John Francis Middle vs. Stuart Hobson (or maybe Eliot Hine)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, none of the schools mentioned in this thread should be a consideration if you have a high performing kid.

Guess if your kid is average and on grade level, he will be happy to be at the top of the class. Not sure if he will be stretched or challenge though.

That’s the reality of the situation.

This is dumb. SH has had happy genuinely high performing students who go on to do well at Walls and privates. I know multiple top students at our feeder who are now doing well at SH and enjoying their time there.

First of all, what you know is anecdotal. Data doesn’t lie. SH does not have any significant groups of high performing kids. 4% of the kids are above grade level in math. That’s 4 out of 100. 15% in ELA. These numbers are abysmal. So the “multiple” top students at your feeder are the small minority in the numbers above or they have regressed and now are not testing above grade level and are on grade level.

Secondly, what the very small minority of UMC families don’t tell you who send their kids is that they supplement alot.


So

I mean, yes. There are many schools the OP should be ranking above SH and Francis feeders if she really wants a strong academic experience. But, her ask is very specific.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, none of the schools mentioned in this thread should be a consideration if you have a high performing kid.

Guess if your kid is average and on grade level, he will be happy to be at the top of the class. Not sure if he will be stretched or challenge though.

That’s the reality of the situation.

This is dumb. SH has had happy genuinely high performing students who go on to do well at Walls and privates. I know multiple top students at our feeder who are now doing well at SH and enjoying their time there.

First of all, what you know is anecdotal. Data doesn’t lie. SH does not have any significant groups of high performing kids. 4% of the kids are above grade level in math. That’s 4 out of 100. 15% in ELA. These numbers are abysmal. So the “multiple” top students at your feeder are the small minority in the numbers above or they have regressed and now are not testing above grade level and are on grade level.

Secondly, what the very small minority of UMC families don’t tell you who send their kids is that they supplement alot.


So

The math numbers can’t really be read like that, because different kids take different tests in different years. So kids taking geometry in 8th are ahead of grade level even if they get a 4 on PARCC; there can be genuine questions about whether acceleration that results in a 4 is worth it, but it’s definitely still the case that those kids are ahead of grade level.

In any case, anecdotal or not, my kids go to the best testing feeder, so it’s probably not shocking that I know a sizable chunk of high performing SH students. But SH kids have a truly well rounded experience — much more like the vaunted suburban schools of this form extracurriculars wise than most other DC middle schools — so I am fine with a trade off of happy kid excelling in passions with acceleration options and maybe some 4s mixed in with 5s on CAPE. I am not concerned about my kid getting a 4 on CAPE even if a 5 is preferable; they’ll get at least a 4 wherever they go.

Like many other parents, I’d would prefer Latin for the HS feed, but I will send my high performing kid to SH without a second thought if the lottery doesn’t work out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, none of the schools mentioned in this thread should be a consideration if you have a high performing kid.

Guess if your kid is average and on grade level, he will be happy to be at the top of the class. Not sure if he will be stretched or challenge though.

That’s the reality of the situation.

This is dumb. SH has had happy genuinely high performing students who go on to do well at Walls and privates. I know multiple top students at our feeder who are now doing well at SH and enjoying their time there.

First of all, what you know is anecdotal. Data doesn’t lie. SH does not have any significant groups of high performing kids. 4% of the kids are above grade level in math. That’s 4 out of 100. 15% in ELA. These numbers are abysmal. So the “multiple” top students at your feeder are the small minority in the numbers above or they have regressed and now are not testing above grade level and are on grade level.

Secondly, what the very small minority of UMC families don’t tell you who send their kids is that they supplement alot.


So

The math numbers can’t really be read like that, because different kids take different tests in different years. So kids taking geometry in 8th are ahead of grade level even if they get a 4 on PARCC; there can be genuine questions about whether acceleration that results in a 4 is worth it, but it’s definitely still the case that those kids are ahead of grade level.

