Middle and high school on Capitol Hill

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:.

While I would be open to the possibility of Banneker when the time comes, I would need to get answers to a couple of questions first.

1) Do kids in the IB program get scores of 6 and 7 on the higher level exams? If students do not come from disadvantaged homes, top colleges will be looking for scores like this.

2) I have a STEM.kid. Banneker IB students do the easiest math track, which is akin to AP Calculus AB. If Banneker doesn't have a more advanced math option than that, my child may be better off at Wilson, which has a track record of kids getting 5's on the AP Calculus BC exam. The suburban schools offer multivariate calculus as well. Banneker also offers AP biology and IB biology, but Wilson offers many more advanced science classes like AP Chemistry, AP Physics etc.

If these classes are not taught on Banneker's campus, I am sure the students can take the classes at Howard University. Banneker students are not eligible to take college courses at HU similar to the Walls students at GWU.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is the point of discussing Banneker to shame UMC white parents who won't send their kids their, or to establish that since DC already has a selective HS, the constant angst about "why doesn't DC have a selective HS to attract UMC families?" is kind of silly?

I can understand that some UMC might not be drawn to Banneker, for a number of reasons. But I also think the harping that DCPS is not catering to UMC (white?) families because there is no selective school seems odd.

It's a spin-off of the people who say that they could never attend Jefferson MS because of the "low scores" and the needs of their "advanced learners." When you point out an all-black school that actually has a rigorous curriculum and is doing very well by its learners, then you hear ANOTHER set of excuses for why "high SES" parents need something entirely new created just for them.

That my dear, is the bottom line

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actually, Banneker's average SAT scores are slightly above the national average, in the low 500s. Banneker admins and parents routinely claim that the SAT is racist on these boards, favoring affluent white kids who can afford expensive test prep. Actually, kids can do all the free test prep they want on Khan Academy on-line (Khan has a contract with Educational Testing Services to provide free test prep for the new SAT, which was rolled out last year). Kids scoring in the low 500s just can't be reading much for pleasure, or doing well in algebra and geometry.

But still when comparing, you ought to compare Banneker's averages to nationwide AA averages or nationwide poverty averages and you will see Banneker scores quite higher than true peer comparisons. With so many smart Ivy grads in this board, I'm always surprised when people blindly assess Banneker against a non peer group. Isn't that the first thing they teach you when studying averages?

I think that every single person commenting on this thread would be incredibly disappointed if his/her child scored in the low 500s on the SAT. I know I would be. I also know that none of my peers in "advanced" classes in high school had such low scores.

Were your peers all black and majority in poverty? Imagine what a 40% white non poverty Banneker would look like.

Walls?

In the early 80s when I was a DCPS student, Walls was considered an alternative school for the kids who could not handle a comprehensive school. Time and location changed the scope of the school.

Your point?

The school evolved.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actually, Banneker's average SAT scores are slightly above the national average, in the low 500s. Banneker admins and parents routinely claim that the SAT is racist on these boards, favoring affluent white kids who can afford expensive test prep. Actually, kids can do all the free test prep they want on Khan Academy on-line (Khan has a contract with Educational Testing Services to provide free test prep for the new SAT, which was rolled out last year). Kids scoring in the low 500s just can't be reading much for pleasure, or doing well in algebra and geometry.

But still when comparing, you ought to compare Banneker's averages to nationwide AA averages or nationwide poverty averages and you will see Banneker scores quite higher than true peer comparisons. With so many smart Ivy grads in this board, I'm always surprised when people blindly assess Banneker against a non peer group. Isn't that the first thing they teach you when studying averages?

I think that every single person commenting on this thread would be incredibly disappointed if his/her child scored in the low 500s on the SAT. I know I would be. I also know that none of my peers in "advanced" classes in high school had such low scores.

Were your peers all black and majority in poverty? Imagine what a 40% white non poverty Banneker would look like.

Walls?

In the early 80s when I was a DCPS student, Walls was considered an alternative school for the kids who could not handle a comprehensive school. Time and location changed the scope of the school.

Your point?

The school evolved.

