BASIS DC to open in 2012-2013

[Anonymous]

I agree 100% PP, you nailed it!!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's not really "guinea pigs" at Basis. They already have a tried and tested model that's worked for several other schools. They've already had an opportunity to work many of the kinks out.

I'm not so much concerned with the curriculum (which I believe to be well established) as with the teachers; that is where I consider the program will be experimental. Unfortunately, in a small (new) school, if the Spanish teacher, for instance, is marginal, you may be guaranteed marginal instruction for that calendar year, or many teacher transitions.

As I understand it, many of the core personnel are coming from Arizona, and the new hires are sent to Arizona to be trained alongside their Arizona cohorts for consistency.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's not really "guinea pigs" at Basis. They already have a tried and tested model that's worked for several other schools. They've already had an opportunity to work many of the kinks out.

It is though. The "tried and tested model" that "they've already had an opportunity to work" on, is in the rich suburbs of Tucson. Look at the demographics, that school is richer than Deal. The "kinks" they've had an opportunity to work out are on a much wealthier and better-prepared cohort of applicants than they're going to get here in DC. Being the leading edge of a new school is always a guinea pig experience, even from one rich Basis school (Tucson) to another (Scottsdale) to another (Oro Valley). Tucson's success hasn't been replicated yet in wealthy suburbs. How is it supposed to translate into an urban school district like DC?

"Rich suburbs" - oh sure, Daddy Warbucks will have Punjab bring the Duesenberg 'round to ferry the children to Basis. (eyeroll) - I looked at some of those demographics and found that in some cases they also include a large spanish-speaking latino population of very modest means.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Did you know Blair would be an option for DS before you moved? (And, if so, how?) Many thanks!

Yes, Blair always an option for those with Mo. Co. residency if you're OK with the regular "academy" tracks. We planned to move well in advance, feeling from 7th grade that Latin wouldn't be the best HS option. All you need to do to enroll a kid is establish residency in the relevant swathe of Mo. Co. in advance- file taxes there in April before you kid starts school in the fall. We bought property in Takoma Park over the winter, but could have rented (at least before filing taxes, you could get an extension and wait until June). You really don't even have to move if you're no longer in DCPS/Charter, just need to establish residency in Mo. Co and get your kid to Blair yourself.

That said, if you're shooting for the math/science magnet, communications (CAP) or IB, you need to get going a lot sooner, no later than October. It's not at all easy to get into the magnets and a DCPS or DC Charter kid really needs to go the extra mile - you pretty much have to participate in the Johns Hopkins gifted summer programs (they start after 2nd grade) to be in the running.

For the math, also best to get your kid into chess, competitive math teams, computer programming, science camps/research by MS. For the IB, language summer immersion helps. And best to get recommendations from the Hopkins instructors because Mo. Co. is unlikely to take DCPS or DC Charter recommendations, or DC-CAS scores, very seriously. Nobody but Deal teaches 7th grade algebra in DC public and some Mo. Co. kids take it in 6th. Most of the kids in the Blair magnets are of course coming out of the MS magnets in Takoma (math) and Silver Spring (humanities) doing more serious MS work than anywhere in DCPS or Charter. But, a DC kid does bring a certain urban savoir faire, and 2 of the Blair magnets were willing to take mine (and they admit around 15% of applicants!).

When you get to Mo. Co. it can be a shock to the system to discover that shooting for the stars academically, never mind the debate over what's equitable and who's poor and included and who's not, is the norm in public schools. Most of the magnet kids are Asian.

Good luck.

Thank you, PP, for this post. And I now know that we absolutely have to move out of DCPS. My kid loves anything math and science, not sure if he is "gifted" or not, but he is eager and curious to learn. He is only 8, but I can already tell that DCPS will not give us what he wants, which is to excel in science and math. He is attending one of the "prestigious" JKLM schools, by the way. We are doing the Hopkins Summer program so we will see how he fares compared to his suburban peers.

[Anonymous]

Wilson has a math / science academy that just took first in the region in the FIRST robotics competition. Visit their web page. This is a BIG deal. Those kids are going straight to MIT or any other school of their choosing. Most schools in the city have chess club. Latin high school students finished first in many categories of the city INTEL Science Fair (that feeds Siemens). Walls swept the grand prize there. All of these schools have honors and AP classes in math/science. I know children who have left MoCo precisely because the focus was 'acceleration, acceleration', but they kind of felt like their child was a cog. I think both urban and suburban schools have a lot to offer, but let's not just write off a whole group of schools so quickly.