In any case, anecdotal or not, my kids go to the best testing feeder, so it’s probably not shocking that I know a sizable chunk of high performing SH students. But SH kids have a truly well rounded experience — much more like the vaunted suburban schools of this form extracurriculars wise than most other DC middle schools — so I am fine with a trade off of happy kid excelling in passions with acceleration options and maybe some 4s mixed in with 5s on CAPE. I am not concerned about my kid getting a 4 on CAPE even if a 5 is preferable; they’ll get at least a 4 wherever they go.

Like many other parents, I’d would prefer Latin for the HS feed, but I will send my high performing kid to SH without a second thought if the lottery doesn’t work out.

Sorry but you are delusional. If only 15% of kids are above grade level in ELA, there is not any significant number of kids above grade level in math. Both these numbers tend to go hand in hand with some spread between the 2.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, none of the schools mentioned in this thread should be a consideration if you have a high performing kid.

Guess if your kid is average and on grade level, he will be happy to be at the top of the class. Not sure if he will be stretched or challenge though.

That’s the reality of the situation.

This is dumb. SH has had happy genuinely high performing students who go on to do well at Walls and privates. I know multiple top students at our feeder who are now doing well at SH and enjoying their time there.

First of all, what you know is anecdotal. Data doesn’t lie. SH does not have any significant groups of high performing kids. 4% of the kids are above grade level in math. That’s 4 out of 100. 15% in ELA. These numbers are abysmal. So the “multiple” top students at your feeder are the small minority in the numbers above or they have regressed and now are not testing above grade level and are on grade level.

Secondly, what the very small minority of UMC families don’t tell you who send their kids is that they supplement alot.


So

The math numbers can’t really be read like that, because different kids take different tests in different years. So kids taking geometry in 8th are ahead of grade level even if they get a 4 on PARCC; there can be genuine questions about whether acceleration that results in a 4 is worth it, but it’s definitely still the case that those kids are ahead of grade level.

In any case, anecdotal or not, my kids go to the best testing feeder, so it’s probably not shocking that I know a sizable chunk of high performing SH students. But SH kids have a truly well rounded experience — much more like the vaunted suburban schools of this form extracurriculars wise than most other DC middle schools — so I am fine with a trade off of happy kid excelling in passions with acceleration options and maybe some 4s mixed in with 5s on CAPE. I am not concerned about my kid getting a 4 on CAPE even if a 5 is preferable; they’ll get at least a 4 wherever they go.

Like many other parents, I’d would prefer Latin for the HS feed, but I will send my high performing kid to SH without a second thought if the lottery doesn’t work out.

Sorry but you are delusional. If only 15% of kids are above grade level in ELA, there is not any significant number of kids above grade level in math. Both these numbers tend to go hand in hand with some spread between the 2.

Got it. You have made your point several times over. PARCC/CAPE whatever it is any given year is one test. It is a whole conversation to talk about how much you want to decide your child's school based on one data point. Tons of variables go into how a kid performs on a test, and if your kid gets a 4, they are not 'behind'. And by that metric, a large percent of the schools in question score 'well'. Huge elephant in the room is the gap between subgroups/demographics, which if you go to other schools isn't as apparent and doesn't impact the overall scores as much, because the populations are more homogenous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, none of the schools mentioned in this thread should be a consideration if you have a high performing kid.

Guess if your kid is average and on grade level, he will be happy to be at the top of the class. Not sure if he will be stretched or challenge though.

That’s the reality of the situation.

This is dumb. SH has had happy genuinely high performing students who go on to do well at Walls and privates. I know multiple top students at our feeder who are now doing well at SH and enjoying their time there.

First of all, what you know is anecdotal. Data doesn’t lie. SH does not have any significant groups of high performing kids. 4% of the kids are above grade level in math. That’s 4 out of 100. 15% in ELA. These numbers are abysmal. So the “multiple” top students at your feeder are the small minority in the numbers above or they have regressed and now are not testing above grade level and are on grade level.

Secondly, what the very small minority of UMC families don’t tell you who send their kids is that they supplement alot.


So

The math numbers can’t really be read like that, because different kids take different tests in different years. So kids taking geometry in 8th are ahead of grade level even if they get a 4 on PARCC; there can be genuine questions about whether acceleration that results in a 4 is worth it, but it’s definitely still the case that those kids are ahead of grade level.

