Stuart Hobson vs Hardy

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I taught a Constitution in the Classroom class at SH and would be horrified to send my kids there. The kids were unruly and wouldn't listen to the teacher. I could not imagine trying to learn in that environment. But I guess that's why I live in NoVa.

Are you lurking on these boards because you're homesick or because you're looking for validation for having moved?

Not to downplay that SH, like any middle school by the way, has its set of frontal lobe developmental issues, but I don't find someone's judgment based on a "sub" lesson very informative. Not to mention, middle schoolers smell a weary and anxious teacher/visitor a mile away. I wish I could tell you differently but, when in an pack, their "mercy" brain-windings are woefully underdeveloped.

If you want to get a sense of school culture and fit, I'd say do a buddy day or try to see if you can sit in a few regular classes on a regular day. My sense is that Hardy and Stuart-Hobson are indeed quite different in that regard. So it's worth taking a closer look at that.

[Anonymous]

^^ the nova poster is likely teaching kids of similar ages around the region to have a frame of reference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I taught a Constitution in the Classroom class at SH and would be horrified to send my kids there. The kids were unruly and wouldn't listen to the teacher. I could not imagine trying to learn in that environment. But I guess that's why I live in NoVa.

Are you lurking on these boards because you're homesick or because you're looking for validation for having moved?

Not to downplay that SH, like any middle school by the way, has its set of frontal lobe developmental issues, but I don't find someone's judgment based on a "sub" lesson very informative. Not to mention, middle schoolers smell a weary and anxious teacher/visitor a mile away. I wish I could tell you differently but, when in an pack, their "mercy" brain-windings are woefully underdeveloped.

If you want to get a sense of school culture and fit, I'd say do a buddy day or try to see if you can sit in a few regular classes on a regular day. My sense is that Hardy and Stuart-Hobson are indeed quite different in that regard. So it's worth taking a closer look at that.

I agree most of what pp said. Signed, mom of kid who graduated from SH last year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I taught a Constitution in the Classroom class at SH and would be horrified to send my kids there. The kids were unruly and wouldn't listen to the teacher. I could not imagine trying to learn in that environment. But I guess that's why I live in NoVa.

Are you lurking on these boards because you're homesick or because you're looking for validation for having moved?

Not to downplay that SH, like any middle school by the way, has its set of frontal lobe developmental issues, but I don't find someone's judgment based on a "sub" lesson very informative. Not to mention, middle schoolers smell a weary and anxious teacher/visitor a mile away. I wish I could tell you differently but, when in an pack, their "mercy" brain-windings are woefully underdeveloped.

If you want to get a sense of school culture and fit, I'd say do a buddy day or try to see if you can sit in a few regular classes on a regular day. My sense is that Hardy and Stuart-Hobson are indeed quite different in that regard. So it's worth taking a closer look at that.

Just saw the thread in Recent Topics. And just to clarify, the kids' regular teacher was in the room during my presentation. I recognize that kids are likely to act out with just a "sub," but I would expect better behavior with the teacher in the room. All that said, of course this is one person's experience, and anyone considering these schools should do their own investigation.

[Anonymous]

I tire of foolhardy Cluster cheerleaders. You send your kid to SH and want to feel good about it. Guess what, your school has metal detectors for a reason! At least at Hardy you get away from the default problem kids and Hardy kids must travel across town for a better school. This thread makes no sense because there's no comparison. Go cheer over that!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I tire of foolhardy Cluster cheerleaders. You send your kid to SH and want to feel good about it. Guess what, your school has metal detectors for a reason! At least at Hardy you get away from the default problem kids and Hardy kids must travel across town for a better school. This thread makes no sense because there's no comparison. Go cheer over that!!!

there are WAY more Cluster bashers on this board than defenders. At least some of the defenders likely have firsthand knowledge of the school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I tire of foolhardy Cluster cheerleaders. You send your kid to SH and want to feel good about it. Guess what, your school has metal detectors for a reason! At least at Hardy you get away from the default problem kids and Hardy kids must travel across town for a better school. This thread makes no sense because there's no comparison. Go cheer over that!!!

there are WAY more Cluster bashers on this board than defenders. At least some of the defenders likely have firsthand knowledge of the school

We just had someone with firsthand knowledge of the school offer an opinion (describing the classes as being out of control) and yet you still assert that defenders are the only ones with knowledge?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I tire of foolhardy Cluster cheerleaders. You send your kid to SH and want to feel good about it. Guess what, your school has metal detectors for a reason! At least at Hardy you get away from the default problem kids and Hardy kids must travel across town for a better school. This thread makes no sense because there's no comparison. Go cheer over that!!!

After that school shooting in Connecticut a few years ago, I wish every school had metal detectors! I'd rather send my child to one that has one than one that does not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I tire of foolhardy Cluster cheerleaders. You send your kid to SH and want to feel good about it. Guess what, your school has metal detectors for a reason! At least at Hardy you get away from the default problem kids and Hardy kids must travel across town for a better school. This thread makes no sense because there's no comparison. Go cheer over that!!!

After that school shooting in Connecticut a few years ago, I wish every school had metal detectors! I'd rather send my child to one that has one than one that does not.

Metal detectors would have done nothing to stop that situation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I tire of foolhardy Cluster cheerleaders. You send your kid to SH and want to feel good about it. Guess what, your school has metal detectors for a reason! At least at Hardy you get away from the default problem kids and Hardy kids must travel across town for a better school. This thread makes no sense because there's no comparison. Go cheer over that!!!

