Asking for Advice - Rejection from Oyster-Adams Preschool

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:An update:

I spoke to the principal Mayra Cruz. She had actually assumed my daughter only spoke English before the interview even took place. Definitely, the process is rigged. I would not trust her with my daughter. Will look at other options.

Thanks!

Diego

You’re saving yourself a lot of heartache. I wouldn’t send my kid there in any event (not the nicest atmosphere for little kids) especially not after that shoddy evaluation.

[Anonymous]

What's terrible about this to me is that we were SO scrupulous about only speaking Spanish with (me the English speaker whose Spanish is decent, my wife who is a speaker since birth), knowing that this could be a concern . . . OUR KIDS STARTED SPEAKING ENGLISH SO QUICKLY!!!! As soon as they were in school like 3 months it was like SO MUCH ENGLISH and then there was a point between 3 and 5 where they preferred it over English. And we made a point of like NEVER speaking English around the kids, even though it was hard.

Sorry this happened to you, Diego.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:First, I would record your child conversing with you in Spanish and share it with the school principal. Write to the principal in Spanish so it's obvious that your child is being raised in a Spanish-speaking household. Ask what the process is to appeal.

If you don't get a satisfactory response, DC has a school ombudsperson: https://sboe.dc.gov/page/office-of-the-ombudsman-for-public-education

At the same time, I would suggest putting your child on the waitlist for every Spanish bilingual school you're not already on that you would attend--you can do this through the MySchoolDC website. They are:

Bancroft
Bruce-Monroe
Cleveland
DC Bilingual
Stoke Brookland
Stokes East End
Houston (this is your best chance but furthest from you)
Marie Reed
Bethune Brookland
Bethune 16th Street
Mundo Verde 8th Street
Mundo Verde P Street
Powell
Tyler

I bet at one of the DCPS schools they will think your child speaks Spanish well enough to qualify for Spanish dominance (at charter schools they don't consider language dominance). You could practice having friends over and letting your child speak with them, having your child speak to the pediatrician, librarian, supermarket cashier, etc. so they're more prepared for any future evaluations.

I would also put yourself on the waitlist for Appletree Columbia Heights and other Appletrees since their waitlists tend to move faster.

Also look at these (private schools that offer free PK): https://www.myschooldc.org/find-schools/school-options-outside-my-school-dc Communikids and CentroNia and Jubilee Jumpstart are all bilingual. There are also tuition-charging day cares that will have spots when their 3 year olds go to PK in August, so that can be your final option if needed.

Indeed, I know folks who rave about one of these (cannot recall which?) so I would call them up right away to add to their possible list. Your child will get a good bilingual PK for free if they can get a spot (no idea how tough that is).

We rave about CentroNia! Only complaint is that they stop at PK4.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thanks everyone for your responses! It helps knowing different perspectives.

As for some of your questions: While we were in Panama, we had Spanish speaking nannies, Spanish speaking dance classes and Spanish speaking friends. She came to DC with very strong Spanish. Of course, the exposure has shifted since we moved, but she still receives quite good exposure. Even our neighbors and other people we know around here thought she was more than qualified for the Spanish dominant program. Oyster was in-boundary for us and we live close to the school, so we could have opted for the English program. Unfortunately, this also meant that my daughter was not wait-listed in any other school.

As for me, I am fully fluent in English to the point that it's hard for people to tell where I am from. Nevertheless, Spanish is my native language.

Anyway, appreciate the support (and the hate).

Thanks,

Diego

Please point out one post that was hateful. Not agreeing with you 100 percent is not the same as being hateful.

If your kid is IB, she can just go when she's in K anyway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thanks everyone for your responses! It helps knowing different perspectives.

As for some of your questions: While we were in Panama, we had Spanish speaking nannies, Spanish speaking dance classes and Spanish speaking friends. She came to DC with very strong Spanish. Of course, the exposure has shifted since we moved, but she still receives quite good exposure. Even our neighbors and other people we know around here thought she was more than qualified for the Spanish dominant program. Oyster was in-boundary for us and we live close to the school, so we could have opted for the English program. Unfortunately, this also meant that my daughter was not wait-listed in any other school.

As for me, I am fully fluent in English to the point that it's hard for people to tell where I am from. Nevertheless, Spanish is my native language.

Anyway, appreciate the support (and the hate).

Thanks,

Diego

Please point out one post that was hateful. Not agreeing with you 100 percent is not the same as being hateful.

If your kid is IB, she can just go when she's in K anyway.

Point well taken. I apologize. I felt some people were implying that I was gaming the system, which I strongly feel is not the case.

Let me rephrase myself: thanks for everyone's comments!

