Is your kid in 8th grade at Washington Latin?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I love WL for my middle school-er, and hope that we still feel the same way through HS. Like so many other growing charter schools, it seems the top grades suffer while lower grades enjoy the path that the previous grades tread. But if enough people jump ship, it will take longer to make the upper grades strong.

Hi PP, I agree with the sentiment above. I also encourage you to volunteer and encourage the lower grade parents to volunteer as much as possible. The Upper Grade parents have had to deal with 'more' and rightly get tired carrying the banner. Perhaps a push from below would encourage them to not jump ship--if they felt that community power of one kind of thing happening. I have seen WL improve dramatically every year that we have been there. But each new class needs to, in a sense, pay its dues to keep the trajectory upward. You may be doing that, in which case, thanks.

[Anonymous]

The road through Latin has been relatively free of bumps for the 7th grade class, but even so, the parents are not committed for high school. They haven't ruled out Latin, but many of them are visiting private schools and openly discussing the merits of Walls and Wilson.

If you look at the list of honor roll students, you will see that almost every single 8th grader on the list is leaving for another school. The kids quoted in the Arabic language article are leaving. The same thing happened last year. Yes, these are the students with options, but that's the demographic of the school. The lower school is populated with a lot of bright kids from NW who believe Latin offers a better education than Deal. When they look again for 9th grade, they choose to go elsewhere. Maybe they want a marching band, but more likely they want a school with science labs, high level math and science courses, a rich arts curriculum, decent sports teams, Spanish, and a track record of educating bright students and getting them into good colleges. It's more than just facilities. I know Latin was really hoping that a group of this year's 8th graders would stay and pave the road for the 7th grade, but it did not happen.

I'd love to hear from the parents of any 8th grade students who are staying at Latin. Please post if you've made that decision.

[Anonymous]

My kid is doing the first half of algebra 1 in 7th grade. Second half next year. Hard to believe the math goes down in hs? The science trajectory outlined by the department chair sound thoughtful and realizable. Spanish versus French, Chinese and Latin (offered at Latin)? It's apple and oranges. Many wl kids have reported being understimulated at Wilson. Wilsone certainly seems to have some of it's one issues to work out ( more power to them - hope they do; they're our inbounds HS). What kids don't like is seeing all their friends from the bus leave. I think when a whole clas 'makes the leap' the HS will be it's own unique, competitive offering on the dc scene. I also hope some great, new families come into 9th to replace the kids who've left. There's no reason they can't get involved and lead the way, just like we did way back in 5th. Well be there to welcome and support them.

[Anonymous]

The problem is, people are much less likely to take a chance on a charter school for high school. The stakes are too high.

[Anonymous]

It depends what their other options are, though. If you don't live in-bounds for Wilson, don't get into a magnet HS, and can't afford private, what else would you recommend?

[Anonymous]

Move.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The problem is, people are much less likely to take a chance on a charter school for high school. The stakes are too high.

We'll take the chance; why not? It is the same gamble we took with Latin vs. Deal. And we ended up incredibly happy with Latin. We can always move to Wilson later. If enough people take the Latin route who are in the same position, I think the HS would become more robust. I mean, you are basically saying a HS will never happen b/cause the 'risks' are too high. I disagree. Just a few years ago, far fewer people wished to put their children in Deal or Wilson. Now they are all the rage. Latin's Middle School has 'made it'. HS is next.

[Anonymous]

I am not a WL parent, but I have been reading this discussion because I work in education and support the charter school movement in general, and have been particularly interested in WL because I love its mission. I think the PP who talked about "white flight" and "students with options leaving" has hit it on the mark. And on a board such as this one where people are probably mostly white/affluent/Upper NW-types, it is only natural that posters are concerned with their own children's educational prospects when evaluating WL; I mean, I would be too. In my opinion, though, I am more concerned that the WL high school ends up doing a good job with its eventual real mission--to bring a classical, rigorous education to DCPS students who otherwise would not have as many options--in other words, even if every last Upper NW student were to leave, if WL does a decent job of educating inner-city kids, I would think the school a tremendous success. I hope they do end up succeeding at that, for the city's sake and those students' sakes.