In any case, anecdotal or not, my kids go to the best testing feeder, so it’s probably not shocking that I know a sizable chunk of high performing SH students. But SH kids have a truly well rounded experience — much more like the vaunted suburban schools of this form extracurriculars wise than most other DC middle schools — so I am fine with a trade off of happy kid excelling in passions with acceleration options and maybe some 4s mixed in with 5s on CAPE. I am not concerned about my kid getting a 4 on CAPE even if a 5 is preferable; they’ll get at least a 4 wherever they go.

Like many other parents, I’d would prefer Latin for the HS feed, but I will send my high performing kid to SH without a second thought if the lottery doesn’t work out.

Sorry but you are delusional. If only 15% of kids are above grade level in ELA, there is not any significant number of kids above grade level in math. Both these numbers tend to go hand in hand with some spread between the 2.

Got it. You have made your point several times over. PARCC/CAPE whatever it is any given year is one test. It is a whole conversation to talk about how much you want to decide your child's school based on one data point. Tons of variables go into how a kid performs on a test, and if your kid gets a 4, they are not 'behind'. And by that metric, a large percent of the schools in question score 'well'. Huge elephant in the room is the gap between subgroups/demographics, which if you go to other schools isn't as apparent and doesn't impact the overall scores as much, because the populations are more homogenous.

NP. Those “tons of variables” exist at other schools, which are also not “homogenous” and those schools perform a lot better. The test scores at SH are not good. That’s just a fact.

I would still pick it over EH though, which has worse test scores and more behavioral problems.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, none of the schools mentioned in this thread should be a consideration if you have a high performing kid.

Guess if your kid is average and on grade level, he will be happy to be at the top of the class. Not sure if he will be stretched or challenge though.

That’s the reality of the situation.

This is dumb. SH has had happy genuinely high performing students who go on to do well at Walls and privates. I know multiple top students at our feeder who are now doing well at SH and enjoying their time there.

First of all, what you know is anecdotal. Data doesn’t lie. SH does not have any significant groups of high performing kids. 4% of the kids are above grade level in math. That’s 4 out of 100. 15% in ELA. These numbers are abysmal. So the “multiple” top students at your feeder are the small minority in the numbers above or they have regressed and now are not testing above grade level and are on grade level.

Secondly, what the very small minority of UMC families don’t tell you who send their kids is that they supplement alot.


So

The math numbers can’t really be read like that, because different kids take different tests in different years. So kids taking geometry in 8th are ahead of grade level even if they get a 4 on PARCC; there can be genuine questions about whether acceleration that results in a 4 is worth it, but it’s definitely still the case that those kids are ahead of grade level.

In any case, anecdotal or not, my kids go to the best testing feeder, so it’s probably not shocking that I know a sizable chunk of high performing SH students. But SH kids have a truly well rounded experience — much more like the vaunted suburban schools of this form extracurriculars wise than most other DC middle schools — so I am fine with a trade off of happy kid excelling in passions with acceleration options and maybe some 4s mixed in with 5s on CAPE. I am not concerned about my kid getting a 4 on CAPE even if a 5 is preferable; they’ll get at least a 4 wherever they go.

Like many other parents, I’d would prefer Latin for the HS feed, but I will send my high performing kid to SH without a second thought if the lottery doesn’t work out.

Sorry but you are delusional. If only 15% of kids are above grade level in ELA, there is not any significant number of kids above grade level in math. Both these numbers tend to go hand in hand with some spread between the 2.

Got it. You have made your point several times over. PARCC/CAPE whatever it is any given year is one test. It is a whole conversation to talk about how much you want to decide your child's school based on one data point. Tons of variables go into how a kid performs on a test, and if your kid gets a 4, they are not 'behind'. And by that metric, a large percent of the schools in question score 'well'. Huge elephant in the room is the gap between subgroups/demographics, which if you go to other schools isn't as apparent and doesn't impact the overall scores as much, because the populations are more homogenous.

NP. Those “tons of variables” exist at other schools, which are also not “homogenous” and those schools perform a lot better. The test scores at SH are not good. That’s just a fact.

I would still pick it over EH though, which has worse test scores and more behavioral problems.

