culture at GDS high school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I did hear that the counselors know which kids are self starters and which are parent-driven

Good thing my kid is not the latter, but how would the GDS counselors have any way of knowing?

I assume it’s based on who speaks up in class and has original thinking or critical thinking. Math, science, literature, for language.
There are many extroverts there but the teachers should be able to separate loud BS comments from value add comments. And the introverts need to speak up or their grades will suffer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:NP here. in terms of the culture at gds, is is not very cut throat but the kids work hard. I heard about the same new parent who appears very cut throat but that is not the norm at gds. her kids r new to the school so maybe she thinks thats typical, but I can assure u it is not. and I did hear that the counselors know which kids are self starters and which are parent-driven and their letters of recommendation reflect that.

Well, I hope the counselors ask kids and don’t make assumptions about whether they are self-starters. How would you know that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP here. in terms of the culture at gds, is is not very cut throat but the kids work hard. I heard about the same new parent who appears very cut throat but that is not the norm at gds. her kids r new to the school so maybe she thinks thats typical, but I can assure u it is not. and I did hear that the counselors know which kids are self starters and which are parent-driven and their letters of recommendation reflect that.

Well, I hope the counselors ask kids and don’t make assumptions about whether they are self-starters. How would you know that?

Counselors work with the teachers for feedback.
Plus everyone should know how to do mock interviews by now. Or gauge authenticity and triangulate from there.
Besides the counselor will be pushing fit and a span of selection.
Starting a 501c or joining clubs only junior year doesn’t fool anyone the last three decades. It’s pretty status quo around here given volunteer requirements by public and private schools in the area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP here. in terms of the culture at gds, is is not very cut throat but the kids work hard. I heard about the same new parent who appears very cut throat but that is not the norm at gds. her kids r new to the school so maybe she thinks thats typical, but I can assure u it is not. and I did hear that the counselors know which kids are self starters and which are parent-driven and their letters of recommendation reflect that.

Well, I hope the counselors ask kids and don’t make assumptions about whether they are self-starters. How would you know that?

Counselors work with the teachers for feedback.
Plus everyone should know how to do mock interviews by now. Or gauge authenticity and triangulate from there.
Besides the counselor will be pushing fit and a span of selection.
Starting a 501c or joining clubs only junior year doesn’t fool anyone the last three decades. It’s pretty status quo around here given volunteer requirements by public and private schools in the area.

+1 I'd also add that GDS is a school where many/most of the students have numerous strong relationships with adults on campus - teachers, admin, counselors, coaches and staff. It's one of the main benefits of high student/teacher ratios at the better independent schools. They very strongly encourage office hours/meeting outside of class and high-schoolers being high-schoolers, they talk about everything on their minds. Students talk to the ceramics teacher about their parents not believing that only 2-3 students per class get straight As when they hear every college-bound student in public has 4.0+ GPAs. The college counselors hear directly from the students who say things like "I really think [non-Ivy] is a fit but my parents will be disappointed if I don't get into [their Ivy] and they just don't understand how different college admissions are now." And the teachers and counselors talk to each other about students.

[Anonymous]

If you don't think white people are the very root of all problems on the face of the earth from the justice system to global warming, you should look elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you don't think white people are the very root of all problems on the face of the earth from the justice system to global warming, you should look elsewhere.

Is that your child's experience at GDS? In what ways did s/he experience that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you don't think white people are the very root of all problems on the face of the earth from the justice system to global warming, you should look elsewhere.

Is that your child's experience at GDS? In what ways did s/he experience that?

Don’t fall for this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you don't think white people are the very root of all problems on the face of the earth from the justice system to global warming, you should look elsewhere.

Literally both of those problems were caused primarily by white people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I did hear that the counselors know which kids are self starters and which are parent-driven

Good thing my kid is not the latter, but how would the GDS counselors have any way of knowing?

I assume it’s based on who speaks up in class and has original thinking or critical thinking. Math, science, literature, for language.
There are many extroverts there but the teachers should be able to separate loud BS comments from value add comments. And the introverts need to speak up or their grades will suffer.

As the parent of two GDS lifers, I would say that GDS rewards students who are self-advocates (and who advocate for others). This comes naturally to some kids, but not so much to others. The LS does a good job of teaching students that it is more than OK to speak up when you feel that something is wrong - and also to share feelings of joy. If your kid comes in at MS or HS, it's probably easiest if your kid is already a bit of an extrovert or at least willing to speak to teachers one-on-one. That being said, one of my children is not an extrovert, but she has had to learn--especially in HS--to communicate frequently with her teachers. As parents, we definitely encourage her to reach out to her teachers, but we do not email or contact the teachers directly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you don't think white people are the very root of all problems on the face of the earth from the justice system to global warming, you should look elsewhere.

Literally both of those problems were caused primarily by white people.

Really? China and India having nothing to do with global warming?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you don't think white people are the very root of all problems on the face of the earth from the justice system to global warming, you should look elsewhere.

Literally both of those problems were caused primarily by white people.

Really? China and India having nothing to do with global warming?

They just want what we’ve already had for decades, and they don’t see us meaningfully renouncing to this day. Can you blame ‘em? Doesn’t make it right but it’s certainly understandable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you don't think white people are the very root of all problems on the face of the earth from the justice system to global warming, you should look elsewhere.

Literally both of those problems were caused primarily by white people.

Really? China and India having nothing to do with global warming?

They just want what we’ve already had for decades, and they don’t see us meaningfully renouncing to this day. Can you blame ‘em? Doesn’t make it right but it’s certainly understandable.

Thanks for proving my point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I did hear that the counselors know which kids are self starters and which are parent-driven

Good thing my kid is not the latter, but how would the GDS counselors have any way of knowing?

I assume it’s based on who speaks up in class and has original thinking or critical thinking. Math, science, literature, for language.
There are many extroverts there but the teachers should be able to separate loud BS comments from value add comments. And the introverts need to speak up or their grades will suffer.

As the parent of two GDS lifers, I would say that GDS rewards students who are self-advocates (and who advocate for others). This comes naturally to some kids, but not so much to others. The LS does a good job of teaching students that it is more than OK to speak up when you feel that something is wrong - and also to share feelings of joy. If your kid comes in at MS or HS, it's probably easiest if your kid is already a bit of an extrovert or at least willing to speak to teachers one-on-one. That being said, one of my children is not an extrovert, but she has had to learn--especially in HS--to communicate frequently with her teachers. As parents, we definitely encourage her to reach out to her teachers, but we do not email or contact the teachers directly.

We do worry about our introvert kid there in the LMS. No one is drawing them out and the loud voices get all the air time, jokes, attention.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our educational consultant recommended we consider applying to GDS high school for our daughter. What is the culture among parents and students? Is it very competitive?

Why did the edu consultant recommend this or other schools? Is there a specific school attribute they liked or a child need?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you don't think white people are the very root of all problems on the face of the earth from the justice system to global warming, you should look elsewhere.

Literally both of those problems were caused primarily by white people.

This is precisely the attitude you'll find at GDS. It's a combination of self-loathing to justify these families' elite positions, and coddling to make sure their children have every possible advantage and don't have to face real adversity. It's nauseating. The kids are smart but can't think for themselves. The parents compete with one another for which $3M house has the most BLM and "In this house we believe" signs. It's a perfect introduction for elite private liberal arts colleges.