High points from MS magnet at Blair tonight

[Anonymous]

I totally forgot to go to one of the sessions today, can anyone please post high points from the session for eastern/ TPMS. Not sure if slides or video recording will be available.

Thanks in advance.

[Anonymous]

OP here , I meant important points from open house for middle school magnet at blair tonight- can anyone note here the main points

[Anonymous]

Go on the mcps website. There's a new document today that has the basic info.

[Anonymous]

The selected ones will account for around 40% of all Grade 5 students in 80 elementary schools in Takoma and Eastern catching area;
Both magnet programs will only have one assessment and a questionnaire. The assessment will happen in local elementary schools, different times with different schools (more like elementary school GT test). No math part will be included, only verbal and non-verbal reasoning skill test. The assessment and non-scored questionnaire will last around 2 and half hours.

Same information has been distributed to my DC's HGC Grade 5 students today.

[Anonymous]

The live stream recording is here (skip ahead to see it)

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IY27SAfNGEU&feature=youtu.be

[Anonymous]

OP here, thanks to all- I had found the link but have watched only halfway through. So thank you for putting main points here. Interesting there's no math part in the assessment which was actually the real selection criteria fir the G&T kids.

[Anonymous]

Let me understand this. So they will select kids for Takoma Math/Science program without using math in the assessment test??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The selected ones will account for around 40% of all Grade 5 students in 80 elementary schools in Takoma and Eastern catching area;

40% was their predicted estimate based on the 3rd grade field test last year. They didn't specify what the criteria will be to identify students to test, and I didn't get the impression they'd aim for a 40% goal.

Anonymous wrote: Both magnet programs will only have one assessment and a questionnaire. The assessment will happen in local elementary schools, different times with different schools (more like elementary school GT test). No math part will be included, only verbal and non-verbal reasoning skill test.

I noted verbal, non verbal and spatial. All reasoning ability (e.g., no test prep).

Anonymous wrote:The assessment and non-scored questionnaire will last around 2 and half hours. Same information has been distributed to my DC's HGC Grade 5 students today.

Didn't come home with mine today.


The one thing I walked away uncertain about - how are they going to use the test scores, in conjunction with all the other information about the students, to decide who gets in? Can't just be the top 100 test scorers, I assume - given the goal of the field test - that they'll take demographic and other factors into account as well. Will they have to be transparent about that at some point? Probably not?

[Anonymous]

They said the selection is race neutral, the performance on assessment will be used to validate your general school performance (Grade 5 first marking period, MAP-M, MAP-R). Some key data points may be missing from some kids' profile, such as students from private schools, from non-MCPS schools before Grade 5.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They said the selection is race neutral, the performance on assessment will be used to validate your general school performance (Grade 5 first marking period, MAP-M, MAP-R). Some key data points may be missing from some kids' profile, such as students from private schools, from non-MCPS schools before Grade 5.

The selection must be race-neutral, by law.

[Anonymous]

Another thing has been mentioned is whether the kid has chance to find academic peer group in your home middle school. Very trick part, highly implicating you must do much better in some W school to be invited to attend these selective programs. Actually, same thing has been happening in elementary gifted centers. Competition into Cold Spring GT program is totally different story from into Barnslay, Clear Spring, Dr. Chews, Pineoak. I do know a couple of kids have much higher score than admitted kids in non-Cold Spring GT program, but they even could not be put on waiting list in Cold Spring GT program.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They said the selection is race neutral, the performance on assessment will be used to validate your general school performance (Grade 5 first marking period, MAP-M, MAP-R). Some key data points may be missing from some kids' profile, such as students from private schools, from non-MCPS schools before Grade 5.

The selection must be race-neutral, by law.

BY LAW? Hopefully! It is so clear that they remove math part to alleviate this outstanding strength for Asian kids. My DC does not care about this change at all. But, the test focus on literacy and reasoning, which would automatically put HGC kids a better position provided that ES gifted program is humanity focused.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They said the selection is race neutral, the performance on assessment will be used to validate your general school performance (Grade 5 first marking period, MAP-M, MAP-R). Some key data points may be missing from some kids' profile, such as students from private schools, from non-MCPS schools before Grade 5.

The selection must be race-neutral, by law.

BY LAW? Hopefully! It is so clear that they remove math part to alleviate this outstanding strength for Asian kids. My DC does not care about this change at all. But, the test focus on literacy and reasoning, which would automatically put HGC kids a better position provided that ES gifted program is humanity focused.

Um.

Yes, by law. Since 2000. Eisenberg vs. Montgomery County Public Schools http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPcap/2000-03/21/083r-032100-idx.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Another thing has been mentioned is whether the kid has chance to find academic peer group in your home middle school. Very trick part, highly implicating you must do much better in some W school to be invited to attend these selective programs. Actually, same thing has been happening in elementary gifted centers. Competition into Cold Spring GT program is totally different story from into Barnslay, Clear Spring, Dr. Chews, Pineoak. I do know a couple of kids have much higher score than admitted kids in non-Cold Spring GT program, but they even could not be put on waiting list in Cold Spring GT program.

This. It's all about selecting who mcps wants to select. Lastly year I started the thread on how W school students were specifically kept out from Blair despite of good test scores and credentials. The little tricky part from yesterday- 3000 will be selected based on Map M and R and PARCC and committee will take in to consideration if home middle school can fit the bill to provide to these high achievers rather than Takoma park. Now there only they have sifted who they want in and then written test among those 3000 can further sift the 100. Would I want my child to go to TPMS if selected in that 100 as there will be peer group activities that could have some that are actually not the gifted but mcps selected based on race and not on academic credentials.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Let me understand this. So they will select kids for Takoma Math/Science program without using math in the assessment test??

Yes, I spoke to the MCPS reps after the event and they confirmed that the test was changed to evaluate how a child thinks (reasoning ability) and also because MCPS is aware that there is test prepping going on and that is why MCPS is not providing sample questions/practice exam to level the playing field.