[Anonymous]

Yes, there are more points of light for advanced kids, mainly in NW, all the time. But, overall, because DCPS doesn't bother with talented and gifted programs, and the charters can't/won't screen for ability/suitability, it's the kids needing remediation who get the lion's share of attention from teachers from prek to 12th, not the advanced kids. Even at Wilson and Walls, almost any kid without much ability or drive can stroll into any AP class, holding back others who can and will do the work and would get 5s on the exams with more support.

Case in point. My v. bright kid is in 4th at Watkins, a school that dabbles in acclerated programs but doesn't take them seriously, mainly for lack of funding and Cluster furnished structure. So we will try Basis for lack of an alternative (didn't get into Latin and can't see SH providing much challenge, or a good environment socially). But the Stars prep program is optional, so we can safely assume that many of the kids heading to Basis won't be up to scratch, or anywhere near. I'm with the PPs who want to see a true academic magnet MS emerge, and fast, but there seems to be almost no hope of this. Lacking the funds for privates we, too, will probably head to Mo. Co. sooner or later. I see a lot of pie in the sky solutions in PS in this city ("Chinese school without Chinese kids/parents! School with open lottery teaching 8 AP subjects to every kid!") and feel powerless to alter the Kafka-esque calculus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Did you know Blair would be an option for DS before you moved? (And, if so, how?) Many thanks!

Anonymous wrote:Yes, Blair always an option for those with Mo. Co. residency if you're OK with the regular "academy" tracks. We planned to move well in advance, feeling from 7th grade that Latin wouldn't be the best HS option. All you need to do to enroll a kid is establish residency in the relevant swathe of Mo. Co. in advance- file taxes there in April before you kid starts school in the fall. We bought property in Takoma Park over the winter, but could have rented (at least before filing taxes, you could get an extension and wait until June). You really don't even have to move if you're no longer in DCPS/Charter, just need to establish residency in Mo. Co and get your kid to Blair yourself.

That said, if you're shooting for the math/science magnet, communications (CAP) or IB, you need to get going a lot sooner, no later than October.

Thanks for that. Just to clarify, did your DC stay at Latin through 8th and then go straight to Blair's math/science magnet for 9th, or did DC do 8th at a MoCo MS? Thanks again -- just trying to understand the plausible logistics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wilson has a math / science academy that just took first in the region in the FIRST robotics competition. Visit their web page. This is a BIG deal. Those kids are going straight to MIT or any other school of their choosing. Most schools in the city have chess club. Latin high school students finished first in many categories of the city INTEL Science Fair (that feeds Siemens). Walls swept the grand prize there. All of these schools have honors and AP classes in math/science. I know children who have left MoCo precisely because the focus was 'acceleration, acceleration', but they kind of felt like their child was a cog. I think both urban and suburban schools have a lot to offer, but let's not just write off a whole group of schools so quickly.

Yes, there are some neo science stars at Wilson, but since almost any kid can wander into said academy, it's hardly about to start feeding a cohort of kids to MIT. My husband is involved in the Metro area MIT grad community and says that he's concerned that Latin, Deal and Wilson don't exactly knock themselves out to cultivate talent or push top kids (when did a kid last get in?). And nobody goes straight to the top school of their choosing these days, even if they take 8 or 9 AP tests, half sciences, and get all 5s, not with MIT and Cal Tech admitting less than 10%, all science/math whizzes. I've seen Blair magnet and TJ kids get into Harvard yet be rejected by a number of other schools (Stanford, Princeton, Yale etc.). You hear this sort of thing a lot from Wilson parents, but their logic is faulty on several levels. Parents tend to assume that coming from a DC public school entails getting a break from Ivies, but that's no longer the case, even for low SES minority kids. Too many kids applying, double the number just a decade ago. Ivies now reject 3/4 of HS valedictorians. Acceleration certainly isn't what a lot of kids want or need, but at least in Mo. Co. there's the option and it's serious.

[Anonymous]

I am very late in the game, but now I am starting to be interested in Basis. Could someone kindly help me with these questions? I have never dealt with a charter school, and the admin woman sounded very busy when I called earlier.... I will be going to the parent info session when they plan one though.

1. Basis will have a gym? A gym fits in that building? Is that where they are doing PE, since there is no outdoor space?

2. Do they have a school uniform?

3. Is there a chance that they may have to relocate to a bigger building once they expand the grades year after year? (9th grade next year, 10th grade after that....)

