kids come out of Deal and Wilson and go on to great success, but I am starting to think that it's despite Deal and Wilson, not because of them.

My oldest is at a big 3 and she has only read three books in English so far this year. It takes time to read, analyze, write and review.