GreatSchools Ratings Downgrade for Top FFX Schools

[Anonymous]

Still no one has answered why anyone cares that some random third party website rates TJ's a 10. DO you think it is a good school? Does your kid get a good quality education there? Are they thriving? Do other kids like it?

That is what matters, not what Great Schools thinks.

[Anonymous]

PP here. Please ignore the unnecessary apostrophe. You can tell that I would never get into TJs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Still no one has answered why anyone cares that some random third party website rates TJ's a 10. DO you think it is a good school? Does your kid get a good quality education there? Are they thriving? Do other kids like it?

That is what matters, not what Great Schools thinks.

Well, my kid's school went up, so I hope whatever flawed system they're using stays. But, I imagine the reason people care is that people use these ratings when purchasing homes. Have you seen the commercial where the lady rejects the house because it has a GS rating of 3? This is what a lot of people do. I should probably put my house on the market today.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Still no one has answered why anyone cares that some random third party website rates TJ's a 10. DO you think it is a good school? Does your kid get a good quality education there? Are they thriving? Do other kids like it?

That is what matters, not what Great Schools thinks.

Well, my kid's school went up, so I hope whatever flawed system they're using stays. But, I imagine the reason people care is that people use these ratings when purchasing homes. Have you seen the commercial where the lady rejects the house because it has a GS rating of 3? This is what a lot of people do. I should probably put my house on the market today.

Exactly. If the RE websites like Zillow and Redfin didn't display GS ratings, nobody would care.

[Anonymous]

Agreed with the last couple of posters: HOME VALUES!

And, I want my kids to receive a good education.

If the data is correct or incorrect, it is an indicator of a potential issue -- just different ones (school decline vs. GS glitch) that need attention.

[Anonymous]

Great Schools scores are notoriously unreliable at predicting the quality of a school.

[Anonymous]

Rental market.

Why do you think the rental houses in our pyramid have 12+ applications within hours of listing, of people ready to sign a multi year lease sight unseen?

[Anonymous]

How did TJ get a score of 7? Something must be flawed.

We almost bought an inferior house in a neighborhood because the elementary school was ranked a 9 on greatschools. We ultimately bought a house with an elementary with a 5 score. Our neighborhood had a lot of new construction. A few years later, the previously ranked 9 school dropped to a 7 and our elementary has risen to a 7. We love our neighborhood, our short commutes to work and our brand new house. I am so glad that I did not let a greatschool rating dictate the home that we bought.

What are these scores based on?

[Anonymous]

I am looking at the results for my school and notice a lot of errors in the test scores vs what the DOE results are.

I am sending some corrections to GS.

[Anonymous]

I see that this year most FCPS reported their test results under the 2010 requirements where as last year it was under the 2002 requirements. This resulted in a huge drop across the board. Not sure why GS didn't see this.

[Anonymous]

Montgomery County ratings did not change. They still have plenty of 9 and 10 rated schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Montgomery County ratings did not change. They still have plenty of 9 and 10 rated schools.

So odd, what happened with Fairfax County? Even all of the Elementary Schools have dropped.

[Anonymous]

Sink hole

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Montgomery County ratings did not change. They still have plenty of 9 and 10 rated schools.

So odd, what happened with Fairfax County? Even all of the Elementary Schools have dropped.

not all of them. The ones in my section of the county (various ES and HS) are all the same as last year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am looking at the results for my school and notice a lot of errors in the test scores vs what the DOE results are.

I am sending some corrections to GS.

Anonymous wrote:I see that this year most FCPS reported their test results under the 2010 requirements where as last year it was under the 2002 requirements. This resulted in a huge drop across the board. Not sure why GS didn't see this.

These two statements don't really line up. Or maybe I just don't understand what either or both of them are trying to say. Is it a glitch? A change in testing or reporting requirements? Both?