Basis PCS

[Anonymous]

If DCPS myopically requires a showing that a student passed "geometry," I think PARCC might help BASIS transfer students pass this hurdle. Once BASIS students can show passing geometry grades on an accepted standardized test like PARCC, I bet DCPS will then allow them to not take geometry (but also not give transcript credit for it).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:+100, no sense. BASIS upper grades MS parents obviously need to organize to raise these curricular mismatch issues with the new 30-member DCPS-DCPC Cross-Sector Task Force that's coming together this fall, with parent representatives from each DC ward being appointed. As you may know, the task force is being set up to improve collaboration/cooperation between DCPS and the charter sector on various levels.

No doubt it's difficult to organize when your school has a booster club, rather than a bona fide parent organization, but find a way.

It's not just ridiculous to require HS geometry of kids who took this subject, and aced it, in MS, it's bad for everybody involved. Raise your voices and get this problem fixed. Don't rely on BASIS and Wilson admins to sort it out; take the matter up with the admins AND the Cross-Sector Task Force leadership. That's what they're there for.

Thank you so much for that advice. Had never heard of them and will definitely do it. Sean Aiken lost - no reason to think Mr. Eyerman would get a different outcome with the schools themselves.

But maybe it would be helpful for him to go speak to the task force as well representing BASIS. He can explain the math system, he has been a HOS in Arizona at BASIS before, and he can also explain World History. You can request that the College Board list AP scores that are more than 4 years old on the form you send to colleges and they will do it. The kids who got 3s won't, the kids who got 5s as 8th graders will (probably not Calculus AB because most kids just take BC the next year in 9th), but quite a few of our kids got 5s on the World History AP exam last year as well.

They expect about a 30-40% attrition rate at BASIS between MS and HS at all BASIS schools, which is why parents believe that our Head of School kind of has a moral obligation to those who leave because he knows they are going to. So maybe we should raise it with Mr. Eyerman as well.

But the problem is that no one wants anyone to know they are leaving until they have to tell - because they are afraid they will be treated differently and they may be right. The kids talk to each other - we knew that half of the kids with the top grades in the class were leaving for high school long before the administration ever did - but I can't really see parents announcing that before they have to (I guess whenever the lottery happens for Walls, for Wilson you don't have to do anything except not return), unless one kid has already left and that is the plan for the other - I only know one family like that they went private. And what happens if they don't get into Walls (has actually happened to a few BASIS kids) or the private schools they are applying to - if they are not zoned for Wilson they are stuck. And parents who have left have already lost the battles at Walls and Wilson so I can't see them doing it. Since the non bona fide parent organization shut down the list serve and the other one has been struggling to attract people and has administrators on it, not sure parents could pull it off because it would identify who is leaving.

My child would pass a placement test in Geometry. But at Wilson they won't administer one. It will look awfully odd to have a 5 on Calculus BC and then take Geometry in 10th grade on a college transcript. You usually move on to college level math. It will also look odd to get a 5 on the World History AP Exam and then have to take the class over (no need to take the AP exam over - if you aced it in 8th grade I think that is more impressive.)

What they were doing at Walls two years ago with a placement test just put the kids back in the class they had taken the previous year, and then I assume they will have to take Geometry. I think it was mostly Algebra II. If they use their transcript to decide whether or not to admit them, it seems kind of ridiculous to then make them take it again. But now kids are studying for the placement test - two years ago they did not know they were going to be given one, it was right after the summer so they were rusty - don't know what the outcome was this year. Maybe they are all taking Geometry. Saxon (the math text books and system we use combines Algebra II with Geometry because they think it is a waste to spend a year on it).

Some kids are also quite understandably not enthusiastic about taking World History over again when they just took it for 7th and 8th grade (sequence has now changed but many will still take the AP). A 3 is "passing" on the AP and while not stellar, it ought to be enough not for credit necessarily but to allow them not to have to take it over.