NP adding: The school evolved because different kinds of students applied to and enrolled in the school. It's not a stretch to imagine that Banneker or Jefferson could similarly evolve if their student body changed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've been interviewing Banneker students for my Ivy for 15 years. The odd student gets in. I speak to the school's IB Diploma coordinator from time to time, mainly to ask how students are scoring. To my knowledge, 6s and 7s on IBP exams are really rare at Banneker. Their IBD pass points total hovers in the mid 20s (on a pass scale of 24-45 points) and a good third of the kids who pursue the IBD fail to pass. Their model is clearly to provide a springboard for low SES AA and Latino students to reach top colleges.

No, Banneker does not teach Cal BC, or, for that matter, Physics 2 (called Physics BC until 2014), Physics C: Electronics and Magnetism, or Physics C: Mechanics. Moreover, they haven't produced a National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist in a decade. If you're high SES and your student is white or Asian, top Banneker STEM scores are really unlikely to fly at top colleges. Perhaps you could supplement to bridge the gap.

why would you assume your "stem kid" would do so much differently at Banneker than Wilson (leaving aside the course offerings?) I feel like people are constantly moving the goal posts. "My sweet, book hungry kid can't possibly go to class with all those kids at Jefferson who have 20% proficiency rates and come from the projects!!"

"what about banneker which is full of bright hard working kids with great results?"

"they never had a national merit finalist!!"

just say it.

My low income, predominantly African American high school in California offered AP Calculus BC and AP Chemistry 30 years ago. If you are from a college educated home, top colleges expect 5s on those tests or scores of 6/7 on the analogous IB exams.

We have the word of one person that interviews some Banneker kids. Nobody really knows what these kids are scoring. We do know they are killing PARCC and going to top colleges. What else is there to want to know? In every measure, it's a better school than Latin, yet there are fewer than 5 white kids that want to go there.

Actually, the International Baccalaureate Program in Geneva keeps stats on average points totals by certified HS. You can contact them and dig in their on-line archives to find the data. Banneker's IBD points totals are in the mid 20s, sort of a C-. Meanwhile, Richard Montgomery HS in Rockville, and other Metro area programs, posts point totals in the high 30s, an A-. The HS PARCC is just testing 8th and 9th grade math, and few low SES families opt out of state standardized tests (while many high SES kids have been blowing off the PARCC), helping explain why the Banneker students are "killing it." Many Banneker kids go to top colleges partly because low SES AA students with decent SAT scores (600s) are in huge demand at such colleges. They don't need to score in the 700s like whites and Asians who aren't recruited athletes to access the same colleges. I'm not saying that Banneker's a bad school, but whites seldom attend historically black high schools or colleges for obvious reasons. To attract whites, Banneker will need to change and do outreach.

Thanks for those IB stats. We're years away and I'm just learning. Do you have any idea what the scores are for the Eastern HS IB program? And sorry this is off track, but are there other IB HSes in DC?

DCI is planning to offer the IB high school program. They only have 9th graders at this point, and their program hasn't yet been approved by the IBO.

I think that comparing the IBD scores of Banneker and Richard Montgomery is meaningless unless you control for race and SES. Same as for the PARCC, SAT scores and AP passing rates.

The question we should be asking is how the Banneker scores on all of the above compare to similar students at SWW, Wilson, Latin, BASIS and all the rest.

I don't think that's the question really, except in a thread about how to objectively rank DC high schools. There's no question that Banneker is a high school with a TON going for it. So the issue is why, in a city with a perceived lack of options for "advanced" students, Banneker is never in the mix. At that point people will try to downplay Banneker and the question morphs from "where can a student get a rigorous education?" to "MY CHILD CANNOT THRIVE OUTSIDE OF A SCHOOL THAT ALREADY HAS A CLASS FULL OF 5s IN CALC BC". Basically they won't be happy unless there's something that is tailor made for them from the outset.

I guess I'm not getting your point. I think what folks want for their kids is a school with a good set of equally strong(er) peers - I want my kid to be challenged by classmates, not the big fish in a small pond (b/c when s/he gets to college it would be much bigger shock to the system). And if Banneker kids' SATs are (seemingly) pretty low, that appears to be evidence that the peer group is not (very) strong enough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've been interviewing Banneker students for my Ivy for 15 years. The odd student gets in. I speak to the school's IB Diploma coordinator from time to time, mainly to ask how students are scoring. To my knowledge, 6s and 7s on IBP exams are really rare at Banneker. Their IBD pass points total hovers in the mid 20s (on a pass scale of 24-45 points) and a good third of the kids who pursue the IBD fail to pass. Their model is clearly to provide a springboard for low SES AA and Latino students to reach top colleges.

