Parents of DCPS HS graduates - were your kids prepared for college?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very smart kid went to Walls and then to a selective SLAC and was NOT prepared at all. he didn't know how to organize his time and had bad study habits, and didn't really know how to write papers. It took him at least one semester to figure it out and it was very challenging. He ended up doing very well and has a great job now (2 years out) so it all worked out in the end but DCPS certainly didn't teach him the skills he needed to succeed

Wait a minute, my kid is at Walls and I know a few other kids that have graduated from there. None of the previous graduates indicate any of the issues you describe. In particular, the time management piece and writing papers. You will drown at Walls without time management skills. They have senior projects and a lot of papers over the years. Walls certainly has issues but not the ones described. Sounds like the independence was just too much initially and he had to stop the partying. That's not on any high school.

True that some of the time management issues were on him. But writing college-level essays is something that a school like Walls ought to have do a better job with. And it just wasn't happening. Also the school did a terrible, terrible job with the senior project. It was a big joke. The "advisor" he was assigned had no idea what he was doing, they got no meaningful guidance whatsoever. It was a huge disappointment. All that said, the kid turned out just fine in the end so maybe it really doesn't matter all so much? One thing I can say about Walls is that other students that year were great-- smart, ambitious, and they all pushed each other intellectually.

Are you primarily referring to the length of the essay or something more? I am still having a hard time understanding your complaint and reconciling it with your conclusion that your son ended up doing very well at the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My very smart kid went to Walls and then to a selective SLAC and was NOT prepared at all. he didn't know how to organize his time and had bad study habits, and didn't really know how to write papers. It took him at least one semester to figure it out and it was very challenging. He ended up doing very well and has a great job now (2 years out) so it all worked out in the end but DCPS certainly didn't teach him the skills he needed to succeed

I mean...he must have been prepared somewhat. You don't go from struggling in the first semester to doing very well overall with no preparation. I don't know if the W schools can claim they prepare a student better for a selective SLAC...and I have no doubt your kid would have been better prepared if they went to Sidwell. The real question though is would it have made sense for you to pay $200k for Sidwell just to not struggle for one semester? I don't have an answer.

To answer your question, no, paying for Sidwell wasn't an option, and private schools, while excellent academically, come with their own host of issues. And ultimately it all comes out in the wash. I think kids who are poorly prepared by their high schools have to struggle a little more and work a little harder (if they want to succeed) the first couple of years of college, learning the skills others learn in HS. Also, asa college professor I can tell you that kids are generally less prepared now than they were 10-15 years ago and that's across the board. The amount of spoon-feeding we need to do ( we call is diplomatically "scaffolding") is staggering

This works out ok for most but there is very little room (or no) room for error for freshman grades for kids who want to go into medicine or probably competitive law schools or competitive finance jobs. I'm not familiar with the law or finance worlds but I do work closely in medical school admissions and many (most) pre-med students' dreams are broken by the first semester of freshman year. The reality is that probably 5% of kids who enter college being pre-med end up going to med school and much of this is not by choice but because of grades and there is no leeway for a poor first semester.
I recognize that this is not is not a post about medical school admissions but I wanted to point out that there are career choices that are not as forgiving about a kid needing to struggle for a semester or two in college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The timing of and commute to college classes at GW is the main problem from J-R. Kids can't just walk away from campus during the school day and magically get over to GW and back in time for their next J-R class or activity.

Yes, how does this work at all? Can someone whose kid has done it (or knows kids who have) explain the logistics?

Thank you!

Not sure how it works at JR, but I did this many years ago when I was a high school senior. I had special permission to do half days of high school, then I would leave campus early and drive to the local college to take college classes the rest of the day. I believe I took two college courses each semester.

[Anonymous]

I would've been OK with Walls pre Covid, under the sharp, dynamic previous head, when an entrance exam was used to screen students and applicants had to submit a standardized test score (PARCC, PSAT, SAT). Post Covid, Walls obviously isn't the school it used to be. Neighbors and friends with sophomore, juniors and seniors describe serious problems like no subs, weak ad hoc humanities instruction (whatever individual teachers want it to be) and teachers quitting mid-year and not being replaced until the fall. We rejected our Walls offer for a private this spring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would've been OK with Walls pre Covid, under the sharp, dynamic previous head, when an entrance exam was used to screen students and applicants had to submit a standardized test score (PARCC, PSAT, SAT). Post Covid, Walls obviously isn't the school it used to be. Neighbors and friends with sophomore, juniors and seniors describe serious problems like no subs, weak ad hoc humanities instruction (whatever individual teachers want it to be) and teachers quitting mid-year and not being replaced until the fall. We rejected our Walls offer for a private this spring.

You think the sub problem is limited to Walls?! The entire DMV region struggles to find subs. This was an issue before Covid and now it’s really bad. The us has more open positions than workers. Substitute teaching is low paying. Teachers across the country have really bad burnout, just like most working Americans.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would've been OK with Walls pre Covid, under the sharp, dynamic previous head, when an entrance exam was used to screen students and applicants had to submit a standardized test score (PARCC, PSAT, SAT). Post Covid, Walls obviously isn't the school it used to be. Neighbors and friends with sophomore, juniors and seniors describe serious problems like no subs, weak ad hoc humanities instruction (whatever individual teachers want it to be) and teachers quitting mid-year and not being replaced until the fall. We rejected our Walls offer for a private this spring.

