Last night my kid said "I really like Basis - I'm glad I go to school there"!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:BASIS boosters have furnished most of the one-note drivel on DCUM for almost a decade now. Kid loves the place, really. Who needs a well-rounded education? Not us!! We’re thrilled with a middle school where there’s little fun, creativity or choice to be had, an institution w/out a stable teaching force, a stable admin team, well-paid teachers etc. etc. Yes, it gets old. This has been an unusual thread because the boosters haven’t dominated.

If its been almost a decade, it's not some small group of parents.

I have never understood the Basis animosity out there -- its surreal. Why can't a kid like Basis and want to go there? I'm the ward 3 poster who is sending a kid to Basis over Deal. Both schools have benefits and drawbacks. But the anger on this board about the school is just bizarre and makes people sound unhinged.

Such an easy statement to make from Ward 3. