Highly UNscientific proof that the common lottery worked

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes let's all work on our neighborhood schools. And I am being serious about that too. With an added comment that I wish people would stop pitting neighborhood school against close-to-neighborhood school. Let each community do their work and applaud them for it.

The trouble is that your neighborhood school is not really "yours".

You and many others in your neighborhood will contribute to the success of your school. You'll give money to the PTA, chaperon field trips, lend a hand on beautification day, serve as a mystery reader, etc. Even before your DC gets to "your" school, you'll contribute by ensuring that DC is prepared to start K.

Years from now, however, when you school is successful, others will take your school away from you in the name of equity and social justice.

That's right, you do not own a public school. If you want that, you should homeschool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The lottery is an advertisement for improving neighborhood by right schools.

Hmm, not really. I'm not going to my neighborhood school; I got into my #2 choice HRCS. I'm actually much happier than I would be if I got into my neighborhood school. I think your perspective depends on where you live.

But if they improved your school, you might not feel compelled to chase after a, as you describe HRCS. And please remember the folks who did not get into any HRCSs. Can anyone really be against improving neighborhood-by-right schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes let's all work on our neighborhood schools. And I am being serious about that too. With an added comment that I wish people would stop pitting neighborhood school against close-to-neighborhood school. Let each community do their work and applaud them for it.

The trouble is that your neighborhood school is not really "yours".

You and many others in your neighborhood will contribute to the success of your school. You'll give money to the PTA, chaperon field trips, lend a hand on beautification day, serve as a mystery reader, etc. Even before your DC gets to "your" school, you'll contribute by ensuring that DC is prepared to start K.

Years from now, however, when you school is successful, others will take your school away from you in the name of equity and social justice.

That's right, you do not own a public school. If you want that, you should homeschool.

Of course, PP. And the less of a sense of ownership people feel toward their neighborhood school, the less they will invest in it. It's an educational tragedy of the commons.

[Anonymous]

And "diversity" -- watch for that word -- it's something most everyone thinks is good - like "choice" but I think DME will soon be using it work toward weakening neighborhood schools.

More students going to their neighborhood schools, instead of showing up OOB in yours.

As someone who clearly doesn't appreciate diversity, is that not something you want?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I understand that logically, a randomized process is always going to be the most fair option, and that ranking schools cuts down on the shuffle and general chaos. But I was one of the people entirely shut out, so if asked this question I am always going to respond that it was a total failure. That's the difference between cold hard logic and reason and my personal situation. This process has turned me into someone who is anti-lottery and a big supporter of good quality neighborhood schools.

Someone (possibly you) would have been entirely shut out in past years too. The difference is that you know it now, not next October. That was a hard six months for almost everyone, and it served nobody any good.

OK, so let's say the system is better than it was, but no system that is set up for some parents to be shut out of a decent public education for their children is a good system.

A system that works is one in which every kid gets a good education because they live in the city - not because they lucked out in a lottery in which there are winners and losers.

The lottery process will not by itself fix the schools. Duh. There needs to be actual work on the schools to make them attractive. It seems idiotic to me that someone would think otherwise, but I see it a lot around here.

Actually the way a good system works is you choose where you live based on the schools.

[Anonymous]

I invest in my neighborhood and have for years before I had kids / but I would never say I owned it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I invest in my neighborhood and have for years before I had kids / but I would never say I owned it.

You invest in your neighborhood because you benefit from those investments in some way. If you plant a tree in a public tree box, you won't own the tree, but you'll benefit from its beauty, the air it produces, the shade it provides, etc.

You might invest in your neighborhood school for similar reasons. For example, you might volunteer a few hours on beautification day because you make use of the playground. However, most people will not invest large amounts of time or money in their neighborhood school unless their kids are attending, have attended, or will attend the school.

The issue is not ownership. It is more like guaranteed access.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Curious what are hidden gems in your eyes?

Hidden gems are the schools that are not talked about much on DCUM, but are perfectly good, if not sometimes great, for early childhood placements. Unless immersion, montessori, reggio, or some other highly specialized program is an absolute must for you then I would offer that the PS3 and PK4 classroom at DCPS schools are very similar. For instance I toured West,Barnard, Eaton, Shepherd, Hearst, and Marie Reed (not saying these are hidden gems). Honestly the primary difference that I saw was in the classroom demographics. All in my opinion were as good if not better than modestly priced private preschool alternatives. We are lucky to live in a city that affords us the option of a free PS3/PK4 education for our children.