4. They are anticipating to have extracurricular activities. Where would they do the soccer or baseball (or any other sports) practice?

I know these are not academic related questions. But I understand they aim to have a very rigorous academic program, so I'd like to learn about other areas.

[Anonymous]

There are posts answering some of your questions on the Lack of Social Promotion thread, toward the middle. But it definitely doesn't sound like they've figured all this out yet. Parents say, my kids goes August 13th, then I'll know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

1. Basis will have a gym? A gym fits in that building? Is that where they are doing PE, since there is no outdoor space?

2. Do they have a school uniform?

3. Is there a chance that they may have to relocate to a bigger building once they expand the grades year after year? (9th grade next year, 10th grade after that....)

4. They are anticipating to have extracurricular activities. Where would they do the soccer or baseball (or any other sports) practice?

I know these are not academic related questions. But I understand they aim to have a very rigorous academic program, so I'd like to learn about other areas.

1. No standard gym, but they'll have an "exercise room" on the 1st floor. The architectural plans for the building are on the website. They had been talking about a potential partnership with the YWCA up the street but I don't know where they are with that. They also plan to use the Mall for running around.

2. No school uniform.

3. No plans to move to a bigger building. The building in Penn Quarter is it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

1. Basis will have a gym? A gym fits in that building? Is that where they are doing PE, since there is no outdoor space?

2. Do they have a school uniform?

3. Is there a chance that they may have to relocate to a bigger building once they expand the grades year after year? (9th grade next year, 10th grade after that....)

4. They are anticipating to have extracurricular activities. Where would they do the soccer or baseball (or any other sports) practice?

I know these are not academic related questions. But I understand they aim to have a very rigorous academic program, so I'd like to learn about other areas.

1. No standard gym, but they'll have an "exercise room" on the 1st floor. The architectural plans for the building are on the website. They had been talking about a potential partnership with the YWCA up the street but I don't know where they are with that. They also plan to use the Mall for running around.

2. No school uniform.

3. No plans to move to a bigger building. The building in Penn Quarter is it.

So, with no playing fields, no theater, no orchestra/band space, and limited access to athletic facilities, how are students supposed to develop a satisfying, well-rounded, and competitive profile?

[Anonymous]

I am wondering about the lack of facilities as well. Has this been discussed at the parent info session? Could anyone share? So after all, Basis is going to be pretty much all academics because they don't provide sufficient accommodation for other things?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

1. Basis will have a gym? A gym fits in that building? Is that where they are doing PE, since there is no outdoor space?

2. Do they have a school uniform?

3. Is there a chance that they may have to relocate to a bigger building once they expand the grades year after year? (9th grade next year, 10th grade after that....)

4. They are anticipating to have extracurricular activities. Where would they do the soccer or baseball (or any other sports) practice?

I know these are not academic related questions. But I understand they aim to have a very rigorous academic program, so I'd like to learn about other areas.

1. No standard gym, but they'll have an "exercise room" on the 1st floor. The architectural plans for the building are on the website. They had been talking about a potential partnership with the YWCA up the street but I don't know where they are with that. They also plan to use the Mall for running around.

2. No school uniform.

3. No plans to move to a bigger building. The building in Penn Quarter is it.

So, with no playing fields, no theater, no orchestra/band space, and limited access to athletic facilities, how are students supposed to develop a satisfying, well-rounded, and competitive profile?

You still have not got what Basis is about, right? You want theater, orchestra, etc..., you do not go to Basis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

1. Basis will have a gym? A gym fits in that building? Is that where they are doing PE, since there is no outdoor space?

2. Do they have a school uniform?

3. Is there a chance that they may have to relocate to a bigger building once they expand the grades year after year? (9th grade next year, 10th grade after that....)

4. They are anticipating to have extracurricular activities. Where would they do the soccer or baseball (or any other sports) practice?

I know these are not academic related questions. But I understand they aim to have a very rigorous academic program, so I'd like to learn about other areas.

1. No standard gym, but they'll have an "exercise room" on the 1st floor. The architectural plans for the building are on the website. They had been talking about a potential partnership with the YWCA up the street but I don't know where they are with that. They also plan to use the Mall for running around.

2. No school uniform.

3. No plans to move to a bigger building. The building in Penn Quarter is it.

Basis is planning on offering as afterschool activities orchestra, choir, drama club, soccer, running, chess club, art club, debate team, science bowl, quiz bowl, storytelling, fencing, robotics, yoga, etc. depending upon on interest. The building is permanent location and holds their anticipated total capacity.