To the individuals who have a low opinion of public schools - downcounty, eastern MCPS, and NWDC esp

[Anonymous]

I am curious- did you go to public school growing up? What is your basis for comparison? Are you basing your comparison on GDS or Sidwell or the number of other top national private schools next door, or are you basing it on your public school experience in this area, or are you basing it on some other experience? Seems to me that the schools that get picked on - Wilson, Blair, Einstein, some of the Eastern MoCo elementary schools and sometimes the NW DC elementary schools, would stack up quite well to most public schools elsewhere and many private schools, but they suffer from ugly sister syndrome - in that, by comparison, they might come up short next to the prep schools and super-elite (and well-heeled) public schools like Wooten, Churchhill and the like, when, on their own, they might be considered quite lovely. Is that accurate, or do the schools that get bashed really deserve their treatment?

[Anonymous]

I went to public school growing up, so that was my basis of comparison/frame of reference initially.

I assume that part of what I'm seeing is generational, but what struck me again and again was how poorly the public school graduates I've taught (mostly A- students from MoCo and Fairfax) write compared to how my own public school peers. (I haven't taught enough local private school graduates to compare public vs. private today).

Teaching teachers (which I've also done in recent years) helped me understand at least some of the reasons why -- including the post-NCLB emphasis on standardized testing and the fact that lots of these award-winning teachers couldn't write very well themselves.

In other words, I went into the school choice process with an awareness that public schools today/here are not the public schools of my youth (70s/Midwest & CA).

Then I looked for a school that shared my educational goals for my DC. We ended up at GDS and it's been a good fit.

So the roundabout answer is it wasn't ever a beauty contest for me. I was looking for something specific and found it in a particular private school.

[Anonymous]

OP, if you live in MC, you know that the county allocates resources fairly, with a bit of an advantage to poor performing schools. We all know that the schools are the same. That can not be said about the student body. If you have a child like mine, who is not an independent thinker, and a bit insecure, all it takes is an association with the wrong crowd to take them in a bad direction. I fully understand that it could happen at any school anywhere, but I prefer not to take chances.

PP, I agree that many MCPS kids can't write. Private schools seems to do a better job at that. But MCPS seems to do a better job with math.

[Anonymous]

MCPS pushes kids to do math faster, but I'm not sure it does math better. And Sidwell and GDS both have math that goes beyond what MCPS offers. (Other privates may as well -- those are just the two I know best.)

That said, I can certainly see the argument for TJ over even the best local privates for a math/science kid. Don't know enough about Blair to make that call.

[Anonymous]

Actually, the NW DC public schools do a better job of teaching math than any public schools in the country (with the exception of the Asian subpopulation in the states of New Jersey & Texas). (The caucasian subpop is a proxy demographic for NW DC schools)

http://www.schoolinfosystem.org/archives/2007/10/a_different_loo.php

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Actually, the NW DC public schools do a better job of teaching math than any public schools in the country (with the exception of the Asian subpopulation in the states of New Jersey & Texas). (The caucasian subpop is a proxy demographic for NW DC schools)

http://www.schoolinfosystem.org/archives/2007/10/a_different_loo.php

I should mention that this is the 4th grade national stadardized testing result - so it represents elementary schools only.

[Anonymous]

My prejudice against public schools is based on this:

* I want my child to learn how to think critically and analytically;

* I want my child to love learning and be a life-long learner;

* I want my DC surrounded by others kids whose parents put a very high value on education.

Although our NWDC public elementary school is considered excellent, it was not our top choice but a back up in case we didn't get into the two private schools to which we applied. We just didn't believe DC would thrive in the same way intellectually. Public schools *have* to teach to the test. It is something of a miracle if a public school teacher also happens to instill a love of learning, a true understanding of the material and allows the freedom for independent thinking; the teachers (in general) don't have the time, administration's support, or training to do so.

Background: I went to one of the best private schools in the country (not in DC). DH went to a top rated public school in Georgia.

[Anonymous]

My problem with the local privates is that the big name schools all seem to follow such a last century model. It is very important to us that our DC is bilingual from childhood and we can't imagine raising a child without that advantage. The only high-quality private program with language immersion is WIS. It seems so ridiculous to pay so much money at the other schools and not even get a 21st century education.

[Anonymous]

PP - It's that background info that I wanted to know about. Just like the PP who said that his DC was a follower and so needed to not be around the "wrong crowd" (whatever that is and apparently private schools don't have "wrong crowds"), it seems that the people who are making these blanket statements aren't really making fair comparisons. Comparing Einstein (for instance) to Sidwell seems ridiculous, but a kid can still get a great education at Einstein or Wilson or Rosemary Hills or Takoma Park ES. I am just trying to understand the level of vitriol. People, including yourself, make such blanket statements regarding public school students - i.e. that they don't learn how to think critically, analytically, that they hate learning, and that their parents don't put a high value on education. I find this extremely difficult to believe, in that this was not the case in my public schooling growing up - and my ps was NOT in one of the, if not the, top school system in the country (far from it) as my children would be in MoCo. Doesn't alot depend on the parents?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actually, the NW DC public schools do a better job of teaching math than any public schools in the country (with the exception of the Asian subpopulation in the states of New Jersey & Texas). (The caucasian subpop is a proxy demographic for NW DC schools)

http://www.schoolinfosystem.org/archives/2007/10/a_different_loo.php

I should mention that this is the 4th grade national stadardized testing result - so it represents elementary schools only.

You should also mention that it compares states -- not school districts/systems. It's not impressive that the affluent white 4th graders in DC public schools outperform the average white fourth grader in each state.

[Anonymous]

It may not be "impressive that the affluent white 4th graders" outperform but it DOES go directly to the original question - people say NW DC schools suck blah blah blah, but when looked at on a national basis - they're above average if not better - they just suffer, on some indicators, by comparison with the fancy well-endowed schools for the political and intellectual elite of the country amassed in D.C.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actually, the NW DC public schools do a better job of teaching math than any public schools in the country (with the exception of the Asian subpopulation in the states of New Jersey & Texas). (The caucasian subpop is a proxy demographic for NW DC schools)

http://www.schoolinfosystem.org/archives/2007/10/a_different_loo.php

I should mention that this is the 4th grade national stadardized testing result - so it represents elementary schools only.

You should also mention that it compares states -- not school districts/systems. It's not impressive that the affluent white 4th graders in DC public schools outperform the average white fourth grader in each state.

I was simply pointing to the numbers. Whether or not you find them impressive is completely your opinion, to which you are of course entitled, and about which I couldn't care less. What is fact, however, is that it is entirely possible to get an education from the NW DC public schools which produces top scores nationally in mathematics. In my opinion, that answered the OP's question, which is why I posted the information. The end.

[Anonymous]

I have personal firsthand experience with DCPS from the 1970's and 1980's. I do not have vitriol, but given my experience, and the knowledge that the system is worse today then when I attended, gives me great pause to send my children there, particularly given the "teaching to the test" parameters.

[Anonymous]

Great, so the public schools in DC are above average if you ignore how poorly they educate most non-white students (i.e. the vast majority of DCPS students) and focus only on a few affluent white elementary schools.

Let's get real. Wilson is not an excellent public high school. It suffers not only from comparison with the best local private schools, but also the best local public schools, and the best public high schools nationally.

Can very bright students emerge well-educated from a less-than-excellent school? Sure, especially if they have support and resources at home. Do their test scores then attest to their high school's excellence? No -- at least not if only a few kids excel each year.

[Anonymous]

I don't know about Wilson, but I believe Banneker and School W/O Walls were named in the top 100 schools by Newsweek magazine