I personally have found that there are many parents who only consider those schools that posters on DCUM hold in high regard. I know for a fact that Marie Reed, Appletree (multiple campuses),J.O. Wilson, and Shining Stars go deep into their waitlist. I am sure there are others that do as well. My point is that there are a lot of PS3/PK4 seats; and some that you might not have originally considered are actually worthy of your attention. I landed at one such school last year and hit the lottery "jackpot" this year. Making a decision for the next school year was not easy as I realized that my hidden gem was actually a very good school, as good as the HRCS seat that I won. Do not short change yourself by disregarding some options that might still be on a table. If there are more that a few other parents in the same predicament as you it is likely that many of you will congregate around the same schools. This could be a game changer for both you and the school at which you land.

Best of luck to you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I understand that logically, a randomized process is always going to be the most fair option, and that ranking schools cuts down on the shuffle and general chaos. But I was one of the people entirely shut out, so if asked this question I am always going to respond that it was a total failure. That's the difference between cold hard logic and reason and my personal situation. This process has turned me into someone who is anti-lottery and a big supporter of good quality neighborhood schools.

Someone (possibly you) would have been entirely shut out in past years too. The difference is that you know it now, not next October. That was a hard six months for almost everyone, and it served nobody any good.

OK, so let's say the system is better than it was, but no system that is set up for some parents to be shut out of a decent public education for their children is a good system.

A system that works is one in which every kid gets a good education because they live in the city - not because they lucked out in a lottery in which there are winners and losers.

Yeah, but see... not to be insensitive to the hurt of being totally shut out, but the families the most upset and vocal now (at least on DCUM) about the lack of good neighborhood schools would not be on here posting about it if they'd gotten into a school they loved. The point being: communities have to care about and be active in their neighborhood schools REGARDLESS of whether their kids go there if those schools are ever going to improve. And the fastest improvements come when more people go to them. But people don't really care or get up in arms about the poor quality schools until they're shut out, and then they find a Plan B after being shut out and - unless Plan B is actually a neighborhood school - they go on with their lives at their Plan B school and either get used to it, lottery again next year, or move, and nothing about their actual neighborhood school changes due to their outrage. This is a problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

And "diversity" -- watch for that word -- it's something most everyone thinks is good - like "choice" but I think DME will soon be using it work toward weakening neighborhood schools.

More students going to their neighborhood schools, instead of showing up OOB in yours.

As someone who clearly doesn't appreciate diversity, is that not something you want?

I do appreciate diversity -- I don't appreciate any concept being used as a bludgeon to deceive parents into following an agenda that does not first benefit their children -- like "choice" for instance, which as we realize 10 years later, is really "chance" and luck - for some and losing for others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Curious what are hidden gems in your eyes?

Hidden gems are the schools that are not talked about much on DCUM, but are perfectly good, if not sometimes great, for early childhood placements. Unless immersion, montessori, reggio, or some other highly specialized program is an absolute must for you then I would offer that the PS3 and PK4 classroom at DCPS schools are very similar. For instance I toured West,Barnard, Eaton, Shepherd, Hearst, and Marie Reed (not saying these are hidden gems). Honestly the primary difference that I saw was in the classroom demographics. All in my opinion were as good if not better than modestly priced private preschool alternatives. We are lucky to live in a city that affords us the option of a free PS3/PK4 education for our children.

I personally have found that there are many parents who only consider those schools that posters on DCUM hold in high regard. I know for a fact that Marie Reed, Appletree (multiple campuses),J.O. Wilson, and Shining Stars go deep into their waitlist. I am sure there are others that do as well. My point is that there are a lot of PS3/PK4 seats; and some that you might not have originally considered are actually worthy of your attention. I landed at one such school last year and hit the lottery "jackpot" this year. Making a decision for the next school year was not easy as I realized that my hidden gem was actually a very good school, as good as the HRCS seat that I won. Do not short change yourself by disregarding some options that might still be on a table. If there are more that a few other parents in the same predicament as you it is likely that many of you will congregate around the same schools. This could be a game changer for both you and the school at which you land.

Best of luck to you.

Imagime if your neighborhood school was a hidden gem and you didn't need "luck" to get into it.