Do 9th grade grades really count?

[Anonymous]

From experience, they count but improvment over time is noted.

[Anonymous]

Yes, they count. Other grades count more, but...

Why do you think a kid who gets Bs in 9th is going to miraculously get As in 10th and 11th?

9th grade predicts 10th. There will be improvement, perhaps, but it is the same kid the next year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, they count. Other grades count more, but...

Why do you think a kid who gets Bs in 9th is going to miraculously get As in 10th and 11th?

9th grade predicts 10th. There will be improvement, perhaps, but it is the same kid the next year.

except that it happens and colleges prefer to see a kid who has stepped up and improved because it reflects an increasingly serious attitude towards study

these kids to better in college than those who got A grades all thru - because they are on an upward swing towards those As rather than likely to drop back again (statistically this is)

[Anonymous]

Yes. As do high school grades from courses taken in 8th grade.

[Anonymous]

This is why GPAs are not indicative of acceptance. Two identical GPA could be viewed differently.... one where a kid got a couple of Bs freshman year and steadily improved. The other where a kid Had consistent or declining grades throughout.

[Anonymous]

Depends on the schools. If you're aiming for T20 schools, there are tons of kids just like yours but who are getting As in 9th grade. No college is going to be "understanding" of lower grades in 9th when they have 1000s of kids with 4.5+ GPAs to choose from.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes. As do high school grades from courses taken in 8th grade.

At many, perhaps most high schools, grades from high school courses taken in 8th grade are not part of the high school GPA and are not on the transcript. Naturally, this varies by school district. It would be rare for a private high school to include middle school grades in high school courses on the transcript.

[Anonymous]

Small school admissions may have time to look at upward trend of grades, but bigger schools have too many apps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, they count. Other grades count more, but...

Why do you think a kid who gets Bs in 9th is going to miraculously get As in 10th and 11th?

9th grade predicts 10th. There will be improvement, perhaps, but it is the same kid the next year.

It does happen, and quite frequently at some privates. I have a kid that got a C in 9th grade because he turned in a research paper late, and the school only gave one grade for a class on the transcript for the entire year. There was a serious upward trend from there, which seemed to happen a lot especially with boys. Strong SATs can overcome some of those weaker 9th grades, along with good grades in junior/senior year in tough classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes. As do high school grades from courses taken in 8th grade.

At many, perhaps most high schools, grades from high school courses taken in 8th grade are not part of the high school GPA and are not on the transcript. Naturally, this varies by school district. It would be rare for a private high school to include middle school grades in high school courses on the transcript.

High school grades earned in middle school count in MCPS for all kids through class of 2024. Kids younger than that get to choose whether or not the grades are counted towards the GPA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes. As do high school grades from courses taken in 8th grade.

At many, perhaps most high schools, grades from high school courses taken in 8th grade are not part of the high school GPA and are not on the transcript. Naturally, this varies by school district. It would be rare for a private high school to include middle school grades in high school courses on the transcript.

High school grades earned in middle school count in MCPS for all kids through class of 2024. Kids younger than that get to choose whether or not the grades are counted towards the GPA.

Did you public school parents not notice that the OP is at a private school? Among the "elite" DMV area private schools, none include middle school grades on their high school transcripts. General education classes (English, history, etc) at Sidwell or StA/NCS or GDS are much more demanding than the 9th grade world history AP. Colleges read the transcripts very differently than they do for public schools, especially since there are no calculated GPAs or class ranks and fewer APs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes. As do high school grades from courses taken in 8th grade.

At many, perhaps most high schools, grades from high school courses taken in 8th grade are not part of the high school GPA and are not on the transcript. Naturally, this varies by school district. It would be rare for a private high school to include middle school grades in high school courses on the transcript.

High school grades earned in middle school count in MCPS for all kids through class of 2024. Kids younger than that get to choose whether or not the grades are counted towards the GPA.

Did you public school parents not notice that the OP is at a private school? Among the "elite" DMV area private schools, none include middle school grades on their high school transcripts. General education classes (English, history, etc) at Sidwell or StA/NCS or GDS are much more demanding than the 9th grade world history AP. Colleges read the transcripts very differently than they do for public schools, especially since there are no calculated GPAs or class ranks and fewer APs.

No they are not more demanding. Its statistically a known fact that Math in the MCPS schools is aproximately 2 years ahead of the privates. Suck on that.