No, Banneker does not teach Cal BC, or, for that matter, Physics 2 (called Physics BC until 2014), Physics C: Electronics and Magnetism, or Physics C: Mechanics. Moreover, they haven't produced a National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist in a decade. If you're high SES and your student is white or Asian, top Banneker STEM scores are really unlikely to fly at top colleges. Perhaps you could supplement to bridge the gap.

why would you assume your "stem kid" would do so much differently at Banneker than Wilson (leaving aside the course offerings?) I feel like people are constantly moving the goal posts. "My sweet, book hungry kid can't possibly go to class with all those kids at Jefferson who have 20% proficiency rates and come from the projects!!"

"what about banneker which is full of bright hard working kids with great results?"

"they never had a national merit finalist!!"

just say it.

My low income, predominantly African American high school in California offered AP Calculus BC and AP Chemistry 30 years ago. If you are from a college educated home, top colleges expect 5s on those tests or scores of 6/7 on the analogous IB exams.

We have the word of one person that interviews some Banneker kids. Nobody really knows what these kids are scoring. We do know they are killing PARCC and going to top colleges. What else is there to want to know? In every measure, it's a better school than Latin, yet there are fewer than 5 white kids that want to go there.

Actually, the International Baccalaureate Program in Geneva keeps stats on average points totals by certified HS. You can contact them and dig in their on-line archives to find the data. Banneker's IBD points totals are in the mid 20s, sort of a C-. Meanwhile, Richard Montgomery HS in Rockville, and other Metro area programs, posts point totals in the high 30s, an A-. The HS PARCC is just testing 8th and 9th grade math, and few low SES families opt out of state standardized tests (while many high SES kids have been blowing off the PARCC), helping explain why the Banneker students are "killing it." Many Banneker kids go to top colleges partly because low SES AA students with decent SAT scores (600s) are in huge demand at such colleges. They don't need to score in the 700s like whites and Asians who aren't recruited athletes to access the same colleges. I'm not saying that Banneker's a bad school, but whites seldom attend historically black high schools or colleges for obvious reasons. To attract whites, Banneker will need to change and do outreach.

Thanks for those IB stats. We're years away and I'm just learning. Do you have any idea what the scores are for the Eastern HS IB program? And sorry this is off track, but are there other IB HSes in DC?

DCI is planning to offer the IB high school program. They only have 9th graders at this point, and their program hasn't yet been approved by the IBO.

I think that comparing the IBD scores of Banneker and Richard Montgomery is meaningless unless you control for race and SES. Same as for the PARCC, SAT scores and AP passing rates.

The question we should be asking is how the Banneker scores on all of the above compare to similar students at SWW, Wilson, Latin, BASIS and all the rest.

I don't think that's the question really, except in a thread about how to objectively rank DC high schools. There's no question that Banneker is a high school with a TON going for it. So the issue is why, in a city with a perceived lack of options for "advanced" students, Banneker is never in the mix. At that point people will try to downplay Banneker and the question morphs from "where can a student get a rigorous education?" to "MY CHILD CANNOT THRIVE OUTSIDE OF A SCHOOL THAT ALREADY HAS A CLASS FULL OF 5s IN CALC BC". Basically they won't be happy unless there's something that is tailor made for them from the outset.

I guess I'm not getting your point. I think what folks want for their kids is a school with a good set of equally strong(er) peers - I want my kid to be challenged by classmates, not the big fish in a small pond (b/c when s/he gets to college it would be much bigger shock to the system). And if Banneker kids' SATs are (seemingly) pretty low, that appears to be evidence that the peer group is not (very) strong enough.

Right, you're moving the goal posts. At first the discussion is about having "a strong cohort" as the reason Jefferson will never work. Next, the definition of "strong cohort" gets changed to "super duper advanced students." OK fine, so if the only school that will work for you in DC is a school where there are THEE BEST students, then you should probably go private or to VA and try for TJ. This is a discussion about how to create reasonable options for kids in DC, but somehow the options that involve a majority of black students always get discounted. Also I'm guessing that the Banneker kids strengths and eventual success has a LOT more to it than their SAT scores. There are many more personal & moral characteristics that probably animate the school than that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I guess I'm not getting your point. I think what folks want for their kids is a school with a good set of equally strong(er) peers - I want my kid to be challenged by classmates, not the big fish in a small pond (b/c when s/he gets to college it would be much bigger shock to the system). And if Banneker kids' SATs are (seemingly) pretty low, that appears to be evidence that the peer group is not (very) strong enough.