How is the first part of your complaint (no longer an entrance exam) related to the second part (somehow? = no subs).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would've been OK with Walls pre Covid, under the sharp, dynamic previous head, when an entrance exam was used to screen students and applicants had to submit a standardized test score (PARCC, PSAT, SAT). Post Covid, Walls obviously isn't the school it used to be. Neighbors and friends with sophomore, juniors and seniors describe serious problems like no subs, weak ad hoc humanities instruction (whatever individual teachers want it to be) and teachers quitting mid-year and not being replaced until the fall. We rejected our Walls offer for a private this spring.

Obviously you haven't read some of the complaints on here about the previous principal. Covid has impacted al the kids regardless of public or private schools.

[Anonymous]

Where are all the higher SES parents of kids that barely got though DC schools and didn’t make it past freshman year. Statistically, there’s more of those than the posters humble bragging about this or that college. I guess they don’t post here. Sample group yadda yadda

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would've been OK with Walls pre Covid, under the sharp, dynamic previous head, when an entrance exam was used to screen students and applicants had to submit a standardized test score (PARCC, PSAT, SAT). Post Covid, Walls obviously isn't the school it used to be. Neighbors and friends with sophomore, juniors and seniors describe serious problems like no subs, weak ad hoc humanities instruction (whatever individual teachers want it to be) and teachers quitting mid-year and not being replaced until the fall. We rejected our Walls offer for a private this spring.

You think the sub problem is limited to Walls?! The entire DMV region struggles to find subs. This was an issue before Covid and now it’s really bad. The us has more open positions than workers. Substitute teaching is low paying. Teachers across the country have really bad burnout, just like most working Americans.

Not buying it. I teach at an Arlington public high school where we don't let high school classes fend for themselves for weeks on end without an adult in the room like Walls does these days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where are all the higher SES parents of kids that barely got though DC schools and didn’t make it past freshman year. Statistically, there’s more of those than the posters humble bragging about this or that college. I guess they don’t post here. Sample group yadda yadda

I know a few JR grads from last year (2022) who are doing very poorly in college (losing scholarship money, considering dropping out, etc). Their parents (NW DC professional families) aren't exactly shouting this from the rooftops. It's something that everyone keeps very quiet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where are all the higher SES parents of kids that barely got though DC schools and didn’t make it past freshman year. Statistically, there’s more of those than the posters humble bragging about this or that college. I guess they don’t post here. Sample group yadda yadda

I know a few JR grads from last year (2022) who are doing very poorly in college (losing scholarship money, considering dropping out, etc). Their parents (NW DC professional families) aren't exactly shouting this from the rooftops. It's something that everyone keeps very quiet.

Sure you do…love these posts that are completely made up BS…the “I know a few” nonsense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where are all the higher SES parents of kids that barely got though DC schools and didn’t make it past freshman year. Statistically, there’s more of those than the posters humble bragging about this or that college. I guess they don’t post here. Sample group yadda yadda

So, let’s turn it around…you tell us…where are they? High SES families that barely made it through DCPS? I know of none. Literally none.

It stands to reason that any kid that barely makes it through DCPS (or really any school) will struggle in college…but high SES kids fitting this profile?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would've been OK with Walls pre Covid, under the sharp, dynamic previous head, when an entrance exam was used to screen students and applicants had to submit a standardized test score (PARCC, PSAT, SAT). Post Covid, Walls obviously isn't the school it used to be. Neighbors and friends with sophomore, juniors and seniors describe serious problems like no subs, weak ad hoc humanities instruction (whatever individual teachers want it to be) and teachers quitting mid-year and not being replaced until the fall. We rejected our Walls offer for a private this spring.

How is the first part of your complaint (no longer an entrance exam) related to the second part (somehow? = no subs).

No brainer. Walls and J-R have both gone downhill, markedly, in the last several years on various levels. The college prep they're offering in 2023 just isn't on a par with the college prep they were offering in 2019 despite the steady UMC influx at J-R in the intervening years. Many indicators point in the same direction: decline.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where are all the higher SES parents of kids that barely got though DC schools and didn’t make it past freshman year. Statistically, there’s more of those than the posters humble bragging about this or that college. I guess they don’t post here. Sample group yadda yadda

I know a few JR grads from last year (2022) who are doing very poorly in college (losing scholarship money, considering dropping out, etc). Their parents (NW DC professional families) aren't exactly shouting this from the rooftops. It's something that everyone keeps very quiet.

Sure you do…love these posts that are completely made up BS…the “I know a few” nonsense.

Huh? Whatever. I 100% do. One is a family member.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would've been OK with Walls pre Covid, under the sharp, dynamic previous head, when an entrance exam was used to screen students and applicants had to submit a standardized test score (PARCC, PSAT, SAT). Post Covid, Walls obviously isn't the school it used to be. Neighbors and friends with sophomore, juniors and seniors describe serious problems like no subs, weak ad hoc humanities instruction (whatever individual teachers want it to be) and teachers quitting mid-year and not being replaced until the fall. We rejected our Walls offer for a private this spring.

How is the first part of your complaint (no longer an entrance exam) related to the second part (somehow? = no subs).

No brainer. Walls and J-R have both gone downhill, markedly, in the last several years on various levels. The college prep they're offering in 2023 just isn't on a par with the college prep they were offering in 2019 despite the steady UMC influx at J-R in the intervening years. Many indicators point in the same direction: decline.

How do you know this? Are you saying a 5 on a 2023 AP test is not the same as a 5 on a 2019 test? The %age of kids scoring a 4 or 5 is no different today at either school compared to 2019