TC Williams High School - shocked

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We just bought a house in the Fairfax side of Alexandria. There are several great elementary schools and your kids can test in TJ for high school.

I bet there's a better chance at tc's test scores improving over the next few years than any kid's chance of getting into tj.

DH and I both scored 800 on our math SATs. I'm not concerned that our kids will get into TJ.

This must be one of the most ridiculous things I've read on DCUM, and trust me, that says something.

I so hope you didn't move into my neighborhood (also in Fairfax side of Alexandria). B/c I truly hope I don't have a neighbor who is as presumptuous, and yet ignorant, as you.

And by the way, it is one thing to state "I hope my kids can follow in my footsteps and work hard / do well in school and get into TJ" and quite another to be obnoxious enough to say that since you scored 800 on you math SATs, that you aren't "concerned" about your KIDS getting into TJ. I mean, really, are you this obnoxious in real life?

+1 Poor kids! Sure hope they don't have a talent for art, writing, or something else.

[Anonymous]

OP, do a search for TC Williams. There's a lot of info. I'm an Alexandria parent of kids currently at a private pre-k-8 school (that is: I'm someone with no dog in this fight, beyond wanting to be informed so that when the time comes, we can make choices that work for our kids!) Here's the bottom line, as it seems to me:

TC is an interesting and unusual school, with significant challenges and significant strengths. It's large and extremely diverse, both socio-economically and ethnically/linguistically, and that is a challenge: how does a school serve an incredibly diverse population? You've got children of doctors and lawyers and professors, and children who were child soldiers in their countries of origin before arriving here as refugees. Wow. That is also a strength, of course: how cool is it for your kids to go to school with teens from all over the world, and many different walks of life?

TC sounds like it has schools within the school. That is, high-performing kids (sadly, yes, this is correlated with white kids from affluent families) tend to be in honors and AP classes with other high performing kids. Clearly there are some great teachers; clearly plenty of high-performing kids go to TC. Their test scores and college placement records are impressive for the "school within a school" made up of kids who are already high performers. (An earlier post had some stats, and you can see for yourself on the state's website... it has scores broken out by demographic groups, too).

So... a kid who is a) already a strong performer and b) assertive enough to be comfortable in a large school will probably be absolutely fine at TC. Indeed, their college prospects may well be a lot better than those of a kid coming from one of the uber-competitive private high schools, or their public counterparts in Arlington or Montgomery County.

And/but... a shy kid, or a kid who is just in the middle of the pack academically, might be intimidated or get a bit lost at TC.

This is just my sense, looking at it from the outside, so I could be wrong. My own feeling, right now, is that if my kids are doing well in school by the end of 7th grade, and are self-confident, they will go to TC. If they are less stellar and shyer, I'll probably keep them in private school and look for somewhere known for being nurturing.

I hope that helps!

[Anonymous]

Totally agree with pp. Excellent, spot-on analysis. Based on our own research and similar findings, one DC is at TC and one is headed to private HS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We just bought a house in the Fairfax side of Alexandria. There are several great elementary schools and your kids can test in TJ for high school.

I bet there's a better chance at tc's test scores improving over the next few years than any kid's chance of getting into tj.

DH and I both scored 800 on our math SATs. I'm not concerned that our kids will get into TJ.

lol, so that is how it works?

[Anonymous]

TC's size actually makes it an excellent environment for kids academically in the middle; there's always another group of kids who are neither off in the academic clouds nor at the bottom rung.

Anonymous wrote:OP, do a search for TC Williams. There's a lot of info. I'm an Alexandria parent of kids currently at a private pre-k-8 school (that is: I'm someone with no dog in this fight, beyond wanting to be informed so that when the time comes, we can make choices that work for our kids!) Here's the bottom line, as it seems to me:

TC is an interesting and unusual school, with significant challenges and significant strengths. It's large and extremely diverse, both socio-economically and ethnically/linguistically, and that is a challenge: how does a school serve an incredibly diverse population? You've got children of doctors and lawyers and professors, and children who were child soldiers in their countries of origin before arriving here as refugees. Wow. That is also a strength, of course: how cool is it for your kids to go to school with teens from all over the world, and many different walks of life?