So are you ruling out Washington Latin for middle and high school? Because based on test data and existing AP course offerings, your child will not be any more challenged there than at Banneker.

100% of Banneker graduates go to college. Not so at Latin to date.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is the point of discussing Banneker to shame UMC white parents who won't send their kids their, or to establish that since DC already has a selective HS, the constant angst about "why doesn't DC have a selective HS to attract UMC families?" is kind of silly?

I can understand that some UMC might not be drawn to Banneker, for a number of reasons. But I also think the harping that DCPS is not catering to UMC (white?) families because there is no selective school seems odd.

It's a spin-off of the people who say that they could never attend Jefferson MS because of the "low scores" and the needs of their "advanced learners." When you point out an all-black school that actually has a rigorous curriculum and is doing very well by its learners, then you hear ANOTHER set of excuses for why "high SES" parents need something entirely new created just for them.

That my dear, is the bottom line

Yes, I know it is!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've been interviewing Banneker students for my Ivy for 15 years. The odd student gets in. I speak to the school's IB Diploma coordinator from time to time, mainly to ask how students are scoring. To my knowledge, 6s and 7s on IBP exams are really rare at Banneker. Their IBD pass points total hovers in the mid 20s (on a pass scale of 24-45 points) and a good third of the kids who pursue the IBD fail to pass. Their model is clearly to provide a springboard for low SES AA and Latino students to reach top colleges.

No, Banneker does not teach Cal BC, or, for that matter, Physics 2 (called Physics BC until 2014), Physics C: Electronics and Magnetism, or Physics C: Mechanics. Moreover, they haven't produced a National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist in a decade. If you're high SES and your student is white or Asian, top Banneker STEM scores are really unlikely to fly at top colleges. Perhaps you could supplement to bridge the gap.

why would you assume your "stem kid" would do so much differently at Banneker than Wilson (leaving aside the course offerings?) I feel like people are constantly moving the goal posts. "My sweet, book hungry kid can't possibly go to class with all those kids at Jefferson who have 20% proficiency rates and come from the projects!!"

"what about banneker which is full of bright hard working kids with great results?"

"they never had a national merit finalist!!"

just say it.

My low income, predominantly African American high school in California offered AP Calculus BC and AP Chemistry 30 years ago. If you are from a college educated home, top colleges expect 5s on those tests or scores of 6/7 on the analogous IB exams.

We have the word of one person that interviews some Banneker kids. Nobody really knows what these kids are scoring. We do know they are killing PARCC and going to top colleges. What else is there to want to know? In every measure, it's a better school than Latin, yet there are fewer than 5 white kids that want to go there.

Actually, the International Baccalaureate Program in Geneva keeps stats on average points totals by certified HS. You can contact them and dig in their on-line archives to find the data. Banneker's IBD points totals are in the mid 20s, sort of a C-. Meanwhile, Richard Montgomery HS in Rockville, and other Metro area programs, posts point totals in the high 30s, an A-. The HS PARCC is just testing 8th and 9th grade math, and few low SES families opt out of state standardized tests (while many high SES kids have been blowing off the PARCC), helping explain why the Banneker students are "killing it." Many Banneker kids go to top colleges partly because low SES AA students with decent SAT scores (600s) are in huge demand at such colleges. They don't need to score in the 700s like whites and Asians who aren't recruited athletes to access the same colleges. I'm not saying that Banneker's a bad school, but whites seldom attend historically black high schools or colleges for obvious reasons. To attract whites, Banneker will need to change and do outreach.

Thanks for those IB stats. We're years away and I'm just learning. Do you have any idea what the scores are for the Eastern HS IB program? And sorry this is off track, but are there other IB HSes in DC?

DCI is planning to offer the IB high school program. They only have 9th graders at this point, and their program hasn't yet been approved by the IBO.

I think that comparing the IBD scores of Banneker and Richard Montgomery is meaningless unless you control for race and SES. Same as for the PARCC, SAT scores and AP passing rates.

