Why are kids dropping out of BASIS DC starting in 7/8th grade?

[Anonymous]

There are several of my friends whose kids were the first to attend the school when it first opened, and now I know none that will be attending 9th or 10th grade there. All of their kids were doing well in 7th and started falling behind in 8th. The end-of-year comps and the stress of taking on AP classes before they're ready and the lack of a traditional high school feel has sent them running for "safety" elsewhere. Most of these kids were bright, and interested in learning and at the top of their respective schools upon entering BASIS. There was a large group who knew each other -- we even ran into several kids that we'd seen in pre-K at the testing day three years ago.

I'm very glad I didn't send my son there. He would have been miserable! He would have ended up leaving for Walls, Wilson, Latin, etc. for high school where there's not so much pressure to make the school look good but more emphasis on the student actually absorbing what they're learning. I don't knock BASIS for the few kids who enjoy the fast pace of learning, but I don't think it's necessarily a good thing or necessary for anyone to be successful in life to be that stressed out in school. School is about so much more than retaining tons of new facts that are heaped upon you constantly and pulled out of you at comps time. Any parent who carefully considers their child's well-being would seriously second-guess a school like this. This is not the best way to learn - it's the best way for kids to become anxious, depressed, and worse from what I hear from so many parents.

The kids that have left are so much happier and well-adjusted, have tons of friends, and are doing well academically in their new schools. They find school to be a fun and balanced place to learn, as well as to grow physically and socially without the dreaded surprise of failing a class during the last week of school. BASIS probably wants to open an elementary school because they know the high school model will not survive much longer. The graduation rate if actually calculated from the cohort of ALL the kids that started in 5th grade would be depressingly low. And the founders should be ashamed of that.

- parent of future biomedical engineer and current 10th-grade honors and athlete-student at a non-BASIS charter school

[Anonymous]

Why post this on this forum? I have a PK3er, but just because it wouldn't work for your kid or family doesn't mean you have to knock the families it does work for. So strange.

[Anonymous]

I'm sure the BASIS boosters will be here any second. Meanwhile, you answered your own question from the subject line. Kids are looking for other schools that are better fits for their needs.

[Anonymous]

Even if kids drop out at the end of 8th grade and want a more traditional high school experience, those kids that attended BASIS for 4 years (5-8th grades) are far more advanced academically than those kids who stayed in a traditional middle school. They are already accustomed to a heavy academic work load and will probably do better in high school than a kid who was at the same academic level they were back in 5th grade.
I have no dog in this fight. My kids don't go to BASIS- we don't live in DC, but I can see how learning to work hard and be challenged can be a good thing before high school.

[Anonymous]

Some of these kids did not have a good Middle School option. If you had BASIS or _________ (Cardozo?) where would you send you child? By 9th there are other choices that were not available.

[Anonymous]

OP, what is the purpose of this post? just starting a Basis-bashing session?

that said, I completely agree that BASIS is a fantastic place for middle school and gives kids the tools they need to succeed academically anywhere in the city, public or private.

[Anonymous]

mean-spirited post. go away OP. Yes, you made all the right decisions for your child. There's an award for you somewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are several of my friends whose kids were the first to attend the school when it first opened, and now I know none that will be attending 9th or 10th grade there. All of their kids were doing well in 7th and started falling behind in 8th. The end-of-year comps and the stress of taking on AP classes before they're ready and the lack of a traditional high school feel has sent them running for "safety" elsewhere. Most of these kids were bright, and interested in learning and at the top of their respective schools upon entering BASIS. There was a large group who knew each other -- we even ran into several kids that we'd seen in pre-K at the testing day three years ago.

I'm very glad I didn't send my son there. He would have been miserable! He would have ended up leaving for Walls, Wilson, Latin, etc. for high school where there's not so much pressure to make the school look good but more emphasis on the student actually absorbing what they're learning. I don't knock BASIS for the few kids who enjoy the fast pace of learning, but I don't think it's necessarily a good thing or necessary for anyone to be successful in life to be that stressed out in school. School is about so much more than retaining tons of new facts that are heaped upon you constantly and pulled out of you at comps time. Any parent who carefully considers their child's well-being would seriously second-guess a school like this. This is not the best way to learn - it's the best way for kids to become anxious, depressed, and worse from what I hear from so many parents.

The kids that have left are so much happier and well-adjusted, have tons of friends, and are doing well academically in their new schools. They find school to be a fun and balanced place to learn, as well as to grow physically and socially without the dreaded surprise of failing a class during the last week of school. BASIS probably wants to open an elementary school because they know the high school model will not survive much longer. The graduation rate if actually calculated from the cohort of ALL the kids that started in 5th grade would be depressingly low. And the founders should be ashamed of that.