I don't think most who are leaving care about credits - just getting out of the classes - if you want to graduate early you stay at BASIS. But repeating courses which you have already taken, especially aftertwo years of World History, just seems cruel. They did not suggest my child would have to repeat AP Calculus BC. Or any other AP classes taken this year. THAT would be ridiculous. They are in 9th grade now after all, and it would just start to look more and more ridiculous. But we know that in 10th they will still place the child in Geometry. I don't know if World History is a graduation requirement at Wilson. It is at Walls. And I bet they would do the same to a 10th grader re World History.

But given the attrition, and given the perceived need for secrecy (especially because I think at most other BASIS schools most of the top kids stay) you can see how we would think it is Mr. Eyerman's responsibility. Especially in terms of Wilson where all you should do given what we have learned on this thread is have the grace once they have incorporated your AP scores into your final grades on your report card and you get your official transcript is to tell them that you are not going to return.

There are at least three of us who are leaving after 9th for Wilson. But there is no way we are going to out ourselves before they finalize a transcript incorporating the AP scores which usually come out in July, given the poster on this thread whose child left for Wilson after 10th because the grade on the report card changed and the teacher told the family and argued with the school about it. If you are in 10th grade, you know the way the grading system works, so there was clearly no AP involved and there are no comps in high school - finals are weighted depending on the teacher, but they are not half your grade for the year the way comps are, the LEAP Chemistry final for example last year was 30%, and since the teacher protested that the grade had been changed after it was submitted by the teacher (finals are graded by the teachers so to get the results they don't even have to go to AZ or to a scantron don't think).

At any rate, the real fallacy in the Boosters argument here is that the teacher knows whether the grade is final or not. The teacher gave the final grade and submitted it as a final grade - and the teacher is no longer at the school. Given that story, there is absolutely no way we are taking any risks with our child's transcript. Very few of the teachers who teach high school left. So we think we know who it is, and we think they would not put up with that kind of crap. Never put up with any crap from students, would never allow a student's grade that they submitted as final to be changed by the administration on their watch. We bet on quit as opposed to fired, landed safely and close by.

I do not believe all these conspiracy theories about grades being raised, because I don't believe BASIS would allow that to happen - I really believe in terms of grades it is a meritocracy - but changing a grade to be lower - the allegation is that this is something that BASIS DID, the teacher is actually GONE, the announcement about the departure happened VERY LATE in the summer, and I believe this story enough not to risk my child's transcript. Not piping up. Can't.

[Anonymous]

"Since the non bona fide parent organization shut down the list serve and the other one has been struggling to attract people and has administrators on it, not sure parents could pull it off because it would identify who is leaving."


You just to had to repeat it again......you really can't get over it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Since the non bona fide parent organization shut down the list serve and the other one has been struggling to attract people and has administrators on it, not sure parents could pull it off because it would identify who is leaving."


You just to had to repeat it again......you really can't get over it?

There are a bunch of us who are not over it. Not sure whom you think you are referring to. First time mentioning it here. But no this is not something to get over. Commercial companies provide an opt out frequently when they change their focus or their brand name etc. The Boosters could have done the same. If they had a lawyer he was incompetent.

And it is a real tragedy for commuter school where parents come from everywhere to no longer even have the illusion (because that is all it was) of a community.

But the cold hard reality is that while the BASIS Middle School should become a community, the high school will never really be a community, because by the time you are left with the last ones standing in 10th grade the competition will be so brutal no one will be speaking to any other family anymore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yes but BasisEd sure put their two feet in the wrong place, because now Sean is just across the river preparing to run a private school when I would wager had they offered to pay him more to stay in DC he would not have taken the promotion that burned him out and would still be with us and so would a lot more kids, and those that weren't might be getting credit - but both at Walls and Wilson you have to take Geometry. But taking AP World History over again if you got a 5 on the AP? Insanity.

And losing over half of LEAP last year plus tons of others, having many who remained from LEAP not taking AP Chem (teacher sent out a desperate email before the start of the year), and no LEAP section at all this year, would not have happened if Sean had stayed. Basis usually does know how to prepare kids for AP exams - even in DC we are doing pretty darn well as Sean (who, again, gave the talk last year about our local AP performance) explained.