The question we should be asking is how the Banneker scores on all of the above compare to similar students at SWW, Wilson, Latin, BASIS and all the rest.

I don't think that's the question really, except in a thread about how to objectively rank DC high schools. There's no question that Banneker is a high school with a TON going for it. So the issue is why, in a city with a perceived lack of options for "advanced" students, Banneker is never in the mix. At that point people will try to downplay Banneker and the question morphs from "where can a student get a rigorous education?" to "MY CHILD CANNOT THRIVE OUTSIDE OF A SCHOOL THAT ALREADY HAS A CLASS FULL OF 5s IN CALC BC". Basically they won't be happy unless there's something that is tailor made for them from the outset.

I guess I'm not getting your point. I think what folks want for their kids is a school with a good set of equally strong(er) peers - I want my kid to be challenged by classmates, not the big fish in a small pond (b/c when s/he gets to college it would be much bigger shock to the system). And if Banneker kids' SATs are (seemingly) pretty low, that appears to be evidence that the peer group is not (very) strong enough.

Right, you're moving the goal posts. At first the discussion is about having "a strong cohort" as the reason Jefferson will never work. Next, the definition of "strong cohort" gets changed to "super duper advanced students." OK fine, so if the only school that will work for you in DC is a school where there are THEE BEST students, then you should probably go private or to VA and try for TJ. This is a discussion about how to create reasonable options for kids in DC, but somehow the options that involve a majority of black students always get discounted. Also I'm guessing that the Banneker kids strengths and eventual success has a LOT more to it than their SAT scores. There are many more personal & moral characteristics that probably animate the school than that.

Why don't we have our own TJ?

[Anonymous]

We can all it FD (Frederick Douglass)!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've been interviewing Banneker students for my Ivy for 15 years. The odd student gets in. I speak to the school's IB Diploma coordinator from time to time, mainly to ask how students are scoring. To my knowledge, 6s and 7s on IBP exams are really rare at Banneker. Their IBD pass points total hovers in the mid 20s (on a pass scale of 24-45 points) and a good third of the kids who pursue the IBD fail to pass. Their model is clearly to provide a springboard for low SES AA and Latino students to reach top colleges.

No, Banneker does not teach Cal BC, or, for that matter, Physics 2 (called Physics BC until 2014), Physics C: Electronics and Magnetism, or Physics C: Mechanics. Moreover, they haven't produced a National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist in a decade. If you're high SES and your student is white or Asian, top Banneker STEM scores are really unlikely to fly at top colleges. Perhaps you could supplement to bridge the gap.

why would you assume your "stem kid" would do so much differently at Banneker than Wilson (leaving aside the course offerings?) I feel like people are constantly moving the goal posts. "My sweet, book hungry kid can't possibly go to class with all those kids at Jefferson who have 20% proficiency rates and come from the projects!!"

"what about banneker which is full of bright hard working kids with great results?"

"they never had a national merit finalist!!"

just say it.

My low income, predominantly African American high school in California offered AP Calculus BC and AP Chemistry 30 years ago. If you are from a college educated home, top colleges expect 5s on those tests or scores of 6/7 on the analogous IB exams.

We have the word of one person that interviews some Banneker kids. Nobody really knows what these kids are scoring. We do know they are killing PARCC and going to top colleges. What else is there to want to know? In every measure, it's a better school than Latin, yet there are fewer than 5 white kids that want to go there.

Actually, the International Baccalaureate Program in Geneva keeps stats on average points totals by certified HS. You can contact them and dig in their on-line archives to find the data. Banneker's IBD points totals are in the mid 20s, sort of a C-. Meanwhile, Richard Montgomery HS in Rockville, and other Metro area programs, posts point totals in the high 30s, an A-. The HS PARCC is just testing 8th and 9th grade math, and few low SES families opt out of state standardized tests (while many high SES kids have been blowing off the PARCC), helping explain why the Banneker students are "killing it." Many Banneker kids go to top colleges partly because low SES AA students with decent SAT scores (600s) are in huge demand at such colleges. They don't need to score in the 700s like whites and Asians who aren't recruited athletes to access the same colleges. I'm not saying that Banneker's a bad school, but whites seldom attend historically black high schools or colleges for obvious reasons. To attract whites, Banneker will need to change and do outreach.