What schools perform a lot better? I would think maybe Deal, Hardy, O-A, BASIS, Latin, DCI? Where else are you thinking of?

The fact is that these schools require a lot of lottery luck, and/or require having had lottery luck much earlier in a child's academic career, and/or are very difficult to access from many parts of the city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, none of the schools mentioned in this thread should be a consideration if you have a high performing kid.

Guess if your kid is average and on grade level, he will be happy to be at the top of the class. Not sure if he will be stretched or challenge though.

That’s the reality of the situation.

This is dumb. SH has had happy genuinely high performing students who go on to do well at Walls and privates. I know multiple top students at our feeder who are now doing well at SH and enjoying their time there.

First of all, what you know is anecdotal. Data doesn’t lie. SH does not have any significant groups of high performing kids. 4% of the kids are above grade level in math. That’s 4 out of 100. 15% in ELA. These numbers are abysmal. So the “multiple” top students at your feeder are the small minority in the numbers above or they have regressed and now are not testing above grade level and are on grade level.

Secondly, what the very small minority of UMC families don’t tell you who send their kids is that they supplement alot.


So

The math numbers can’t really be read like that, because different kids take different tests in different years. So kids taking geometry in 8th are ahead of grade level even if they get a 4 on PARCC; there can be genuine questions about whether acceleration that results in a 4 is worth it, but it’s definitely still the case that those kids are ahead of grade level.

In any case, anecdotal or not, my kids go to the best testing feeder, so it’s probably not shocking that I know a sizable chunk of high performing SH students. But SH kids have a truly well rounded experience — much more like the vaunted suburban schools of this form extracurriculars wise than most other DC middle schools — so I am fine with a trade off of happy kid excelling in passions with acceleration options and maybe some 4s mixed in with 5s on CAPE. I am not concerned about my kid getting a 4 on CAPE even if a 5 is preferable; they’ll get at least a 4 wherever they go.

Like many other parents, I’d would prefer Latin for the HS feed, but I will send my high performing kid to SH without a second thought if the lottery doesn’t work out.

Sorry but you are delusional. If only 15% of kids are above grade level in ELA, there is not any significant number of kids above grade level in math. Both these numbers tend to go hand in hand with some spread between the 2.

Got it. You have made your point several times over. PARCC/CAPE whatever it is any given year is one test. It is a whole conversation to talk about how much you want to decide your child's school based on one data point. Tons of variables go into how a kid performs on a test, and if your kid gets a 4, they are not 'behind'. And by that metric, a large percent of the schools in question score 'well'. Huge elephant in the room is the gap between subgroups/demographics, which if you go to other schools isn't as apparent and doesn't impact the overall scores as much, because the populations are more homogenous.

NP. Those “tons of variables” exist at other schools, which are also not “homogenous” and those schools perform a lot better. The test scores at SH are not good. That’s just a fact.

I would still pick it over EH though, which has worse test scores and more behavioral problems.

What schools perform a lot better? I would think maybe Deal, Hardy, O-A, BASIS, Latin, DCI? Where else are you thinking of?

The fact is that these schools require a lot of lottery luck, and/or require having had lottery luck much earlier in a child's academic career, and/or are very difficult to access from many parts of the city.

NP (who has been watching this for a few days). You just moved the goal post. The point was made about test scores at SH and how mathematically there simply can't be a large cohort of high performing kids. Somebody chimed in to argue those test results aren't accurate for a variety of reasons that are not specific to SH. To which a reply was made pointing out at the same variables exist at other schools that have better test results. To which you replied a total non sequitur about lottery luck.

Certainly there's a discussion to be had about lottery luck. But that's a completely different concept than the one being discussed about whether or why test scores indicate a lack of high performing kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, none of the schools mentioned in this thread should be a consideration if you have a high performing kid.

Guess if your kid is average and on grade level, he will be happy to be at the top of the class. Not sure if he will be stretched or challenge though.

That’s the reality of the situation.

This is dumb. SH has had happy genuinely high performing students who go on to do well at Walls and privates. I know multiple top students at our feeder who are now doing well at SH and enjoying their time there.