My one complaint is that the AP CS course, while full of kids who can teach themselves, is full of kids who will have to teach themselves. NOT a good choice of a teacher. Oh well. These kids are smart and they will get it. And the required APs are really not fair to those who aren't well rounded. But that has to do with the high school curriculum at BASIS in all its schools, not BASIS DC in particular. But it is something parents should consider before they continue on to the high school.

I think Eyerman was a good choice, but he is no Sean Aiken. Doesn't have the charisma, the positive energy, etc....

This was largely due to scheduling more than anything else. As for the LEAP section not being present, there were too few kids left over to have that section.

No dear the question is why there is no LEAP section in the 8th grade not the 9th grade (agreed too many of them left after 8th grade - is that typical of BASIS schools?), and why you would make kids who had been in LEAP Chem in 8th then have to show up at 7:45 to take AP Chem. These are the real questions.

Once we really start departing from the BASIS model you have to keep your eyes wide open, especially if you are (as we were) impressed by 5th and 6th grade.

And if you have a kid who is basically pure STEM or pure liberal arts you have to remember that in high school they are required to take six APs not of their choosing - unlike Wilson, unlike Latin, unlike any other school I know of, 3 in math/science and 3 in English/US Gov't/foreign language? NOT a good fit for anyone except for a well rounded kid.

And most kids who are really good at one thing are not well rounded.

No skin in the game, no kids there anymore, over and out.

Just warning those of you with unhappy unchallenged 9th graders and those counting on the lower school as paying your dues with high school as the great reward to seriously reevaluate whether it is worth an unhappy teenager taking APs that they know will be factored into their grade that are either required or poorly taught.

Middle school OTOH offers the best education available in my experience.

But there are plenty of those kids. The 75th percentile who gets into Harvard have 2490 SATs and 35 ACT scores.

Wonder what scores the top 24% got?

h

I think I probably scored in the top 24% back in the day. SATs were 790 verbal and 760 math. Did that mean I was well rounded? Hell no. Did I ever take a math or science AP? Hell no.

So I have one kid on the other side who just does not feel they can get through the 9th grade AP US Gov't and 10th grade AP English class BASIS is demanding so soon (especially thanks to bottom of the barrel English instruction 6th-8th grade - on the last DC CAS this kid was my only one ever to score proficient rather than advanced in anything, and it was English).

I guess the point is that as an alumnae interviewer for an Ivy we look somewhat askance at 4s, and 3s are an anathema. So my judgament may be a bit skewed but BASIS DC has also not prepared these kid for the language AP. So I feel like we should quit while we are still ahead.

The SATs only measure up to Algebra II. The vocab etc may measure a lot more. My child needs to learn how to write a 5 paragraph essay all over again. I am not going to leave it to BASIS to teach them that, or give them the down time to be a sufficient bookworm to improve their vocabulary - because there is no down time at BASIS.

BASIS hands out vocabulary words. I never in my life did that because reading was my passion. But then again we read 6-8 books at my private school starting in 6th or 7th grade and wrote constantly by contrast in 7th and 8th my poor child read two books each and had to write basically three essays. Disgraceful.

So while I do not expect said child to ever take an English AP, I remain hopeful about foreign language, and that perhaps CTY courses will help us get over this hump because I feel completely inadequate.

Now I have another child who seems completely well rounded at BASIS and up for any AP you want to throw their way. But it is hard to guess what is going to happen when your child is only in 5th grade, and you want them to be able to pursue their interests as far as possible - and for our lopsided one, that means Wilson and a specific academy after 9th. In the interim, knocking off 3 or 4 APs is not a bad way to start your high school career.

[Anonymous]

Yes it's hard to know what your child will need or want in high school when they are in 5th grade. That's why we have school choice.

But if you had done your homework when applying to BASIS you would have seen the course sequence and known what was ahead (it's been on the website since before they opened). You act as if required APs in the 6 subjects and the years/sequence that tey are taken is news. It's just not.

PS - I truly wish Jeff put a word limit per post on this site.

