Middle Schools for Cap Hill

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OK, I'm hoping this thread won't derail into the same Cap Hill middle school drama. Anyone whose kids are at Jefferson right now?

I'm not opposed to sending DS to Jefferson, actually, but he only wants to go if his friends are going, and I'm worried they'll pull out at last minute if they get a spot at Latin or wherever.

They will probably lottery and you should too. Even if they don't talk about it. You can ask them after the results come out what they are thinking. Then you will know if you even have options.

I wouldn't count on Hill parents who aren't close friends to be forthcoming about their MS plans after lottery results come out. Parents have a tendency to be cagey about their MS options, keeping their options under wraps. Plenty will make general statements like "We're considering all options," and "We've enrolled at Jefferson" (meaning the kid may or may not ever attend).

[Anonymous]

+1!

[Anonymous]

I don't have a middle school age kid but I live near Jefferson and when they had soccer games this fall I was interested to see how diverse the team was! Lots of families there cheering their kids on. They also seem to have a great school librarian; I follow her on twitter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OK, I'm hoping this thread won't derail into the same Cap Hill middle school drama. Anyone whose kids are at Jefferson right now?

I'm not opposed to sending DS to Jefferson, actually, but he only wants to go if his friends are going, and I'm worried they'll pull out at last minute if they get a spot at Latin or wherever.

They will probably lottery and you should too. Even if they don't talk about it. You can ask them after the results come out what they are thinking. Then you will know if you even have options.

I wouldn't count on Hill parents who aren't close friends to be forthcoming about their MS plans after lottery results come out. Parents have a tendency to be cagey about their MS options, keeping their options under wraps. Plenty will make general statements like "We're considering all options," and "We've enrolled at Jefferson" (meaning the kid may or may not ever attend).

I totally agree with this statement. I just want to offer an alternative perspective too. If you do decide to enroll your kids in a charter you’ll never stop hearing “well meaning” neighbors issue obnoxious passive aggressive comments about “abandoning” dcps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not reasonable to blame UMC parents with children in DCPS elementary programs for voting with their feet to charters, the burbs and privates for MS in view of the fact that DCPS has made 2 catastrophic decisions about its MS programs over the years:

Decision #1: DCPS leaders have fought both academic tracking and test-in MS programs tooth and nail. They currently allow a few MS schools to offer at-grade level classes for math and maybe ELA, that's it.
Decision #2: DCPS has let its only MS program that draws most of its in-boundary families--Deal--to become terribly overcrowded. This year, Deal has more than 600 more students than the facility was built for.

It's much too easy to point the finger at parents who run from DCPS after 4th or 5th grade, calling them racist, elitist etc.

If any one of the 3 DCPS Capitol Hill middle schools offered a full menu of bona fide honors classes--in science, social studies, math and ELA--from 6th-8th grade, we'd be there in a minute. None does, so we hope for Latin or BASIS.

I don't disagree with any of this and agree it's too easy to blame racism or elitism when often parents are just trying to find a viable option for their kids that creates a path to HS and college. That's not too much to ask.

We are IB for Eastern and my DH was totally hung-ho about us doing SH and then Eastern and couldn't understand why I was not sold until I recently mentioned that Eastern doesn't even offer AP Calculus. DH is a proud graduate of public schools who also happens to be an engineer and loved math growing up. Even his rural, underfunded, football-obsessed HS had AP Calculus and Physics, and taking those classes got him on path to a job he loves.

Suddenly he gets it. No one wants to limit their children that much.

So I don't know much about Eastern, but don't they have the IB diploma which would basically have a math option at the same level as AP Calculus.

It's still a relatively new program and I don't know enough about how many kids are enrolled in it and what the grade 11 and 12 offerings are to say. In theory, yes, but if the program is undersubscribed, can they guarantee a qualified math teacher at that level for the program? I think it's great Eastern is doing the program but it does make the entire thing opaque. I also know that in theory, you don't have to do the IB diploma to take IB content as honors courses, but again, it's a question of staffing and whether they can fill classes. There is a huge difference between taking an AP Calc (or the equivalent in IB) class or doing that level coursework in a mixed-level math class where most of your classmates are not doing the same work. This is the whole issue with MS and HS in DCPS -- if you can't guarantee even at-grade-level peers, much less accelerated peers, how can you guarantee coursework for kids who are at-grade-level or above? The refusal to commit to kids who need this coursework causes families to look elsewhere, and then it never gets better.

Come on people. There is no advanced math being taught with rigor. Just look at Eastern’PARCC math scores. 0% kids are even on grade level. The overwhelming majority 86%, are not only below grade level but way below grade level at PARCC 1 and 2.

You can name a course however you want it. I wouldn’t rely on course titles. You need to look at the kids performance and peer groups performance. There is no way I would send a kid on grade level there let alone a kid above grade level. Easy A’s with no effort and totally unprepared for any competitive high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not reasonable to blame UMC parents with children in DCPS elementary programs for voting with their feet to charters, the burbs and privates for MS in view of the fact that DCPS has made 2 catastrophic decisions about its MS programs over the years:

Decision #1: DCPS leaders have fought both academic tracking and test-in MS programs tooth and nail. They currently allow a few MS schools to offer at-grade level classes for math and maybe ELA, that's it.
Decision #2: DCPS has let its only MS program that draws most of its in-boundary families--Deal--to become terribly overcrowded. This year, Deal has more than 600 more students than the facility was built for.