First of all, what you know is anecdotal. Data doesn’t lie. SH does not have any significant groups of high performing kids. 4% of the kids are above grade level in math. That’s 4 out of 100. 15% in ELA. These numbers are abysmal. So the “multiple” top students at your feeder are the small minority in the numbers above or they have regressed and now are not testing above grade level and are on grade level.

Secondly, what the very small minority of UMC families don’t tell you who send their kids is that they supplement alot.


So

The math numbers can’t really be read like that, because different kids take different tests in different years. So kids taking geometry in 8th are ahead of grade level even if they get a 4 on PARCC; there can be genuine questions about whether acceleration that results in a 4 is worth it, but it’s definitely still the case that those kids are ahead of grade level.

In any case, anecdotal or not, my kids go to the best testing feeder, so it’s probably not shocking that I know a sizable chunk of high performing SH students. But SH kids have a truly well rounded experience — much more like the vaunted suburban schools of this form extracurriculars wise than most other DC middle schools — so I am fine with a trade off of happy kid excelling in passions with acceleration options and maybe some 4s mixed in with 5s on CAPE. I am not concerned about my kid getting a 4 on CAPE even if a 5 is preferable; they’ll get at least a 4 wherever they go.

Like many other parents, I’d would prefer Latin for the HS feed, but I will send my high performing kid to SH without a second thought if the lottery doesn’t work out.

Sorry but you are delusional. If only 15% of kids are above grade level in ELA, there is not any significant number of kids above grade level in math. Both these numbers tend to go hand in hand with some spread between the 2.

Got it. You have made your point several times over. PARCC/CAPE whatever it is any given year is one test. It is a whole conversation to talk about how much you want to decide your child's school based on one data point. Tons of variables go into how a kid performs on a test, and if your kid gets a 4, they are not 'behind'. And by that metric, a large percent of the schools in question score 'well'. Huge elephant in the room is the gap between subgroups/demographics, which if you go to other schools isn't as apparent and doesn't impact the overall scores as much, because the populations are more homogenous.

NP. Those “tons of variables” exist at other schools, which are also not “homogenous” and those schools perform a lot better. The test scores at SH are not good. That’s just a fact.

I would still pick it over EH though, which has worse test scores and more behavioral problems.

What schools perform a lot better? I would think maybe Deal, Hardy, O-A, BASIS, Latin, DCI? Where else are you thinking of?

The fact is that these schools require a lot of lottery luck, and/or require having had lottery luck much earlier in a child's academic career, and/or are very difficult to access from many parts of the city.

NP (who has been watching this for a few days). You just moved the goal post. The point was made about test scores at SH and how mathematically there simply can't be a large cohort of high performing kids. Somebody chimed in to argue those test results aren't accurate for a variety of reasons that are not specific to SH. To which a reply was made pointing out at the same variables exist at other schools that have better test results. To which you replied a total non sequitur about lottery luck.

Certainly there's a discussion to be had about lottery luck. But that's a completely different concept than the one being discussed about whether or why test scores indicate a lack of high performing kids.

I'm asking what schools they think have better test results. There aren't many.

In fact, Stuart-Hobson does quite well comparatively. Last year 67 (46%) of 8th graders met or exceeded on ELA CAPE. There were only 4 schools with more students meeting or exceeding on 8th grade ELA CAPE than Stuart-Hobson: Deal, Hardy, DCI, Latin.

30 (21%) of 8th graders met or exceeded on Algebra I CAPE. Data suppression makes it harder to say how that compared to other schools, but it looks like probably Deal, Hardy, Latin, MacFarland, and Oyster-Adams with more students meeting or exceeding on Algebra I and Geometry CAPE.

Of course you can still say that isn't enough of a high-performing cohort, but it's weird to argue that there are lots of schools that perform much better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, none of the schools mentioned in this thread should be a consideration if you have a high performing kid.

Guess if your kid is average and on grade level, he will be happy to be at the top of the class. Not sure if he will be stretched or challenge though.

That’s the reality of the situation.

This is dumb. SH has had happy genuinely high performing students who go on to do well at Walls and privates. I know multiple top students at our feeder who are now doing well at SH and enjoying their time there.

