DCPS Middle School problem in the Washington Post

[Anonymous]

Two most shocking moments for me

1) Hart Middle School where social studies is a one-semester elective

2) Quote by Henderson saying that all this outcry is actually progress because before "nobody cared enough about DCPS Middle Schools to demand anything". That is NOT going to sit well with people who have been activists long before Rheeforms

http://m.washingtonpost.com/local/education/middle-schools-present-vexing-problem-for-dc-leaders-as-parents-choose-other-options/2014/02/17/29b95e24-93ef-11e3-83b9-1f024193bb84_story.html

[Anonymous]

This is great time to advocate for McFarland to reopen and build a successful, sought after middle school from the ground up. I think that there are enough young middle class families that have moved into Ward 4 to make this happen. It would definitely alleviate some of the pressure off of Deal, create even more buzz around Powell, and subsequently make Roosevelt a more appealing high school option.

[Anonymous]

There should be nothing in this article that is shocking to anyone: the message being that educated, middle class and above families want schools with a majority of kids from educated, middle class and above families.

Those middle schools don't exist in DC, except for some charters, so the result is the parents leave town. How is this news?

What the article doesn't do is provide the reader with news that anyone in the Mayor's Office, Council, or DCPS is considering any solution to this problem, other than more charters. Well, I guess that would be a start to helping solve the problem! Isn't a better, more obvious solution for DCPS to start a push for magnet middle schools?

[Anonymous]

Good point. Even IF DCPS got to the point of equalizing robust course offerings and extra curricular activities in its middle schools, there would still be the issue of large cohorts of students without basic academic preparation outnumbering students ready to tackle 6th grade work and beyond.

DCPS needs to address this very real problem head on and give parents some sense of how it will be handled before you will see families staying for middle school in greater numbers.

[Anonymous]

Again, I feel like the Washington Post misses the mark in its education reporting. Go a little deeper and talk about Washington Latin and BASIS and what those charters are offering. Talk about how BASIS has been operating for 18 months and is fully enrolled. Talk about the course selections at these Charters and Deal.

And talk more about the Ward 6 Middle School plan - what was in that plan and why did it fall apart.

[Anonymous]

What about why they are building a $50million (and then some due to the "unknown" gas line) middle school in Brookland for 550 students when the demographic trends in Brookland are sending fewer and fewer InBounds kids to the local elementaries. They barely have half those numbers in feeder schools. How will they attract students to this school when they can't attract them to the local DCPS and everyone we know attends charters or privates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What about why they are building a $50million (and then some due to the "unknown" gas line) middle school in Brookland for 550 students when the demographic trends in Brookland are sending fewer and fewer InBounds kids to the local elementaries. They barely have half those numbers in feeder schools. How will they attract students to this school when they can't attract them to the local DCPS and everyone we know attends charters or privates.

Why?? Didn't you hear? People like the one from the Hill quoted in the story won't consider attending a school unless it is already up, running, beautiful and enriched. And left unsaid, "...and already full of people in my demographic."

[Anonymous]

When the news say that politicians are worried believe it is just the opposite. They could probably careless and it is true in every word of the sense what Kaya was quoted saying. We can't have it both ways...people are leaving in what numbers but they are coming here in what numbers? Yet some of high-schools are at capacity level. What's the problem???

[Anonymous]

Why?? Didn't you hear? People like the one from the Hill quoted in the story won't consider attending a school unless it is already up, running, beautiful and enriched. And left unsaid, "...and already full of people in my demographic."

As a parent of a fourth grader, I don't see anything wrong with this mindset. I don't want to send my child to a middle school that has only remedial options for academics, no extra curriculars, and kids who lack drive and discipline. Your smug statement seems to imply that you have a better plan?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about why they are building a $50million (and then some due to the "unknown" gas line) middle school in Brookland for 550 students when the demographic trends in Brookland are sending fewer and fewer InBounds kids to the local elementaries. They barely have half those numbers in feeder schools. How will they attract students to this school when they can't attract them to the local DCPS and everyone we know attends charters or privates.

Why?? Didn't you hear? People like the one from the Hill quoted in the story won't consider attending a school unless it is already up, running, beautiful and enriched. And left unsaid, "...and already full of people in my demographic."

Apply some critical thinking skills to the article and the graphics alongside it. Yes, the reporter quoted plenty of Capitol Hill and Ross parents but the REAL exodus from middle schools is in wards 7 and 8 where the charter sector is booming. You need to widen your view a bit and see that the real divide is people actively seeking quality educational environments and programs and students ready to learn, not necessarily a certain demographic or SES.

The people quoted in this article are small fry compared to the problem across other parts of the city

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What about why they are building a $50million (and then some due to the "unknown" gas line) middle school in Brookland for 550 students when the demographic trends in Brookland are sending fewer and fewer InBounds kids to the local elementaries. They barely have half those numbers in feeder schools. How will they attract students to this school when they can't attract them to the local DCPS and everyone we know attends charters or privates.

It's usually more about fat juicy contracts for cronies as opposed to serving children. Funny that education advocates bitch and whine about privatization of the school system via charters et cetera, but they are totally blind to that huge private sector cash bleed elephant right in their own midst - which is far worse.

[Anonymous]

So true. Add in testing companies, technology companies, curriculum companies and consultants and trainers and you have a public school system just feeding money to the private sector with or without charter schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What about why they are building a $50million (and then some due to the "unknown" gas line) middle school in Brookland for 550 students when the demographic trends in Brookland are sending fewer and fewer InBounds kids to the local elementaries. They barely have half those numbers in feeder schools. How will they attract students to this school when they can't attract them to the local DCPS and everyone we know attends charters or privates.

Why?? Didn't you hear? People like the one from the Hill quoted in the story won't consider attending a school unless it is already up, running, beautiful and enriched. And left unsaid, "...and already full of people in my demographic."

It's pretty simple - For parents to willingly put their kids into a new school, there has to be some reward for being the guinea pig. If the school looks like it will be robust and compelling, they will be more than happy to sign up (as has been the case with BASIS) but if it's lackluster and doesn't look like it will meet their needs any time in the near future, they will take a pass.

[Anonymous]

Just adding on, what do you think iPads and iMacs in every classroom, computer-based standardized testing and blended classrooms are all about: yes. Multi-billion dollar hardware and software contracts. The answer to our educational woes is not in iPads and educational software. No way.

[Anonymous]

There is definitely a lot of waste in the DCPS organization, including the crony capitalism you're discussing -- but there's also staff bloat and inefficient planning. It's still old news -- DCPS has always been wasteful, but, strangely enough, it's better than it used to be! The Charters have been a godsend in terms of increasing available options to everyone in the City, especially Wards 7 and 8!! I know we have problems, but at least we're on the right path.