It's much too easy to point the finger at parents who run from DCPS after 4th or 5th grade, calling them racist, elitist etc.

If any one of the 3 DCPS Capitol Hill middle schools offered a full menu of bona fide honors classes--in science, social studies, math and ELA--from 6th-8th grade, we'd be there in a minute. None does, so we hope for Latin or BASIS.

I don't disagree with any of this and agree it's too easy to blame racism or elitism when often parents are just trying to find a viable option for their kids that creates a path to HS and college. That's not too much to ask.

We are IB for Eastern and my DH was totally hung-ho about us doing SH and then Eastern and couldn't understand why I was not sold until I recently mentioned that Eastern doesn't even offer AP Calculus. DH is a proud graduate of public schools who also happens to be an engineer and loved math growing up. Even his rural, underfunded, football-obsessed HS had AP Calculus and Physics, and taking those classes got him on path to a job he loves.

Suddenly he gets it. No one wants to limit their children that much.

So I don't know much about Eastern, but don't they have the IB diploma which would basically have a math option at the same level as AP Calculus.

It's still a relatively new program and I don't know enough about how many kids are enrolled in it and what the grade 11 and 12 offerings are to say. In theory, yes, but if the program is undersubscribed, can they guarantee a qualified math teacher at that level for the program? I think it's great Eastern is doing the program but it does make the entire thing opaque. I also know that in theory, you don't have to do the IB diploma to take IB content as honors courses, but again, it's a question of staffing and whether they can fill classes. There is a huge difference between taking an AP Calc (or the equivalent in IB) class or doing that level coursework in a mixed-level math class where most of your classmates are not doing the same work. This is the whole issue with MS and HS in DCPS -- if you can't guarantee even at-grade-level peers, much less accelerated peers, how can you guarantee coursework for kids who are at-grade-level or above? The refusal to commit to kids who need this coursework causes families to look elsewhere, and then it never gets better.

Come on people. There is no advanced math being taught with rigor. Just look at Eastern’PARCC math scores. 0% kids are even on grade level. The overwhelming majority 86%, are not only below grade level but way below grade level at PARCC 1 and 2.

You can name a course however you want it. I wouldn’t rely on course titles. You need to look at the kids performance and peer groups performance. There is no way I would send a kid on grade level there let alone a kid above grade level. Easy A’s with no effort and totally unprepared for any competitive high school.

Also these numbers will of course be much worst now with the pandemic and huge learning loss.

[Anonymous]

If I’d known that School Without Walls was going to drop its admissions exam and PARCC score requirements I’d have taken a BASIS or DCI spot 2 years ago rather than going with a DCPS middle school. With Walls admissions now essentially a lottery for any 8th grader with at least a B average we might wind up moving for high school. That’s too much to put on my kid. He knows how high the stakes are. We just can’t afford private school without a lot of financial aid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I’d known that School Without Walls was going to drop its admissions exam and PARCC score requirements I’d have taken a BASIS or DCI spot 2 years ago rather than going with a DCPS middle school. With Walls admissions now essentially a lottery for any 8th grader with at least a B average we might wind up moving for high school. That’s too much to put on my kid. He knows how high the stakes are. We just can’t afford private school without a lot of financial aid.

Similar boat. Hugs PP. Parents shouldn’t be in a position to move or enroll their children in a school where 0% of kids are on grade level for math.

[Anonymous]

Basis for 5th. Otherwise, move to private or the burbs.

Thanks DCPS.

[Anonymous]

Certainly DCPS and DC charters are not everyone's cup of tea, but I don't think schools have to be perfect, and the suburbs have their own issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Basis for 5th. Otherwise, move to private or the burbs.

Thanks DCPS.

Dcps has failed its students for decades. I don’t understand the obsession with “fairness”. It is almost like they want to drive our parents who expect more. wait a minute….

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://twitter.com/Mr_JamesDC/status/1466188576333389824?s=20&t=nYOCirED4UeY0M1_qQsJew

One Eastern's IB students

That is awesome!

[Anonymous]

here is my (lottery aside) problem with the charter school options: washington latin seems truly lovely but its really just too far for my particular capitol hill family's particular willingness to commute. i personally don't really like basis. i think the best solution is not buses to charter schools - its honors classes at the capitol hill middle schools so the high-achieving students that now exist at pretty much all of the capitol hill area elementary schools start to opt in.

[Anonymous]

Agree, but it’s hopeless. Even when a popular principal of a DCPS MS pushes for advanced science and social studies classes with support from their teachers and many parents, the answer from HQ is a resounding NO. That’s what happened at SH pre Covid. It took a decade of pushing and lobbying by Capitol Cluster parents to get advanced (read taught at grade level) English and math classes, which first appeared in SY 2008-2009. In short, a full menu of tracked core classes is out of reach in every DCPS MS in the foreseeable future.

[Anonymous]

I am for dc sponsored buses to charter schools if only to reduce traffic and traffic fatalities. If it doesn’t help my kids directly it will help all Capitol Hill residents directly.