
Nope. Emphasizing geography without an adequate basis to conclude it would correlate with selecting the best qualified STEM candidates is overweighting. We’ll see the measurable declines in a few years as more data emerges but in the interim take your sophistry elsewhere. |
The new process indeed is failing to identify more students for the "top" slots (e.g. are the JMO kids) compared to the old process. A teacher recommendation or a verified achievement list could help. "Froshmore" selection process (by TJ teachers); if it is able to identify the "Right" candidates can also be adopted to the "Freshman" round selection |
Let's back up for a moment. Where is it written that FCPS is required to design a process to select "the best qualified STEM candidates"? These are 13 year olds we're talking about. |
DP. I'll save everyone some time - it's not written anywhere at all. We'll see whether TJ's standing both nationally and within Northern Virginia rises or falls over the next few years, but there's absolutely nothing mandating that FCPS attempt to find "the best of the best" along any metric in any document governing TJ. |
That never came to light. It is a guess that you are making. Nowhere is it established that they had kids violate any non-disclosure agreement. You are just guessing that's what happened. Also it couldn't have been several years, at best two years based on when TJ started using the test. |
Do you think they should care about it when selecting within a school? If a school has all these clubs, should they look at that when deciding who are the top students at that school that they should admit? |
The more likely result is they will eliminate the froshmore round of admissions or take the teachers out of that. It wouldn't look good to have a comparison group, students rejected in 8th grade who get in the next year under a different admissions process. |
Yes, not using geography allows wealthy areas to buy admissions. |
Yes, but all indications are the new process is working well at identifying the top students. |
And what are your indicators? Your "cookie" said so? You do not have any measurements. Look at the drop out rates and data for standardized competitions and accept the reality. |
The dropout rates aren't significantly different than they were before COVID. And again... yes, when you are overselecting for things like standardized exam scores and participation in STEM competitions, those metrics are going to go down when you stop doing that. The segment of the population who believes that those metrics are how you should evaluate kids is smaller than you think and shrinking by the day. So you can sit on your high horse and believe what you want, but you're falling behind the rest of us. |
DP and strongly pro-reform. People need to stop parroting this talking point unless their intent is to parody the folks on the other side. There are no indications that the new process is identifying the "top students" - even within their own schools. What absolutely is clear is that TJ is a much healthier environment than it was prior to the admissions changes. That much is inarguable if you have spent any significant time in that building over the past 15-20 years. I personally would like to see teacher recommendations return to the process and perhaps a move from top 1.5% to top 1%, but the admissions changes were a monumental step in the right direction compared to what was happening before, where you had this enormous glut of students who were all trying to get to the same place on the same path when hundreds of other paths and destinations are available. |
The least represented middle schools in the county aren't even hitting their 1.5% quota. Why do you need to lower it further? |
I am not so sure it is healthier. Less capable students are feeling like they don't belong at TJ when their classmates are much smarter than them. |
Deep dark secret. This has happened FOREVER at TJ. The kids who were artificially advanced in math and prepped within an inch of their life to master the Quant-Q or whatever exam was put in front of them felt the EXACT same way when confronted with the kids who actually belonged at TJ. Except they were expected to follow the exact same path. These new kids, who have not had the same opportunities during their elementary and middle school years, are able to experience TJ at a similar pace to what most of the students in the 90s and 00s did. And the school is doing a phenomenal job of supporting them and encouraging them to cut their own path. Some will succeed and some will fail, as has always been the case. |