TC sounds like it has schools within the school. That is, high-performing kids (sadly, yes, this is correlated with white kids from affluent families) tend to be in honors and AP classes with other high performing kids. Clearly there are some great teachers; clearly plenty of high-performing kids go to TC. Their test scores and college placement records are impressive for the "school within a school" made up of kids who are already high performers. (An earlier post had some stats, and you can see for yourself on the state's website... it has scores broken out by demographic groups, too).

So... a kid who is a) already a strong performer and b) assertive enough to be comfortable in a large school will probably be absolutely fine at TC. Indeed, their college prospects may well be a lot better than those of a kid coming from one of the uber-competitive private high schools, or their public counterparts in Arlington or Montgomery County.

And/but... a shy kid, or a kid who is just in the middle of the pack academically, might be intimidated or get a bit lost at TC.

This is just my sense, looking at it from the outside, so I could be wrong. My own feeling, right now, is that if my kids are doing well in school by the end of 7th grade, and are self-confident, they will go to TC. If they are less stellar and shyer, I'll probably keep them in private school and look for somewhere known for being nurturing.

I hope that helps!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:TC's size actually makes it an excellent environment for kids academically in the middle; there's always another group of kids who are neither off in the academic clouds nor at the bottom rung.

Anonymous wrote:


Not sure I find that compelling. All it tells me is that there may be a large group of kids who are taken largely for granted while the focus is directed elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:TC's size actually makes it an excellent environment for kids academically in the middle; there's always another group of kids who are neither off in the academic clouds nor at the bottom rung.

Anonymous wrote:


Not sure I find that compelling. All it tells me is that there may be a large group of kids who are taken largely for granted while the focus is directed elsewhere.

I don't think they are "taking for granted". I think the systems in place are working for them, so there doesn't need to be a lot of work devoted to revamping into new systems. To pile on the cliches, it ain't broke, so no need to fix it.
Here's another advantage I see for students attending a larger, more diverse school. (Not just TC, but similar schools.) I think it's a better reflection of the adult world the kids are moving into. I think kids going on to the workplace or planning to attend a university, which will have thousands more students, will not get nearly the culture shock that someone at a smaller, less diverse high school campus might experience. This is NOT meant to imply that I hate or look down upon smaller high schools. They can offer a different, positive experience. It's just that the large size of TC, which I think many folks see as a negative, doesn't feel like a negative to me.

[Anonymous]

I found this interesting

Is our neighborhood school really bad?
By Jay Mathews

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/class-struggle/post/is-our-neighborhood-school-really-bad/2012/07/05/gJQAhidlOW_blog.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I found this interesting

Is our neighborhood school really bad?
By Jay Mathews

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/class-struggle/post/is-our-neighborhood-school-really-bad/2012/07/05/gJQAhidlOW_blog.html

I'm a City resident, and I've heard all the horror stories about TC -- "Yale or jail," a morning-after pill clinic in the school lobby, the crushing abusive ACPS administration, etc. Then I thought about two neighbors' kids who had gone there very recently; they're both very heads-up kids and both have done well, one extremely well (including a name college).

I was just too overwhelmed by curiosity (and panic -- is it as bad as they say? would I put my DC in such a place?) and I made an appointment and went for a visit. I was astounded. First, the facility is simply gorgeous. It's a really attractive building. Second, absolutely no general atmosphere of disorder. Third, a palpable and visible focus. There's a lot going on at TC, and I didn't see a bit of it as negative. I think the panic needs to be dialed back.

[Anonymous]

Here's the Superintendent's response to that article:

http://www.acpsk12.org/superintendent/2012/07/13/remember-the-titansimagine-the-titans-fulfill-the-promise/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I found this interesting

Is our neighborhood school really bad?
By Jay Mathews

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/class-struggle/post/is-our-neighborhood-school-really-bad/2012/07/05/gJQAhidlOW_blog.html

I'm a City resident, and I've heard all the horror stories about TC -- "Yale or jail," a morning-after pill clinic in the school lobby, the crushing abusive ACPS administration, etc. Then I thought about two neighbors' kids who had gone there very recently; they're both very heads-up kids and both have done well, one extremely well (including a name college).

