Free advice from a senior high school parent

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Out of control public GPAs is a myth private school parents tell themselves.

According to Forbes, between 2010 and 2022, there was evidence of steady grade inflation among high schoolers. During that period, even as the National Assessment of Educational Progress (the “Nation’s Report Card”) recorded steady declines in reading, math, and U.S. history achievement, student GPAs climbed steadily higher in Public Schools. The average adjusted GPA increased from 3.17 to 3.39 in English; from 3.02 to 3.32 in math; from 3.28 to 3.46 in social studies; and from 3.12 to 3.36 in science. In 2022, more than 89% of high schoolers in Public Schools received an A or a B in math, English, social studies, and science.

There is also grade inflation at the privates. There is grade inflation at Harvard and Yale. I’m sure that your private is no different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What a pathetic thread. The only goal of HS is to get into the right college. How about an actual education for your child?

Did you actually read the OP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, what's striking to me is how all the privates seem to have the same college outcomes: Bullis, Sidwell, NCS, Holy Child. They're getting kids into the exact same schools. There is no longer any benefit for suffering through Sidwell or NCS over Flint Hill or St. Andrews.

The way things are going, the admissions will be BETTER from these easier schools this year or next. The schools that are holding out on to super strict grading (NCS, Sidwell, to a lesser degree GDS and STA) are going to have to pivot or really become irrelevant.

I am not sure why you say suffering?

Both of my kids went to Sidwell, had a great experience and are doing well in college. No complaints, no regrets.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Because I send my child to a top all girls private HS, she is surrounded by students who are driven to achieve. She is also not distracted by boys who might be carrying guns or trying to rape them in the bathroom. I like our small safe school honestly. Will she get into a top college? I suspect she will. Does it matter that she attended this school and not our local public? Who knows? But I do like that she will make it out of HS without all that trauma. And she has also expressed to me that she appreciates the opportunity to be in such an excellent school. Those two things alone make it worth it.

I would not choose to send a kid to single gender private religious school hoping he/she would be safer. That’s naive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From a college counselor: what is most helpful to consider is not what high school the student is coming from but the rigor of the courses they take. Period.

Also, colleges are looking for geographic diversity so everyone from the DMV, public or private, is in a certain pool of candidates.

The advice to choose private for the extras and not for a college app advantage is wise. Also, colleges do know the difference between a Sidwell and a Bullis. The student applying from Sidwell, GDS, NCS, Potomac is read differently. Just like the student who has demonstrated rigor in their academic schedule. But it is not the only consideration, of course.

i don’t believe that. i think these schools look at the GPA number and not give credit to the rigor of the school. i have a top elite athlete who had friends discounted because their gpa was not a 3.0 or higher regardless of the schools rigor. it IS absolutely a number first then they look at the rest

Well a 3.0 gpa is not good, even at the most rigorous privates.

I think what pp is referring to is the 3.7 kid who took all the advanced classes at Sidwell is understood to be quite a strong student.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because I send my child to a top all girls private HS, she is surrounded by students who are driven to achieve. She is also not distracted by boys who might be carrying guns or trying to rape them in the bathroom. I like our small safe school honestly. Will she get into a top college? I suspect she will. Does it matter that she attended this school and not our local public? Who knows? But I do like that she will make it out of HS without all that trauma. And she has also expressed to me that she appreciates the opportunity to be in such an excellent school. Those two things alone make it worth it.

I would not choose to send a kid to single gender private religious school hoping he/she would be safer. That’s naive.

Then you shouldn't send your child to one. I, like many PP's, appreciate the opportunity to send my child to a safe learning environment where I don't need to worry about murderers attending, like the public we are zoned for. I don't care about the college admissions beyond making sure my child receives a robust education with good peers. That will serve them far better than anything else. I don't know why it's difficult for so many people to realize that we send our children to private to protect them from what public schools have become. That's of equal importance to me as the education itself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP you really are not coming across well.

But it is true. I am just stating what most people won’t say publicly because it would be politically incorrect. I don’t care what some random dcum user thinks lol. The bottom line is she isn’t exposed to these dangers at school. She can use the bathroom whenever she and not worry about when she might run into. This is not the case at our public schools.

For the haters on this PP - you have no idea where her zoned school is located. If she seems over the top to you, you probably are naive about the day to day life in some of the schools in the DMV. Not everyone in private school lives in MCPS/FCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP you really are not coming across well.

But it is true. I am just stating what most people won’t say publicly because it would be politically incorrect. I don’t care what some random dcum user thinks lol. The bottom line is she isn’t exposed to these dangers at school. She can use the bathroom whenever she and not worry about when she might run into. This is not the case at our public schools.

For the haters on this PP - you have no idea where her zoned school is located. If she seems over the top to you, you probably are naive about the day to day life in some of the schools in the DMV. Not everyone in private school lives in MCPS/FCPS.

this is so true. we would not even consider our zoned DCPS ms/hs for our child for a millisecond. we either had to move or choose private. hint: we aren’t zoned for Jackson Reed or its feeders.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because I send my child to a top all girls private HS, she is surrounded by students who are driven to achieve. She is also not distracted by boys who might be carrying guns or trying to rape them in the bathroom. I like our small safe school honestly. Will she get into a top college? I suspect she will. Does it matter that she attended this school and not our local public? Who knows? But I do like that she will make it out of HS without all that trauma. And she has also expressed to me that she appreciates the opportunity to be in such an excellent school. Those two things alone make it worth it.

