Exactly how good are MoCo schools?

[Anonymous]

DH and I grew up in Texas - where there's plenty of land for kids to run around; big, inexpensive houses; almost everyone has a swimming pool; and plenty of warm weather. We thought it was a great place to grow up and we've talked about eventually moving back to give our kids (under 5 now) the same kind of carefree childhood we had. There are a lot of factors to consider, but one is the quality of the schools. Our friends here all mention that MoCo schools are among the best in the nation, and I think there's no question that they are better than the schools I attended in a middle class suburb in Texas. But I'm wondering if the schools here are really so much better than the best public schools in, for example, the best Dallas suburbs, such that we would be crazy to move our kids and deprive them of the educational opportunities here.

Thoughts? Anyone move here with kids that have been in public school in both places? I don't think we would pay for private school in either place, but we could afford to pick the best available school district in the Dallas area.

[Anonymous]

Where in MoCo do you live?

[Anonymous]

Bethesda

[Anonymous]

Personally I would not want to send my kids to schools run by the Texas board of education.

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/education/headlines/20130917-evolution-proponents-critics-clash-at-texas-school-boards-textbook-hearing.ece

[Anonymous]

MoCo is a huge school district. There will always be discrepancies. But I think a lot of "how great" the schools are have to do with the resources of the school system. In general, parents in this area are highly educated. They have high expectations for the school systems. They understand what it takes to get into a good college. That has resulted in the county offering many opportunities for advancement and enrichment--ie HCG, AP, IB, etc. Then of course there are resources allocated for LD and ESOL. If you're a middle of the road student, the standards are still high, but your highly education parent can fill in the gap.

Add to it that many students come from a background where education is valued and you end up with a classroom of peers that can effectively present different ideas and have open discussions. If the teacher is more focused on stimulating an intellectual exchange of ideas, it makes for a "greater school". Things like critical thinking are then routinely integrated in the school day. When it comes time to perform on a national standardized test, it's easy for kids where critical thinking is the norm.

When the test scores are high, the schools are seen as "great"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Bethesda

you will be fine through high school don't listen to the haters.

[Anonymous]

MCPS is better than its critics on this board allege, at least in my experience. But I wouldn't stay in the area SOLELY for MCPS. I say that as an overly degreed person who cares deeply about education despite having grown up in a small town of 10k with about 3 AP classes to its name. I have no doubt that your kids could get a great education in Dallas, or Kalamazoo, or anywhere else, as long as you seek that out for them. They can also get a great education in MCPS, but any distinctions are not worth planning your family's entire existence around.

[Anonymous]

I think they are overrated. So much depends on the teacher. My son had a terrible kindergarten teacher, he started 1st grade a full year behind. We have since seen good teachers and bad teachers through the years, but you can have that anywhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Personally I would not want to send my kids to schools run by the Texas board of education.

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/education/headlines/20130917-evolution-proponents-critics-clash-at-texas-school-boards-textbook-hearing.ece

+1

I couldn't live in such a red state. I would be upset all the time.

And I don't value any of what OP cites as great things about TX, either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:MCPS is better than its critics on this board allege, at least in my experience. But I wouldn't stay in the area SOLELY for MCPS. I say that as an overly degreed person who cares deeply about education despite having grown up in a small town of 10k with about 3 AP classes to its name. I have no doubt that your kids could get a great education in Dallas, or Kalamazoo, or anywhere else, as long as you seek that out for them. They can also get a great education in MCPS, but any distinctions are not worth planning your family's entire existence around.

I agree with this, but would only point out that it is not true that kids can get a great education no matter where they live. In general a good local school system is dependent on the population placing a high value on (and therefore funding) a good education. In many parts of the country this is simply not the situation.

[Anonymous]

Honestly though, if your goal is to get your kid into a top performing university, you'll probably have better luck if you come from Texas compared to Bethesda.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:MCPS is better than its critics on this board allege, at least in my experience. But I wouldn't stay in the area SOLELY for MCPS. I say that as an overly degreed person who cares deeply about education despite having grown up in a small town of 10k with about 3 AP classes to its name. I have no doubt that your kids could get a great education in Dallas, or Kalamazoo, or anywhere else, as long as you seek that out for them. They can also get a great education in MCPS, but any distinctions are not worth planning your family's entire existence around.

I agree with this, but would only point out that it is not true that kids can get a great education no matter where they live. In general a good local school system is dependent on the population placing a high value on (and therefore funding) a good education. In many parts of the country this is simply not the situation.

+1
You pay for a MoCo public education no matter where you live in the county. If you live in the Western side (like Bethesda), the houses are much more expensive (because they are in the "good school districts"). If you live in the Eastern part of the county, you pay much less for a house, but must supplement the shoddy schools if you can afford it. Or you end up in private. Don't be fooled into thinking that the public schools are equal throughout the county. Not true. SO not true. Haters gonna hate, but it's the truth.

[Anonymous]

Honestly though, if your goal is to get your kid into a top performing university, you'll probably have better luck if you come from Texas compared to Bethesda.

I have lived in Texas and I don't know that that is true. Largely because in Texas, all the emphasis for top students is placed on UT and Rice while both are great schools, there is a pond that is larger than Texas. In general, on the East Coast, people are savvier with better college counselors (of course this can vary from district to district).

I would say that having lived in Texas, just like anywhere, if you shop around and pay a premium for a house in a good school district and/or private school, your kids can get a great education. I am most familiar with the Austin area, so I can't speak for Dallas, but there are some very high performing schools in Austin. There are also some horribly shitty ones, and overall I would say the standards are not as high as other parts of the country (although the best schools definitely go above and beyond where the state expects them to be). But I would say in Austin at least, the best schools are (like anywhere else) test-in magnets, wealthy suburban areas, and wealthy areas within the city limits that are essentially suburban. This seems to also be the case in the rest of the major cities (Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas). I don't see how that is horribly different from the DC area, where in parts of Montgomery County that are affluent and Fairfax, which is affluent are extremely strong and other areas that are poorer are lacking.

The biggest thing I noticed is that there is generally less of an obsessive attitude about achievement, and more of an emphasis on doing well enough. In certain regards, it may be healthier than all this hyperfocus on achievement from the womb, but I have also seen it give people Texas tunnel vision.

[Anonymous]

I don't know anything about TX but have been a bit surprised by K in MontCo (Bethesda) this year. 26 kids and no assistant vs. my friends who stayed in D.C. (NW) and have a 20 child max in Kindergarten WITH an assistant.

So I think MontCo is of course good, but also overrated.

[Anonymous]

Lake Highlands neighborhoods in Dallas. Excellent schools.