Thanks for those IB stats. We're years away and I'm just learning. Do you have any idea what the scores are for the Eastern HS IB program? And sorry this is off track, but are there other IB HSes in DC?

DCI is planning to offer the IB high school program. They only have 9th graders at this point, and their program hasn't yet been approved by the IBO.

I think that comparing the IBD scores of Banneker and Richard Montgomery is meaningless unless you control for race and SES. Same as for the PARCC, SAT scores and AP passing rates.

The question we should be asking is how the Banneker scores on all of the above compare to similar students at SWW, Wilson, Latin, BASIS and all the rest.

I don't think that's the question really, except in a thread about how to objectively rank DC high schools. There's no question that Banneker is a high school with a TON going for it. So the issue is why, in a city with a perceived lack of options for "advanced" students, Banneker is never in the mix. At that point people will try to downplay Banneker and the question morphs from "where can a student get a rigorous education?" to "MY CHILD CANNOT THRIVE OUTSIDE OF A SCHOOL THAT ALREADY HAS A CLASS FULL OF 5s IN CALC BC". Basically they won't be happy unless there's something that is tailor made for them from the outset.

I guess I'm not getting your point. I think what folks want for their kids is a school with a good set of equally strong(er) peers - I want my kid to be challenged by classmates, not the big fish in a small pond (b/c when s/he gets to college it would be much bigger shock to the system). And if Banneker kids' SATs are (seemingly) pretty low, that appears to be evidence that the peer group is not (very) strong enough.

Right, you're moving the goal posts. At first the discussion is about having "a strong cohort" as the reason Jefferson will never work. Next, the definition of "strong cohort" gets changed to "super duper advanced students." OK fine, so if the only school that will work for you in DC is a school where there are THEE BEST students, then you should probably go private or to VA and try for TJ. This is a discussion about how to create reasonable options for kids in DC, but somehow the options that involve a majority of black students always get discounted. Also I'm guessing that the Banneker kids strengths and eventual success has a LOT more to it than their SAT scores. There are many more personal & moral characteristics that probably animate the school than that.

Why don't we have our own TJ?

Because economies of scale.

TJ is a magnet school for 5 different school districts (Loudon Co, Arlington Co, Fairfax Co, Falls Church City, Prince William Co) with a combined total of 275,000+ students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've been interviewing Banneker students for my Ivy for 15 years. The odd student gets in. I speak to the school's IB Diploma coordinator from time to time, mainly to ask how students are scoring. To my knowledge, 6s and 7s on IBP exams are really rare at Banneker. Their IBD pass points total hovers in the mid 20s (on a pass scale of 24-45 points) and a good third of the kids who pursue the IBD fail to pass. Their model is clearly to provide a springboard for low SES AA and Latino students to reach top colleges.

No, Banneker does not teach Cal BC, or, for that matter, Physics 2 (called Physics BC until 2014), Physics C: Electronics and Magnetism, or Physics C: Mechanics. Moreover, they haven't produced a National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist in a decade. If you're high SES and your student is white or Asian, top Banneker STEM scores are really unlikely to fly at top colleges. Perhaps you could supplement to bridge the gap.

why would you assume your "stem kid" would do so much differently at Banneker than Wilson (leaving aside the course offerings?) I feel like people are constantly moving the goal posts. "My sweet, book hungry kid can't possibly go to class with all those kids at Jefferson who have 20% proficiency rates and come from the projects!!"

"what about banneker which is full of bright hard working kids with great results?"

"they never had a national merit finalist!!"

just say it.

My low income, predominantly African American high school in California offered AP Calculus BC and AP Chemistry 30 years ago. If you are from a college educated home, top colleges expect 5s on those tests or scores of 6/7 on the analogous IB exams.

We have the word of one person that interviews some Banneker kids. Nobody really knows what these kids are scoring. We do know they are killing PARCC and going to top colleges. What else is there to want to know? In every measure, it's a better school than Latin, yet there are fewer than 5 white kids that want to go there.

