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Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS)
FCPS comprehensive boundary review
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Anonymous
| I'm convinced Reid and the School Board already know what changes they want to make and are just reverse engineering the entire process to create the false impression that the changes are emerging organically. Having more non-parents on the BRAC makes that somewhat easier, as parent representatives are likely to feel the most strongly about unwelcome boundary changes. |
Anonymous
Thinking that people who live in your community with no children in public schools means they do not have a stake in the public schools is not correct. Of course they have a stake. They are part of the community. |
Anonymous
My kids have graduated. I was involved in earlier boundary studies, and this seems to be going the same way. The decision was already made and SB is trying to make it look like it is not without prejudice. I totally understand the process--but I agree that it should be current participants. As for all having a say, I don't think most people without kids understand the process. They would say "sure. Even out the numbers." But, they do not understand the community ramifications. In the study that I participated in, it turned formerly friendly neighborhoods against one another. And, as for the SB listening to parents, they didn't. Here are the issues I see that were similar to those that I saw years ago: 1.IB vs AP. Parents of kids being moved BEGGED for the SB to switch to AP from IB. They were ignored. It will be worse this time because they will not grandfather current students. 2. They ended up sending kids much further away from the current school because of the domino effect of the change. (I think I remember 6 high schools were involved.) 3. There was no consideration of split feeders. 4. Some parents definitely had the ear of the School Board and controlled the process. 5. No consideration was given to the community. 6. No consideration given to traffic patterns. |
Anonymous
Thinking that non parents should have more than minimal representation on the committee that primarily affects school kids is like saying I should have a say in the California interstate Highway system because I drive there once every couple of years. |
Anonymous
Different year, same far left, equity driven school board driving the school district into the ground. |
Anonymous
I don’t pay for the California interstate system, but my taxes do pay for the school system. If you want us to pay for it, we need to be included. If you want us to hire your graduates, we need to be included. |
Anonymous
Plus, of those with no kids *currently* in the system, some will have kids in the system in the future or have had kids in the system and have some experience with boundary changes that would be helpful. |
Anonymous
DP. Agree 100%. |
Anonymous
Yep. This is their usual MO. |
Anonymous
| Can someone explain the pros/cons of AP vs IB, and why AP seems to be preferred on DCUM? I’m unfamiliar with IB because my kids are still in elementary. Our zoned high school has IB, not AP, and I’m curious if this is something I should be concerned about. |
Anonymous
There are entire threads about this - here is one: https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/941850.page For purposes of a discussion relating to boundaries, the key points are probably that: * People often have strong preferences as to whether they want an AP program vs. an IB program, so redistricting kids from an AP school into an IB school, or vice versa, could prompt heavy opposition. * The last time that FCPS moved kids from AP schools to an IB school (South Lakes - 2008), promises were made that FCPS would add a fair number of AP courses to the IB school, and those promises were not honored. * One of the main grounds for pupil placement to a different high school in FCPS is to attend an AP or an IB school, so if FCPS reduced the number of IB schools (currently 8; the other 17 are AP), it would limit the number of pupil placements in and out of certain schools, which could have implications for potential boundary changes (for example, Lewis's enrollment might be greater if so many kids weren't pupil placing to Lake Braddock, an AP school, and Herndon's enrollment might be greater if so many kids weren't pupil placing to South Lakes, an IB school). But as for the relative pros and cons of AP and IB, it's all been covered in earlier threads. |
Anonymous
|
1. IB is more expensive.
2. IB is less flexible 3. I understand that iB requires more writing, but my kids have had plenty of writing in AP English. 4. IB is fine if you plan to send your kid to a European college To get an IB Diploma, the students take several two year courses. This limits the flexibility to others who can pick and choose AP classes according to interests and talent. IB also requires that there be an IB coordinator which adds to the expense in some cases. If the SB does what they are planning, there will be shifts from AP to IB and vice versa. The shift from AP to IB could be particularly difficult and limit the ability to pursue an IB diploma. The School Board is very foolish if they think they can do this boundary redistricting for "equity" while the courses at different high schools for advanced students are dramatically different. |
Anonymous
You don’t pay federal taxes? Weird. |
Anonymous
FCPS was keen on IB between the late 90s and late 00s, a period in which 8 high/secondary schools were converted from AP to IB: Justice 1994 Mount Vernon 1994 Edison 1998 Robinson 1998 South Lakes 1999 Marshall 2000 Annandale 2001 Lewis 2001 At most of these schools, the explicit goal was to stem "white flight" by offering a special program that was held out as a "school within a school." It didn't really stem "white flight," but the schools with IB got stigmatized in some instances because there was a perception that FCPS was only offering IB at "failing schools." Of the 8 schools in FCPS with IB, all but one (Robinson) were in the bottom half of FCPS schools when they first got IB. The watershed for IB in FCPS was when FCPS tried to convert Woodson High from AP to IB. Parents objected, and FCPS abandoned the plan to convert Woodson to IB. Subsequently, FCPS opened two new high schools (Westfield and South County) as AP schools, and no more high/secondary schools were converted to IB. So a lot of the talk about IB in FCPS has more to do with the optics of IB in FCPS than IB itself. Both AP and IB can prepare kids well for college, but AP is generally perceived as more flexible, whereas IB is viewed as more prescriptive (at least for those who want to pursue the full "IB diploma" program, which was the original intent of IB) and writing-intensive. Another general observation is that most AP courses cover more material, and more closely resemble intro-level college courses, whereas IB courses cover less material but in greater depth. |
Anonymous
| Thank you all; I really appreciate the context re IB & AP and its history in FCPS. |