Best,

Diego

[Anonymous]

If you still would take the spot if accepted, i agree with posters who said raise it with MSDC and ombudsman. I would demand to see the actual results rather than just brig told she failed. I'd ask for redacted info on who purportedly passed. I might contact local officials. If you really think something is off here, you could pursue (or threaten to pursue) legal action on due process and other grounds. It wouldn't be an easy case to win because courts are loathe to second guess things like school evaluations, but even threat might get some traction if your daughter's Spanish is as good as you say.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you still would take the spot if accepted, i agree with posters who said raise it with MSDC and ombudsman. I would demand to see the actual results rather than just brig told she failed. I'd ask for redacted info on who purportedly passed. I might contact local officials. If you really think something is off here, you could pursue (or threaten to pursue) legal action on due process and other grounds. It wouldn't be an easy case to win because courts are loathe to second guess things like school evaluations, but even threat might get some traction if your daughter's Spanish is as good as you say.

This isn’t good advice. Proceed with caution if you intend to burn bridges before your child’s first day of school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you still would take the spot if accepted, i agree with posters who said raise it with MSDC and ombudsman. I would demand to see the actual results rather than just brig told she failed. I'd ask for redacted info on who purportedly passed. I might contact local officials. If you really think something is off here, you could pursue (or threaten to pursue) legal action on due process and other grounds. It wouldn't be an easy case to win because courts are loathe to second guess things like school evaluations, but even threat might get some traction if your daughter's Spanish is as good as you say.

This isn’t good advice. Proceed with caution if you intend to burn bridges before your child’s first day of school.

What's bridges are there to burn, his daughter won't be able to attend the school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you still would take the spot if accepted, i agree with posters who said raise it with MSDC and ombudsman. I would demand to see the actual results rather than just brig told she failed. I'd ask for redacted info on who purportedly passed. I might contact local officials. If you really think something is off here, you could pursue (or threaten to pursue) legal action on due process and other grounds. It wouldn't be an easy case to win because courts are loathe to second guess things like school evaluations, but even threat might get some traction if your daughter's Spanish is as good as you say.

This isn’t good advice. Proceed with caution if you intend to burn bridges before your child’s first day of school.

This is crazy advice. What kind of school fosters an environment where you have to be “careful not to burn bridges”?!?!

It’s your child. Advocate on her behalf, it’s your job.

Personally Oyster is definitely not my choice, so I’d move on in a hurry. That said, it’s harder to get into immersion schools at K (with the notable exception of Mundo Verde).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:An update:

I spoke to the principal Mayra Cruz. She had actually assumed my daughter only spoke English before the interview even took place. Definitely, the process is rigged. I would not trust her with my daughter. Will look at other options.

Thanks!

Diego

This part is crazy, but also confirms the feeling I got after I heard Ms. Cruz's presentation at an open house earlier this year. She said that the parent(s) have to be in the interview (which differs from Diego's experience, but that's what I heard), that kids who learned their Spanish from nannies are not who they want, and that these Spanish-dominant spots are meant for English language learners (so, I suppose, disqualifying bilingual kids). Not going to debate the merits of what she said, as these points have been debated ad nauseam and with much vitriol on other threads, but the overall vibe I got from her is that ethnic/national origin, and not language ability, is the test, even though she can't say so. I found it very off-putting, especially as the parent of non-Hispanic kids who wake up screaming in Spanish from their nightmares and have meltdowns in Spanish, and as such have a good faith belief that they are, in the commonsensical sense of the term, Spanish dominant.

Anyhow, I agree with whoever said in another thread that DCPS should define the term more clearly, and legally. I have a feeling that this would only affect Oyster, though, since every other DCPS immersion starts at PK3, and it may be hard to test at PK3 because many kids still don't talk all that much when they're 3 in any language.

Good luck, Diego. At least you're IB, so you have that option at K if that's still what you want.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you still would take the spot if accepted, i agree with posters who said raise it with MSDC and ombudsman. I would demand to see the actual results rather than just brig told she failed. I'd ask for redacted info on who purportedly passed. I might contact local officials. If you really think something is off here, you could pursue (or threaten to pursue) legal action on due process and other grounds. It wouldn't be an easy case to win because courts are loathe to second guess things like school evaluations, but even threat might get some traction if your daughter's Spanish is as good as you say.

This isn’t good advice. Proceed with caution if you intend to burn bridges before your child’s first day of school.

What's bridges are there to burn, his daughter won't be able to attend the school?