After that school shooting in Connecticut a few years ago, I wish every school had metal detectors! I'd rather send my child to one that has one than one that does not.

Metal detectors would have done nothing to stop that situation.

And metal detectors would do nothing to stop bad behavior at Hobson.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I tire of foolhardy Cluster cheerleaders. You send your kid to SH and want to feel good about it. Guess what, your school has metal detectors for a reason! At least at Hardy you get away from the default problem kids and Hardy kids must travel across town for a better school. This thread makes no sense because there's no comparison. Go cheer over that!!!

After that school shooting in Connecticut a few years ago, I wish every school had metal detectors! I'd rather send my child to one that has one than one that does not.

Metal detectors would have done nothing to stop that situation.

And metal detectors would do nothing to stop bad behavior at Hobson.

The metal detectors atvWilsoncare so much security theater, because kids often use doors that don't have them!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Shepherd neighborhood (not school) sends a whopping 23 kids to Wilson. I do think the OOB feeder rights need to be seriously re-evaluated.
http://edu.codefordc.org/#!/school/463

how old is that data? Prospect LC has been closed for two years and it's listed

It is 2 years old. Not much has changed as most Shepherd kids that went to Wilson through Deal are the same ones that will go today. In other words, while there are many Shepherd Park kids that go private and charter, they are not ones that skipped Deal and will now go to only Wilson.

But with the new boundaries, everyone in Shepherd Park--regardless of the middle school they attend--will have the right to go to Wilson. Before, it was only the ones who got in through the Deal feed.

It sure helps to have a pandering mayor named Bowser who wants to protect her base.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I tire of foolhardy Cluster cheerleaders. You send your kid to SH and want to feel good about it. Guess what, your school has metal detectors for a reason! At least at Hardy you get away from the default problem kids and Hardy kids must travel across town for a better school. This thread makes no sense because there's no comparison. Go cheer over that!!!

there are WAY more Cluster bashers on this board than defenders. At least some of the defenders likely have firsthand knowledge of the school

We just had someone with firsthand knowledge of the school offer an opinion (describing the classes as being out of control) and yet you still assert that defenders are the only ones with knowledge?

No - you had someone with a limited firsthand experience (who admitted as much). I place far greater value in the opinions (good or bad) or someone who at a minimum visited and evaluated the school for their child, enrolled a child there for any period of time, or someone who has worked extensively with teachers, staff and students.

I'm sorry, but you could make the same isolated claim about unruly kids in many other middle school settings. I don't doubt what this person experienced or the valid concern expressed, but it's not the end all be all of the school (and neither are metal detectors [cough] [cough] Wilson [cough] [cough])

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Shepherd neighborhood (not school) sends a whopping 23 kids to Wilson. I do think the OOB feeder rights need to be seriously re-evaluated.
http://edu.codefordc.org/#!/school/463

how old is that data? Prospect LC has been closed for two years and it's listed

It is 2 years old. Not much has changed as most Shepherd kids that went to Wilson through Deal are the same ones that will go today. In other words, while there are many Shepherd Park kids that go private and charter, they are not ones that skipped Deal and will now go to only Wilson.

But with the new boundaries, everyone in Shepherd Park--regardless of the middle school they attend--will have the right to go to Wilson. Before, it was only the ones who got in through the Deal feed.

It sure helps to have a pandering mayor named Bowser who wants to protect her base.

Just like Crestwood right?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If they want to improve crowding at Wilson, what other choice would they have then take out Hardy? Seems pretty likely, right?

Or they could say that only IB folks have a right to attend Wilson. If you got into Adams, Hardy, or Deal or their feeders through the OOB lottery, or if you moved OOB after starting to attend any of those schools, you'd have to lottery in to any available seats at Wilson.

Or they could cut Bancroft and Shepherd out of Deal (send Bancroft to CHEC or Roosevelt; send Shepherd to Coolidge).

Or send Hyde and some others to Cardozo along with Francis-Stevens and Ross.

Or make Wilson a citywide test-in school.

Or do a citywide lottery for all high schools.

All of these would cause a huge amount of political tumult. But they would certainly right-size Wilson.

your above bolded option was the only way to get into any WOTP school until Rhee changed the law in 2009 - you used to have to lottery into ES, MS and HS if you were OOB. These rights have existed for so few years I will never understand why the boundary folks lacked the political guts to abolish or just grandfather them. Wilson overcrowding problem solved, presto!

Is this true? Many of these schools have few OOB kids in the lower grades.

Yes, but kids leave in the upper grades and OOB kids fill the seats. That's how they get in to Deal, Hardy, and Adams--and from there they now have rights to Wilson. This year, here's how many OOB seats for 4th and 5th grade were offered at a selection of schools:

Bancroft: 10
Eaton: 4
Hearst: 6
Hyde: 0
Janney: 0
Key: 6
Lafayette: 0
Mann: 9
Murch: 10
Oyster: 9
Shepherd: 5
Stoddert: 0

So that's 60 kids who will have a right to Wilson in a few years in addition to those who got OOB seats in earlier grades. Of course, some might live IB for Wilson and just be choosing other schools in the feeder pattern, and some will move into the area when their kids are in high school, but it's not nothing.

The bigger problem is that some of these schools are growing by a class size per year these days. Schools that sent 3 classes to Deal last year, will send 4 the next two years and 5 every year after that. So if Wilson is overcrowded now with grades that fed from only 2 or three classes per school and those schools will be feeding 5 classes per grade each in a few years -- well, do the math.