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Immersion programs in MoCo
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Anonymous
In our case we're so high up on the wait list that getting in later is not going to happen-they've never gotten to our number in past years. I'll try applying for first grade but what I've heard is that odds aren't in our favor. |
Anonymous
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Our kid got into immersion in first grade. Your chances depend on how many slots they have, i.e. how many kids left after kindergarten (some move, some kids don't do well for whatever reason.)
We applied to both Spanish and French. Drew a high number for one and a low number for the other, and eventually got into the second over the summer. So if you aren't completely set on one of the two languages, then it's probably best to apply to both. |
Anonymous
| It's 10:40 here, who asked about what was the appeal of the immersion programs other than the language. If people are using the programs to escape their in-boundary elementary, may I ask what elementary schools you're trying to escape? |
Anonymous
| Some people use it not to escape elementary school but to escape a particular high school. |
Anonymous
| Today's B-CC Gazette reports that parents of MCPS immersion students are upset that the part time English writing teacher they had last year isn't in next year's budget. Please, people! I'm pissed that the full time foreign language teacher that's available for your kid's entire elementary education isn't available for mine in ANY budget year. You all have some nerve whining. |
Anonymous
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As do you....everyone knew when people registered it was a LOTTERY!!!!
You take your chances if you get in or not. It is not anything other than a lottery. Not any of the strange comments that people make, like who you know, discrimination or otherwise. We got waitlisted number 253. Sure, I am sad, but it was still a lottery. |
Anonymous
Your point being? What are strange comments people make? I don't care if it was lotto or not, some kids get a superior education out of the deal. Frankly if they don't want to offer it to every interested family, they should do away with it. Let people pay for their own foreign language instruction. It takes resources away from other kids who share their home schools with these schools within a school. |
Anonymous
| Yes Yes Yes! Weast are you listening? This is soooooo unfair. I am disgusted. |
Anonymous
So because you didn't get in, nobody should have it! And we should ditch English instruction for those who did get in, to! That'll fix those lottery winners! Way to go! |
Anonymous
| Weast won't do away with it because it's a carrot to keep middle class families in MoCo publics. I'm sure lots a families who didn't get into immersion (maybe not your family, who knows) are now focusing on their chances for the limited spots in the middle and high school magnets. For MS and HS magnets too, there are not enough slots for all the talented kids who apply. |
Anonymous
... who did get in, TOO! Before some troll or the grammar police come after me for a typo. |
Anonymous
I think that's what bothers me most about the immersion lottery. It's the realization that, despite the fact that these are PUBLIC schools financed by taxpayers, the choice programs will be made available to very few. If we thought there would be other choice programs for our kids' future, that would be okay. Some families end up winning a lot of lotteries, like our next door neighbors. They got a lot more out of MCPS than many parents. It's definitely enough to make me start attending open houses for private schools. |
Anonymous
English instruction is not being ditched. They just won't have a teacher dedicated to that in 4th and 5th grade as they did last year. No need to be defensive over lottery, poster. Even if we'd won the lottery I wouldn't consider it a fair system because it's not. |
Anonymous
Just because it's a lottery doesn't mean it's fair. All that means is that the unfairness is distributed randomly, instead of according to whom you know or how much money you make. In the end it's still everybody paying extra for something special that only a handful of families can actually benefit from. |
Anonymous
| Random unfairness I can deal with -- there are limited resources, and this seems a fair enough way to allocate them. If every school provided immersion to every kid, we probably afford our property taxes. It's when your connections get you into a private that I start finding life to be unfair. |