[Anonymous]

The test scores at BASIS are really impressive, and passing by the school, the kids seem stellar. But the parents based on these treads on BASIS sound NUTTY. I haven't learned a thing about this school from reading these multiple threads on BASIS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The test scores at BASIS are really impressive, and passing by the school, the kids seem stellar. But the parents based on these treads on BASIS sound NUTTY. I haven't learned a thing about this school from reading these multiple threads on BASIS.

All you have to get to get an A in the class is a 3 on the AP - and then not report it to the colleges, if that is possible....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The test scores at BASIS are really impressive, and passing by the school, the kids seem stellar. But the parents based on these treads on BASIS sound NUTTY. I haven't learned a thing about this school from reading these multiple threads on BASIS.

I learned about the Geometry problem and that our HOS should go fight for the many many kids who leave after 8th and 9th haven already gotten 4s and 5s on AP Calculus exams. Same thing for World History. And I had no idea about the task force either where he make much more progress than Sean Aiken ever did.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The test scores at BASIS are really impressive, and passing by the school, the kids seem stellar. But the parents based on these treads on BASIS sound NUTTY. I haven't learned a thing about this school from reading these multiple threads on BASIS.

I learned about the Geometry problem and that our HOS should go fight for the many many kids who leave after 8th and 9th haven already gotten 4s and 5s on AP Calculus exams. Same thing for World History. And I had no idea about the task force either where he make much more progress than Sean Aiken ever did.

There were 4 students who took AP math last year.
Two of them were in High School, two of them were in 8th grade. One left, the other stayed. So I don't see any need for anything.
Geometry on the other hand is something else, since Saxon algebra I and II have elements of Geometry but do not cover everything.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The test scores at BASIS are really impressive, and passing by the school, the kids seem stellar. But the parents based on these treads on BASIS sound NUTTY. I haven't learned a thing about this school from reading these multiple threads on BASIS.

I learned about the Geometry problem and that our HOS should go fight for the many many kids who leave after 8th and 9th haven already gotten 4s and 5s on AP Calculus exams. Same thing for World History. And I had no idea about the task force either where he make much more progress than Sean Aiken ever did.

There were 4 students who took AP math last year.
Two of them were in High School, two of them were in 8th grade. One left, the other stayed. So I don't see any need for anything.
Geometry on the other hand is something else, since Saxon algebra I and II have elements of Geometry but do not cover everything.

Those numbers are wrong. Six students took it, four were in 8th grade, and three left.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The test scores at BASIS are really impressive, and passing by the school, the kids seem stellar. But the parents based on these treads on BASIS sound NUTTY. I haven't learned a thing about this school from reading these multiple threads on BASIS.

I learned about the Geometry problem and that our HOS should go fight for the many many kids who leave after 8th and 9th haven already gotten 4s and 5s on AP Calculus exams. Same thing for World History. And I had no idea about the task force either where he make much more progress than Sean Aiken ever did.

There were 4 students who took AP math last year.
Two of them were in High School, two of them were in 8th grade. One left, the other stayed. So I don't see any need for anything.
Geometry on the other hand is something else, since Saxon algebra I and II have elements of Geometry but do not cover everything.

Saxon math does cover a full year of high school geometry throughout Algebra 1, Algebra 2, and Pre-Calculus books including proofs so you would be wrong.

[Anonymous]

here is the publisher's take on Saxon math coverage of geometry:

http://www.hmhco.com/shop/education-curriculum/math/homeschool/saxon-math-homeschool/resources/faq#credit

[Anonymous]

The issue is with kids who switch schools in the middle of the sequence. The kids who stay at Basis will get all the content eventually.

It is just something that parents of kids who want to move from Basis to another school need to take into consideration.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The issue is with kids who switch schools in the middle of the sequence. The kids who stay at Basis will get all the content eventually.

It is just something that parents of kids who want to move from Basis to another school need to take into consideration.

if you start in 8/7 in 5th, Algebra I in 6th, Algebra II in 7th, and Precalculus in 8th and leave for high school you have completed the sequence and thus deserve full credit for Geometry

And that their two years of World History will be wasted but the AP maybe will be good practice?