I was just too overwhelmed by curiosity (and panic -- is it as bad as they say? would I put my DC in such a place?) and I made an appointment and went for a visit. I was astounded. First, the facility is simply gorgeous. It's a really attractive building. Second, absolutely no general atmosphere of disorder. Third, a palpable and visible focus. There's a lot going on at TC, and I didn't see a bit of it as negative. I think the panic needs to be dialed back.

so did you check out the morning-after pill clinic in the lobby?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I'm a City resident, and I've heard all the horror stories about TC -- "Yale or jail," a morning-after pill clinic in the school lobby, the crushing abusive ACPS administration, etc. Then I thought about two neighbors' kids who had gone there very recently; they're both very heads-up kids and both have done well, one extremely well (including a name college).

I was just too overwhelmed by curiosity (and panic -- is it as bad as they say? would I put my DC in such a place?) and I made an appointment and went for a visit. I was astounded. First, the facility is simply gorgeous. It's a really attractive building. Second, absolutely no general atmosphere of disorder. Third, a palpable and visible focus. There's a lot going on at TC, and I didn't see a bit of it as negative. I think the panic needs to be dialed back.

Glad you had a nice visit, although this does sound a bit canned to me. But that may be because this excerpt from Sherman's letter suggests that APCS is monitoring internet forums like DCUM and working on a charm offensive in response:

"The T.C. they know and love is not the T.C. portrayed in agenda-laden rhetoric and certainly not the rhetoric of the rumor mill churning about on Internet bulletin boards."

[Anonymous]

Nope; I'm 09:14, and I ain't an ACPS employee (or contractor, or whatever).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I'm a City resident, and I've heard all the horror stories about TC -- "Yale or jail," a morning-after pill clinic in the school lobby, the crushing abusive ACPS administration, etc. Then I thought about two neighbors' kids who had gone there very recently; they're both very heads-up kids and both have done well, one extremely well (including a name college).

I was just too overwhelmed by curiosity (and panic -- is it as bad as they say? would I put my DC in such a place?) and I made an appointment and went for a visit. I was astounded. First, the facility is simply gorgeous. It's a really attractive building. Second, absolutely no general atmosphere of disorder. Third, a palpable and visible focus. There's a lot going on at TC, and I didn't see a bit of it as negative. I think the panic needs to be dialed back.

Glad you had a nice visit, although this does sound a bit canned to me. But that may be because this excerpt from Sherman's letter suggests that APCS is monitoring internet forums like DCUM and working on a charm offensive in response:

"The T.C. they know and love is not the T.C. portrayed in agenda-laden rhetoric and certainly not the rhetoric of the rumor mill churning about on Internet bulletin boards."

[Anonymous]

DC has had an absolutely wonderful experience at TC. She recently received her AP scores -- 5s on all of them (in five courses as a junior), and has developed great relationships with both teachers and her fellow students. I can't complain about the academic or the social experience she's had at TC. I hope I don't sound like I am bragging, but I just want to assure parents out there that TC can be a stimulating and exciting high school atmosphere for many different kinds of kids, including those who enjoy being intellectually challenged.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I

hey Jesus freak, No one cares but you.



found this interesting

Is our neighborhood school really bad?
By Jay Mathews

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/class-struggle/post/is-our-neighborhood-school-really-bad/2012/07/05/gJQAhidlOW_blog.html

I'm a City resident, and I've heard all the horror stories about TC -- "Yale or jail," a morning-after pill clinic in the school lobby, the crushing abusive ACPS administration, etc. Then I thought about two neighbors' kids who had gone there very recently; they're both very heads-up kids and both have done well, one extremely well (including a name college).

I was just too overwhelmed by curiosity (and panic -- is it as bad as they say? would I put my DC in such a place?) and I made an appointment and went for a visit. I was astounded. First, the facility is simply gorgeous. It's a really attractive building. Second, absolutely no general atmosphere of disorder. Third, a palpable and visible focus. There's a lot going on at TC, and I didn't see a bit of it as negative. I think the panic needs to be dialed back.

so did you check out the morning-after pill clinic in the lobby?