First of all, what you know is anecdotal. Data doesn’t lie. SH does not have any significant groups of high performing kids. 4% of the kids are above grade level in math. That’s 4 out of 100. 15% in ELA. These numbers are abysmal. So the “multiple” top students at your feeder are the small minority in the numbers above or they have regressed and now are not testing above grade level and are on grade level.

Secondly, what the very small minority of UMC families don’t tell you who send their kids is that they supplement alot.

So

The math numbers can’t really be read like that, because different kids take different tests in different years. So kids taking geometry in 8th are ahead of grade level even if they get a 4 on PARCC; there can be genuine questions about whether acceleration that results in a 4 is worth it, but it’s definitely still the case that those kids are ahead of grade level.

In any case, anecdotal or not, my kids go to the best testing feeder, so it’s probably not shocking that I know a sizable chunk of high performing SH students. But SH kids have a truly well rounded experience — much more like the vaunted suburban schools of this form extracurriculars wise than most other DC middle schools — so I am fine with a trade off of happy kid excelling in passions with acceleration options and maybe some 4s mixed in with 5s on CAPE. I am not concerned about my kid getting a 4 on CAPE even if a 5 is preferable; they’ll get at least a 4 wherever they go.

Like many other parents, I’d would prefer Latin for the HS feed, but I will send my high performing kid to SH without a second thought if the lottery doesn’t work out.

Sorry but you are delusional. If only 15% of kids are above grade level in ELA, there is not any significant number of kids above grade level in math. Both these numbers tend to go hand in hand with some spread between the 2.

I didn't claim there was a "significant" number, I said that 4% is not accurate. It isn't. There is an entire class of math accelerated students. Per the principal's speech at the open house, over 80% of that group got a 4 or 5 on CAPE. That is at least 16-18 students who are ahead of grade level by definition AND there are a handful of kids who are accelerated multiple years. You honestly do not know what you're talking about. Similarly, SH has students accelerated in ELA; in that case, they're just placed a grade level ahead. Those kids take the CAPE for the year ahead of where they are. So the 15% number is also an undercount. I am NOT claiming that other schools don't have similar situations; I am only claiming that you're reading the data wrong/without sufficient context. SH isn't a huge school and there are basically a full class of kids in ELA and Math performing ahead of grade level. That's way more kids that at my ES feeder (not percentage wise, but in terms of real numbers) and my feeder is generally well-regarded even in terms of test scores.

I am not suggesting that you should pick SH over Latin or BASIS or Deal or Hardy. I am responding to the claim at the top of this chain that "Honestly, none of the schools mentioned in this thread should be a consideration if you have a high performing kid." I do not believe that is true. The fact is that with SH having 6-12 kids per year to Walls in recent years, if you really believe there are like 4 kids in the whole school ahead of grade level in math... well then it's a great pick! Kids who aren't even ahead of grade level will be getting into Walls left and right!

[Anonymous]

So responding to the original query. I don't have much experience with Francis but have a lot w/SH. My kid is in 8th grade. Here are a few things to know.
1. SH does not offer geometry at this time. From what I recall, selective HS said that a lot of kids who were fast tracked to geometry were missing foundational skills and weren't ready for more advanced math. So SH pulled back. There are about 60 8th graders taking Algebra this year.
2. The drama department is EXCELLENT. There will be two spring musicals. One for 6th graders and "The Wiz" for "upperclassmen".
3. NHD continues to be an exceptional program. I assisted students the last two years with their projects and was astounded at the level of thinking and work involved.
4. The media/library teacher is exceptional.
5. Kids who can ignore distraction and stay focused do well. There are distractions.
6. Testing is really pushed and can create a lot of pressure for kids.
7. Admin is often reactive and not proactive.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head for now.

[Anonymous]

Where does anyone see that Walls favors those students who are ahead of their grade level in Math vs those who are on-grade, and everyone is earning their As (I emphasize earning)!

If an 8th grader is acing their algebra1 but for whatever reason did not have the opportunity to get into geometry, this should not and does not mean that they are behind.. and they would also get a chance for Walls! Esp if they have well rounded achievements across board to ace their recommendation letters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where does anyone see that Walls favors those students who are ahead of their grade level in Math vs those who are on-grade, and everyone is earning their As (I emphasize earning)!