He said that he/his child lives IB for OA. Therefore, his child is guaranteed a spot for K. He can threaten a lawsuit if he likes, but that’s not how I would start my child’s education. Obviously, he can do whatever he pleases. Good luck with all of this OP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you still would take the spot if accepted, i agree with posters who said raise it with MSDC and ombudsman. I would demand to see the actual results rather than just brig told she failed. I'd ask for redacted info on who purportedly passed. I might contact local officials. If you really think something is off here, you could pursue (or threaten to pursue) legal action on due process and other grounds. It wouldn't be an easy case to win because courts are loathe to second guess things like school evaluations, but even threat might get some traction if your daughter's Spanish is as good as you say.

This isn’t good advice. Proceed with caution if you intend to burn bridges before your child’s first day of school.

What's bridges are there to burn, his daughter won't be able to attend the school?

He said that he/his child lives IB for OA. Therefore, his child is guaranteed a spot for K. He can threaten a lawsuit if he likes, but that’s not how I would start my child’s education. Obviously, he can do whatever he pleases. Good luck with all of this OP.

The school should understand his position. I am disturbed that parents can’t advocate for their kids at oyster, but unsurprised.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you still would take the spot if accepted, i agree with posters who said raise it with MSDC and ombudsman. I would demand to see the actual results rather than just brig told she failed. I'd ask for redacted info on who purportedly passed. I might contact local officials. If you really think something is off here, you could pursue (or threaten to pursue) legal action on due process and other grounds. It wouldn't be an easy case to win because courts are loathe to second guess things like school evaluations, but even threat might get some traction if your daughter's Spanish is as good as you say.

This isn’t good advice. Proceed with caution if you intend to burn bridges before your child’s first day of school.

What's bridges are there to burn, his daughter won't be able to attend the school?

He said that he/his child lives IB for OA. Therefore, his child is guaranteed a spot for K. He can threaten a lawsuit if he likes, but that’s not how I would start my child’s education. Obviously, he can do whatever he pleases. Good luck with all of this OP.

The school should understand his position. I am disturbed that parents can’t advocate for their kids at oyster, but unsurprised.

I am the PP had advocated for the hardline response. I don't disagree with you, but I do think the IB factor matters somewhat. It is not so much that you don't want to ruffle feathers, but the importance of getting in is somewhat lessened. If you weren't IB, losing the spot you (arguendo) should have had know would likely forever keep you from the school and its feeder patterns. If you can get in two years (and maybe one) later, it is a little less important that you aren't in now, meaning it may not be worth the effort to fight as much.

[Anonymous]

Every year children fail the screening test. The challenge is the categorization / options they have. It is either Spanish Dominant or English Dominant. There is no box to check if neither of those are your dominant language. And what about children who truly are bi or tri lingual?

My assumption is that your child if more bi-lingual than Spanish dominant and therefore failed the screen - not because the lack of Spanish - but because the fluency of English

[Anonymous]

The DC school handbook used to say "if a student resides in a home in which Spanish is spoken regularly, it is likely the student will pass assessment." Now the handbook is conspicuously silent on what "Spanish dominant" actually means. There is a complete lack of consistent standards across schools and drastically different interpretations and enforcement policies. This, coupled with the timing of the test (post-lottery), means parents like the OP who have every reason to believe their child is Spanish dominant, will find themselves not only denied entry to their matched school, but at the end of the waitlist of every other school they might otherwise have chosen. This is a a lawsuit waiting to happen. Of course, it's really only a problem at Oyster where the principal seems determined to use the test to push a political agenda rather than a reasonable or commonsense understanding of the child's Spanish proficiency.

Anonymous wrote:
This part is crazy, but also confirms the feeling I got after I heard Ms. Cruz's presentation at an open house earlier this year. She said that the parent(s) have to be in the interview (which differs from Diego's experience, but that's what I heard), that kids who learned their Spanish from nannies are not who they want, and that these Spanish-dominant spots are meant for English language learners (so, I suppose, disqualifying bilingual kids). Not going to debate the merits of what she said, as these points have been debated ad nauseam and with much vitriol on other threads, but the overall vibe I got from her is that ethnic/national origin, and not language ability, is the test, even though she can't say so. I found it very off-putting, especially as the parent of non-Hispanic kids who wake up screaming in Spanish from their nightmares and have meltdowns in Spanish, and as such have a good faith belief that they are, in the commonsensical sense of the term, Spanish dominant.

Anyhow, I agree with whoever said in another thread that DCPS should define the term more clearly, and legally. I have a feeling that this would only affect Oyster, though, since every other DCPS immersion starts at PK3, and it may be hard to test at PK3 because many kids still don't talk all that much when they're 3 in any language.

Good luck, Diego. At least you're IB, so you have that option at K if that's still what you want.