Which MoCo cluster for gifted DD and DS?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:op, you've been given some good advice here about how the system works in MCPS. I have one child in private and one in MCPS. If you were set on a private, I worry that you would not be happy with MCPS -- and their are no guarantees anyway. I'd probably opt for Blair/Eastern or Poolesville -- two radically different areas but with great magnet programs that you are more likely to get in if you live close by. But in the meantime, your youngest would be bored for years as the HGCs don't start till 4th grade. I'd suggest you either suck it up for a year with public for your youngest child & then reapply, OR apply them both to K-8 schools, which seem to have more openings.

There is zero advantage to living in the Blair cluster for purposes of getting into magnets at Blair and Eastern. Zero.

There is some advantage to living in the TPMS cluster for purposes of getting into the TPMS magnet.

pp here - I know DC at Blair taking magnet classes without being formally in the magnet. Plus there are robotics clubs and others favored by the magnet kids which are open to all students. So yes, I consider that an advantage.

The examples you cite have nothing to do with what you wrote above: "...with great magnet programs that you are more likely to get in if you live close by."

Yes, non-magnet students may take magnet classes if they qualify. And there are robotics clubs and others popular with the magnet kids, and open to all.

That does not mean "you are more likely to get in if you live close by." In fact, accessibility of this nature has zero to do with where you live.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:op, you've been given some good advice here about how the system works in MCPS. I have one child in private and one in MCPS. If you were set on a private, I worry that you would not be happy with MCPS -- and their are no guarantees anyway. I'd probably opt for Blair/Eastern or Poolesville -- two radically different areas but with great magnet programs that you are more likely to get in if you live close by. But in the meantime, your youngest would be bored for years as the HGCs don't start till 4th grade. I'd suggest you either suck it up for a year with public for your youngest child & then reapply, OR apply them both to K-8 schools, which seem to have more openings.

There is zero advantage to living in the Blair cluster for purposes of getting into magnets at Blair and Eastern. Zero.

There is some advantage to living in the TPMS cluster for purposes of getting into the TPMS magnet.

pp here - I know DC at Blair taking magnet classes without being formally in the magnet. Plus there are robotics clubs and others favored by the magnet kids which are open to all students. So yes, I consider that an advantage.

Blair magnet classes have been watered down to barely the level of subject matter at 'W' schools. I know a DC who left the Blair magnet because of the lousy offerings and returned to 'W' school. If you really want your children to be challenged look for the 'W' schools.

You are hilarious!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some HGCs are harder to get into then others so you could research that.

LOLA

How would one research this, and why do you believe this is true?

Some HGCs have much higher accepted median scores than other HGCs.

Does that make them harder to get into?

What else can it mean?

It means the median scores are higher.

That's all.

At other schools, entrance may be just as competitive, with the median scores lower. Each cluster has its own applicants pool. Higher median scores means the applicant pool scores skew higher, but that is all it means. We are not talking about a nationwide applicant pool and Harvard vs. U. Maryland - we are talking about local applicant pools.

It's the median scores of accepted students, not the applicant pool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some HGCs are harder to get into then others so you could research that.

LOLA

How would one research this, and why do you believe this is true?

I believe it to be true because in past years the median scores of accepted students have been higher for certain HGCs than others. The median scores of accepted students have been posted on this forum.

You can research it by looking at past posts that list the scores.

[Anonymous]

The only way to compare would be the bottom cutoff number and MCPS doesn't release those numbers. The bottom cutoff being the lowest score of an accepted child. Also, they look at other criteria too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some HGCs are harder to get into then others so you could research that.

LOLA

How would one research this, and why do you believe this is true?

Some HGCs have much higher accepted median scores than other HGCs.

Does that make them harder to get into?

What else can it mean?

It means the median scores are higher.

That's all.

At other schools, entrance may be just as competitive, with the median scores lower. Each cluster has its own applicants pool. Higher median scores means the applicant pool scores skew higher, but that is all it means. We are not talking about a nationwide applicant pool and Harvard vs. U. Maryland - we are talking about local applicant pools.

It's the median scores of accepted students, not the applicant pool.

Yes.

That doesn't make the Center in question harder to get into.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:op, you've been given some good advice here about how the system works in MCPS. I have one child in private and one in MCPS. If you were set on a private, I worry that you would not be happy with MCPS -- and their are no guarantees anyway. I'd probably opt for Blair/Eastern or Poolesville -- two radically different areas but with great magnet programs that you are more likely to get in if you live close by. But in the meantime, your youngest would be bored for years as the HGCs don't start till 4th grade. I'd suggest you either suck it up for a year with public for your youngest child & then reapply, OR apply them both to K-8 schools, which seem to have more openings.

How can you assume that her child would be "bored for years" without knowing the child's background? Who knows how gifted and talented is tested in other areas. Unless you're familiar with systems outside of MCPS (and I doubt you are), you shouldn't make assumptions.

Nor should you assume that OP's children will get into the MS and HS magnets. They are VERY selective, and only the top tier gets in.