If an 8th grader is acing their algebra1 but for whatever reason did not have the opportunity to get into geometry, this should not and does not mean that they are behind.. and they would also get a chance for Walls! Esp if they have well rounded achievements across board to ace their recommendation letters.

Back in the day, the admissions test for Walls had Geometry questions on it. I remember an old thread where people talked about their middle school offering basic Geometry tutoring for kids planning on taking the Walls test.

[Anonymous]

Ah, I see- Obviously I am new to all this. But then I am glad that Walls removed the testing or skewing towards those in accelerated math since it would be not be just from an equity perspective.
And I do think that Walls and all public schools ultimately aim to meet our Healthy School Act based on the Whole Child model. It takes time to get there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where does anyone see that Walls favors those students who are ahead of their grade level in Math vs those who are on-grade, and everyone is earning their As (I emphasize earning)!

If an 8th grader is acing their algebra1 but for whatever reason did not have the opportunity to get into geometry, this should not and does not mean that they are behind.. and they would also get a chance for Walls! Esp if they have well rounded achievements across board to ace their recommendation letters.

Back in the day, the admissions test for Walls had Geometry questions on it. I remember an old thread where people talked about their middle school offering basic Geometry tutoring for kids planning on taking the Walls test.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So responding to the original query. I don't have much experience with Francis but have a lot w/SH. My kid is in 8th grade. Here are a few things to know.
1. SH does not offer geometry at this time. From what I recall, selective HS said that a lot of kids who were fast tracked to geometry were missing foundational skills and weren't ready for more advanced math. So SH pulled back. There are about 60 8th graders taking Algebra this year.
2. The drama department is EXCELLENT. There will be two spring musicals. One for 6th graders and "The Wiz" for "upperclassmen".
3. NHD continues to be an exceptional program. I assisted students the last two years with their projects and was astounded at the level of thinking and work involved.
4. The media/library teacher is exceptional.
5. Kids who can ignore distraction and stay focused do well. There are distractions.
6. Testing is really pushed and can create a lot of pressure for kids.
7. Admin is often reactive and not proactive.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head for now.

That is interesting re #1. I have wondered for schools that skip ahead a little (like DCPS) or a lot (like Basis) what long term impacts are/what they are missing. And it may depend on the kid, which is I guess another reason to make sure that when schools do offer Algebra in 7th they do their best to make sure the kids who take it are prepared and can be successful. I think a lot of parents want their kids in the most advanced option but its not always best for each kid
Right now EH has the 8th graders who are in geometry go take Eastern to take the class together, not sure if that is how it will stay

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So responding to the original query. I don't have much experience with Francis but have a lot w/SH. My kid is in 8th grade. Here are a few things to know.
1. SH does not offer geometry at this time. From what I recall, selective HS said that a lot of kids who were fast tracked to geometry were missing foundational skills and weren't ready for more advanced math. So SH pulled back. There are about 60 8th graders taking Algebra this year.
2. The drama department is EXCELLENT. There will be two spring musicals. One for 6th graders and "The Wiz" for "upperclassmen".
3. NHD continues to be an exceptional program. I assisted students the last two years with their projects and was astounded at the level of thinking and work involved.
4. The media/library teacher is exceptional.
5. Kids who can ignore distraction and stay focused do well. There are distractions.
6. Testing is really pushed and can create a lot of pressure for kids.
7. Admin is often reactive and not proactive.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head for now.

That is interesting re #1. I have wondered for schools that skip ahead a little (like DCPS) or a lot (like Basis) what long term impacts are/what they are missing. And it may depend on the kid, which is I guess another reason to make sure that when schools do offer Algebra in 7th they do their best to make sure the kids who take it are prepared and can be successful. I think a lot of parents want their kids in the most advanced option but its not always best for each kid
Right now EH has the 8th graders who are in geometry go take Eastern to take the class together, not sure if that is how it will stay

1 is not completely accurate. Individualized solutions have been worked out for a handful of students. (If you're at the school, you can just look at the underclassmen in Algebra now to see I must be correct about this.) It is true that Geometry is not programmatically available.