Actually, the International Baccalaureate Program in Geneva keeps stats on average points totals by certified HS. You can contact them and dig in their on-line archives to find the data. Banneker's IBD points totals are in the mid 20s, sort of a C-. Meanwhile, Richard Montgomery HS in Rockville, and other Metro area programs, posts point totals in the high 30s, an A-. The HS PARCC is just testing 8th and 9th grade math, and few low SES families opt out of state standardized tests (while many high SES kids have been blowing off the PARCC), helping explain why the Banneker students are "killing it." Many Banneker kids go to top colleges partly because low SES AA students with decent SAT scores (600s) are in huge demand at such colleges. They don't need to score in the 700s like whites and Asians who aren't recruited athletes to access the same colleges. I'm not saying that Banneker's a bad school, but whites seldom attend historically black high schools or colleges for obvious reasons. To attract whites, Banneker will need to change and do outreach.

Thanks for those IB stats. We're years away and I'm just learning. Do you have any idea what the scores are for the Eastern HS IB program? And sorry this is off track, but are there other IB HSes in DC?

DCI is planning to offer the IB high school program. They only have 9th graders at this point, and their program hasn't yet been approved by the IBO.

I think that comparing the IBD scores of Banneker and Richard Montgomery is meaningless unless you control for race and SES. Same as for the PARCC, SAT scores and AP passing rates.

The question we should be asking is how the Banneker scores on all of the above compare to similar students at SWW, Wilson, Latin, BASIS and all the rest.

And even then, you have to control for SES and race. I believe when you do, you will find Banneker as the clear leader.

[Anonymous]

Eastern's IBD pass rate average points totals have been a little lower than Banneker's to date, but they're only about to graduate their third class of IBD students, with a dozen students in a cohort.

Enough of this PC silliness. Controlling for race and class alone doesn't get you a high-performing school. In an urban center, bona fide selective admissions combined with decent facilities, strong teaching and leadership,and a diverse student body (with many high SES families of all races involved) gets you a high-performing school.

Yes, DCI will be offering International Baccalaureate Diploma studies, but only IBD lite. IBD studies won't be required at DCI, so they won't have a critical mass of students to offer many Higher Level (1-2 years past AP) classes. Reading the tea leaves, I predict that their pass total will be in the high 20s for the first five years or so they graduate students. If you're shooting for the stars in college admissions (Ivies, Little Ivies, Georgetown, Stanford, military academies, Duke etc.) and you're white or Asian, you're going to need a points total of 40+.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Eastern's IBD pass rate average points totals have been a little lower than Banneker's to date, but they're only about to graduate their third class of IBD students, with a dozen students in a cohort.

Enough of this PC silliness. Controlling for race and class alone doesn't get you a high-performing school. In an urban center, bona fide selective admissions combined with decent facilities, strong teaching and leadership,and a diverse student body (with many high SES families of all races involved) gets you a high-performing school.

Yes, DCI will be offering International Baccalaureate Diploma studies, but only IBD lite. IBD studies won't be required at DCI, so they won't have a critical mass of students to offer many Higher Level (1-2 years past AP) classes. Reading the tea leaves, I predict that their pass total will be in the high 20s for the first five years or so they graduate students. If you're shooting for the stars in college admissions (Ivies, Little Ivies, Georgetown, Stanford, military academies, Duke etc.) and you're white or Asian, you're going to need a points total of 40+.

I'm the PP who's years away. Thank you for posting and explaining the stats. I'm familiar with the AP system from my own education but am learning about IB and watching closely what happens with the various local programs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Eastern's IBD pass rate average points totals have been a little lower than Banneker's to date, but they're only about to graduate their third class of IBD students, with a dozen students in a cohort.

Enough of this PC silliness. Controlling for race and class alone doesn't get you a high-performing school. In an urban center, bona fide selective admissions combined with decent facilities, strong teaching and leadership,and a diverse student body (with many high SES families of all races involved) gets you a high-performing school.

Yes, DCI will be offering International Baccalaureate Diploma studies, but only IBD lite. IBD studies won't be required at DCI, so they won't have a critical mass of students to offer many Higher Level (1-2 years past AP) classes. Reading the tea leaves, I predict that their pass total will be in the high 20s for the first five years or so they graduate students. If you're shooting for the stars in college admissions (Ivies, Little Ivies, Georgetown, Stanford, military academies, Duke etc.) and you're white or Asian, you're going to need a points total of 40+.

So your position is that DCPS should specifically create a new test-in school so that whites and Asians can get into the Ivies or "Little Ivies"?