Furthermore, I highly doubt OP's kids are any smarter than half the kids in MCPS.

Everyone's kid is gifted. . .

This is 18:41. I took her at her word; that her kids tested as gifted. If she took private school entrance exams, as they would have, they include IQ and other tests vs. the local population of private school students. And THOSE tests are eye opening. My child who was "gifted" in MCPS aka advanced English, one grade level up... and in top of boys in his grade in a "W" school was found to be ONLY in the 30th% in English as compared to private school peers. SO, if after taking the private school exams she says her kids are "gifted," I believe her. And yes, for gifted kids in a MCPS there is very little challenge for years...

My kid took the private school entrance exams. He scored in the 90s (percentile) relative to the private school cohort. He's smart, but not what I would consider gifted. He went to a W school and was plenty challenged.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some HGCs are harder to get into then others so you could research that.

LOLA

How would one research this, and why do you believe this is true?

I believe it to be true because in past years the median scores of accepted students have been higher for certain HGCs than others. The median scores of accepted students have been posted on this forum.

You can research it by looking at past posts that list the scores.

Median scores of accepted students don't have anything to do with how hard it is to get into the HGC. To determine how hard it is to get into the HGC, you divide the number of students who were accepted by the number of students who applied.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some HGCs are harder to get into then others so you could research that.

LOLA

How would one research this, and why do you believe this is true?

Some HGCs have much higher accepted median scores than other HGCs.

Does that make them harder to get into?

What else can it mean?

It means the median scores are higher.

That's all.

At other schools, entrance may be just as competitive, with the median scores lower. Each cluster has its own applicants pool. Higher median scores means the applicant pool scores skew higher, but that is all it means. We are not talking about a nationwide applicant pool and Harvard vs. U. Maryland - we are talking about local applicant pools.

It's the median scores of accepted students, not the applicant pool.

Yes.

That doesn't make the Center in question harder to get into.

If the center takes the top 3% of applicants the competition is essentially the same. The peer group may be better due to SES factors but the HGC is still taking the top 3%. So a kid might be able to get in with a lower score from an outlying area but what's to say your kid wouldn't have a proportionally lower score if he had grown up in the same area/es.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some HGCs are harder to get into then others so you could research that.

LOLA

How would one research this, and why do you believe this is true?

I believe it to be true because in past years the median scores of accepted students have been higher for certain HGCs than others. The median scores of accepted students have been posted on this forum.

You can research it by looking at past posts that list the scores.

Median scores of accepted students don't have anything to do with how hard it is to get into the HGC. To determine how hard it is to get into the HGC, you divide the number of students who were accepted by the number of students who applied.

I see two issues with your argument. First, if one HGC cluster has a larger number of applicants, assuming same average quality of applicants other centers, chances are the median accepted score will be higher. Second, if for some reason, the lower accepted rate school has lower median accepted scores then it is still not harder for the high quality student to get into this HGC because this particular acceptance rate and median score combination revealed that while the applicants are abundant but the quality of competition is not as high.

Using acceptance rates only as a measure of how hard it is to get into a center is misguided.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some HGCs are harder to get into then others so you could research that.

LOLA

How would one research this, and why do you believe this is true?

Some HGCs have much higher accepted median scores than other HGCs.

Does that make them harder to get into?

What else can it mean?

It means the median scores are higher.

That's all.

At other schools, entrance may be just as competitive, with the median scores lower. Each cluster has its own applicants pool. Higher median scores means the applicant pool scores skew higher, but that is all it means. We are not talking about a nationwide applicant pool and Harvard vs. U. Maryland - we are talking about local applicant pools.

It's the median scores of accepted students, not the applicant pool.

Yes.

That doesn't make the Center in question harder to get into.

If the center takes the top 3% of applicants the competition is essentially the same. The peer group may be better due to SES factors but the HGC is still taking the top 3%. So a kid might be able to get in with a lower score from an outlying area but what's to say your kid wouldn't have a proportionally lower score if he had grown up in the same area/es.

Well, is it 3% for every center though? I thought the spots for each center is similar in number.

[Anonymous]

Ia HGC admissions based only (or primarily) on the test?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I see two issues with your argument. First, if one HGC cluster has a larger number of applicants, assuming same average quality of applicants other centers, chances are the median accepted score will be higher. Second, if for some reason, the lower accepted rate school has lower median accepted scores then it is still not harder for the high quality student to get into this HGC because this particular acceptance rate and median score combination revealed that while the applicants are abundant but the quality of competition is not as high.

Using acceptance rates only as a measure of how hard it is to get into a center is misguided.

Student A's scores are not relevant to admission to HGC B, since Student A did not apply to HGC B, and therefore there is no way to know whether or not Student A would have been admitted to HGC B.

[Anonymous]

So why are the test scores higher at some of the HGCs?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So why are the test scores higher at some of the HGCs?

That is the whole point people are debating. Some clusters draw from the better performing schools that have higher quality applicants. Therefore the admitted kids have higher scores. Therefore it is harder to get into these HGC for any given kids.