- parent of future biomedical engineer and current 10th-grade honors and athlete-student at a non-BASIS charter school

Is this a joke? How do you know your 10th grader is going to be a biomedical engineer? I knew tons of people who thought they would be biomedical engineers as freshmen in college...very few were still headed that direction by senior year. Often it was because their math skills weren't up to par and they couldn't handle the competition from all the foreign students.....

[Anonymous]

Why ask this question "Why are kids dropping out of BASIS DC?" of DCUM. Why don't you ask your friends who supposedly had kids enrolled there?

[Anonymous]

Are you day drinking OP? What testing day are you rambling on about?

--signed, parent of well-adjusted BASIS 7th grader who will be an artist or engineer or whatever she damn well pleases.

[Anonymous]

OP Here. My post is not meant to bash BASIS at all, but to share an experience that I've witnessed of many families that are no longer at the school. If your kid is succeeding there, that's awesome. If only every kid could...But every kid can't, and most of the families that I know that have left have all left for the same reason, and their kids aren't all the exact same types of learners, but they are all indeed very bright.

I hope that parents really look at BASIS, or any school for that matter, and really decide what is best for their child and know that even without the rigor of BASIS, their kid can have aspirations to and can become a biomedical engineer, still, or whatever they (like another poster said) want to. Any child that excels through high school at BASIS has to be an exceptional student and has to welcome the challenge that BASIS offers.

I believe these parents (my friends) thought their kids were ready for this school, but didn't think long enough about it. I was ready to enroll my son right up til the 1st day of school, and got cold feet. After thinking long and hard, I didn't see it as the right fit for him. I just hope every parent looks at any school carefully before enrolling their child, and that goes for schools which wouldn't be challenging enough for their kids as well.

[Anonymous]

My DC will only attend BASIS for middle school. DC wants to go to a high school where he can play sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP Here. My post is not meant to bash BASIS at all, but to share an experience that I've witnessed of many families that are no longer at the school. If your kid is succeeding there, that's awesome. If only every kid could...But every kid can't, and most of the families that I know that have left have all left for the same reason, and their kids aren't all the exact same types of learners, but they are all indeed very bright.

I hope that parents really look at BASIS, or any school for that matter, and really decide what is best for their child and know that even without the rigor of BASIS, their kid can have aspirations to and can become a biomedical engineer, still, or whatever they (like another poster said) want to. Any child that excels through high school at BASIS has to be an exceptional student and has to welcome the challenge that BASIS offers.

I believe these parents (my friends) thought their kids were ready for this school, but didn't think long enough about it. I was ready to enroll my son right up til the 1st day of school, and got cold feet. After thinking long and hard, I didn't see it as the right fit for him. I just hope every parent looks at any school carefully before enrolling their child, and that goes for schools which wouldn't be challenging enough for their kids as well.

Who on earth elected you to be the spokesperson for your friends or to be a self-appointed advisor for all parents who might consider Basis for their kids?

It's a very different model. It's not for everyone. There will be kids who do well at this middle school who decide to attend other high schools. This same thing happens at Deal, Latin and plenty of other places too as more options are available).

But for a lot of kids, it's a great experience. My rising 9th grader is happy, learning, has friends in and out of school and did great on their first AP exam (taken last May as an 8th grader).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP Here. My post is not meant to bash BASIS at all, but to share an experience that I've witnessed of many families that are no longer at the school. If your kid is succeeding there, that's awesome. If only every kid could...But every kid can't, and most of the families that I know that have left have all left for the same reason, and their kids aren't all the exact same types of learners, but they are all indeed very bright.

I hope that parents really look at BASIS, or any school for that matter, and really decide what is best for their child and know that even without the rigor of BASIS, their kid can have aspirations to and can become a biomedical engineer, still, or whatever they (like another poster said) want to. Any child that excels through high school at BASIS has to be an exceptional student and has to welcome the challenge that BASIS offers.

I believe these parents (my friends) thought their kids were ready for this school, but didn't think long enough about it. I was ready to enroll my son right up til the 1st day of school, and got cold feet. After thinking long and hard, I didn't see it as the right fit for him. I just hope every parent looks at any school carefully before enrolling their child, and that goes for schools which wouldn't be challenging enough for their kids as well.

And?

[Anonymous]

OMG OP, we couldn't ALL get into Latin like your DC! And for whatever anyone says about the obnoxious BASIS booster and basher parents, I'm up.to.here with the smugness of the Latin families. Please, please write more about balancing the whole child.

Whether or not we stay at BASIS through high school, I cannot wait to compare where the first graduating seniors will be accepted in comparison to Latin.