[Anonymous]

I am the PP and I agree with you, except that part of the school's vision is to attract and educate children from 'all four quadrants of the city'. This is why it is one of the only public schools in the city to make an effort to provide busing at a nominal cost from different hubs. I think some of what's beautiful about the school is lost when one quadrant (any quadrant) is pulled out. In the HS'c case, if upper NW pulls out it becomes more of a KIPP or a Banneker. Yes, performing a great and vital mission. Yes, right for some kids. But part of the school's vision is navigating a meeting of minds and cultures -- discussion, debate, broadening . This is happening in the middle school but to a degree is lost in the HS when kids pull out--to everyone's detriment. I also think it is a loss for the kids who pull out and go to far less diverse environments, and leave a far less diverse environment in their wake. A 'balance' is pretty rare in this city, with kids from all 4 quadrants coming together to learn. When you do have a school whose mission appeals broadly, that is pretty cool and in itself worthy of fighting to sustain. I would like to see the HS build on and succeed with broad appeal. Thanks for your positive words though--I do get your point.

[Anonymous]

Oh wow. The middle school has "made it." Nope.

Busing at nominal costs? Nope. I wrote a big fat check for that little privilege.

The school has a free and reduced price lunch population at about 15%. For public school in DC it's a rich kids school. If you look at how their low income kids did last year, they just squeaked by to make AYP.

The school has a great idea behind it, but the execution isn't there.

Lets be clear, the academic success of the school lies in the fact that it attracts affluent children of highly educated parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh wow. The middle school has "made it." Nope.

Busing at nominal costs? Nope. I wrote a big fat check for that little privilege.

The school has a free and reduced price lunch population at about 15%. For public school in DC it's a rich kids school. If you look at how their low income kids did last year, they just squeaked by to make AYP.

The school has a great idea behind it, but the execution isn't there.

Lets be clear, the academic success of the school lies in the fact that it attracts affluent children of highly educated parents.

Exactly. The success of the school is in the demographics and you can see it if you compare test scores and income levels. The kids who do well at Latin would do well at any school in the city because they are raised by well-educated parents with decent incomes.

[Anonymous]

I'm not sure if I get your point. We have reasonable incomes (hasn't always been that way) and the bus to us is nominal as we would pay for transport anyways (a) and (b) it's convenient and (c) everything else at the school is free. When you factor all that in it comes out to be quite the bargain actually. 15% is chunky--how does that compare with other schools? And there is nothing wrong with Middle Class kids (we are) in DC getting a good education alongside lower socio economic. Please cite test scores and then look at Oyster, Wilson or Deal (any school without an entrance requirement like a Banneker or Walls). Yes, lower SAS lags--it's a problem that the whole country has been dealing with for twenty years called the achievement gap. It's nothing to cheer about, but it's a reality that WL is working on but I doubt can wave a wand and make go away overnight. They did make AYP last year, which is a scorecard of how you've served ALL the kids.
I spoke the other day with a middle income family in WL who chose to stay on in HS and the mother said her child is having the best year yet, and thriving. There are many points of view on WL I guess.

[Anonymous]

"The bus is nominal to us"

Yes, because you are solidly middle class. How would it feel to write that check if you made minimum wage?

15% FARMS is one of the lowest percentages of low income students across all charter schools. According to the Public Charter School board, the overall percentage of students that are on a Free or reduced price meal is 65%.

I'm not asking that Latin solve the achievement gap today. I'm challenging the notion that they've somehow figured out a miracle in education.

Latin has great standardized test scores because it has a population that is affluent.

Latin squeaked by on AYP last year for low-income kids. It's all on the OSSE website and it's worth reading.

Latin is no miracle and it's got a lot of work to do before I 'd send my child back there.

[Anonymous]

The school offered the bus practically free for the first years. They have made a tremendous effort to reach out to all families. PA dues subsidize field trip fees and class fees for families that simply can't afford to pay. Families kick in donations to cover others. 15% is significant. What you are ignoring is that the other 85 percent are not all 'rich families' from Upper NW. Latin does draw from all four quadrants and many families who are not desperately poor (ie food and reduced lunch - which by the way my kid qualified for once) are not sitting high and mighty either. There are plenty of lower middle class families, hair dressers and receptionists and single parent homes in the mix. A huge crowd from NE and SE etc. I am not sure what it is you're looking for. Was your lower SAS child under-served at Latin? Or are you taking your upper income child and seeking a school with more lower SAS b/cause you seem to feel the ratio was not satisfactory? Are you a parent who ever came to a school clean-up by the way? Your attitude towards the bus fee is funny. You seem to be one of those parents - rich or poor- who expects something for nothing. This is convenient, safe transportation --a bus to school and two buses after school/ one early one late -- for dollars a day. Probably Latin was not the right place for you.

[Anonymous]

The point is that WL's test scores are high largely because of demographics, not because of what goes on in the classroom. That's why things change so dramatically in high school when most of the more affluent kids leave for more established schools.

I worked hard for WL, painted at clean-up days and participated in the PA. Yes, there is diversity, but also a lot of resentment between the group of kids who does well with little effort and those who struggle and are not given the resources they need to succeed.