I would not choose to send a kid to single gender private religious school hoping he/she would be safer. That’s naive.

Troll.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you're considering a private school for your kid b'c you think it will improve their chances for admission at a competitive college, think again. Especially in the DMV, where there are some great public school options, it is 100% not worth it to go private just for college admissions.

If you want to do private b'c you think it will be a better experience for your child, that's another issue altogether. That's why we chose private and for that, it's been great: smaller classes, teachers who know the kids, etc.

But kids aren't getting into the super-selective colleges at any higher rate than they do from good publics. They did back in the '90s and before, but those days are over.

So if college admission is your goal, save your money!

The odds seem much worse coming from a top MCPS: https://moco360.media/2023/09/13/where-montgomery-county-high-school-graduates-are-going-to-college/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because I send my child to a top all girls private HS, she is surrounded by students who are driven to achieve. She is also not distracted by boys who might be carrying guns or trying to rape them in the bathroom. I like our small safe school honestly. Will she get into a top college? I suspect she will. Does it matter that she attended this school and not our local public? Who knows? But I do like that she will make it out of HS without all that trauma. And she has also expressed to me that she appreciates the opportunity to be in such an excellent school. Those two things alone make it worth it.

I would not choose to send a kid to single gender private religious school hoping he/she would be safer. That’s naive.

Then you shouldn't send your child to one. I, like many PP's, appreciate the opportunity to send my child to a safe learning environment where I don't need to worry about murderers attending, like the public we are zoned for. I don't care about the college admissions beyond making sure my child receives a robust education with good peers. That will serve them far better than anything else. I don't know why it's difficult for so many people to realize that we send our children to private to protect them from what public schools have become. That's of equal importance to me as the education itself.

Are you always this dramatic?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP you really are not coming across well.

But it is true. I am just stating what most people won’t say publicly because it would be politically incorrect. I don’t care what some random dcum user thinks lol. The bottom line is she isn’t exposed to these dangers at school. She can use the bathroom whenever she and not worry about when she might run into. This is not the case at our public schools.

Goodness - is your public school zoned for a school in Compton? Most of us are not coming from such dire straits that our only alternative to private is the equivalent of an overrun prison. You have my sympathy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it might be true that the very top kids in public are doing as well or better than the very top kids in private. If your only acceptable outcome is an Ivy or MIT, then public might be for you. But know that either way there's like a 98% chance your kid won't hit that goal.

But the middle and bottom of classes at private schools are doing far better than the middle and bottom of classes at public schools. There isn't any question of that. Private school has an enormous safety net.

I'm not saying you should or shouldn't go to private for that reason, but I think it's important to understand that the people who claim that private doesn't help with college admissions are really only talking about the top 10% of the class.

Well of course, the middle percentage of the class at a private will do better. They were already vetted upon admission to the private school, The only kids who got into Sidwell, GDS, NCS from our public were the very, very top kids--those with straight As, 99% testing, PLUS outstanding extracurriculars, etc.

There are plenty of kids at those schools who got in as preschoolers and elementary schoolers before there was any way of knowing what kind of student they'd be or what kind of extracurriculars they would do.

Yes, a large number of those will be legacy admits.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Out of control public GPAs is a myth private school parents tell themselves.

According to Forbes, between 2010 and 2022, there was evidence of steady grade inflation among high schoolers. During that period, even as the National Assessment of Educational Progress (the “Nation’s Report Card”) recorded steady declines in reading, math, and U.S. history achievement, student GPAs climbed steadily higher in Public Schools. The average adjusted GPA increased from 3.17 to 3.39 in English; from 3.02 to 3.32 in math; from 3.28 to 3.46 in social studies; and from 3.12 to 3.36 in science. In 2022, more than 89% of high schoolers in Public Schools received an A or a B in math, English, social studies, and science.

There is also grade inflation at the privates. There is grade inflation at Harvard and Yale. I’m sure that your private is no different.

Do you have facts to back up your statement?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you're considering a private school for your kid b'c you think it will improve their chances for admission at a competitive college, think again. Especially in the DMV, where there are some great public school options, it is 100% not worth it to go private just for college admissions.

If you want to do private b'c you think it will be a better experience for your child, that's another issue altogether. That's why we chose private and for that, it's been great: smaller classes, teachers who know the kids, etc.

But kids aren't getting into the super-selective colleges at any higher rate than they do from good publics. They did back in the '90s and before, but those days are over.

So if college admission is your goal, save your money!

The odds seem much worse coming from a top MCPS: https://moco360.media/2023/09/13/where-montgomery-county-high-school-graduates-are-going-to-college/

Looking at this report, about 5.5% of these students enrolled in USNWR top 20 schools. Not sure how that compares with other public school systems, but compared to private high schools in the area, this is a very low percentage of student body matriculating to top 20 schools. At my daughter's school, close to 20% matriculated to top 20 schools last year.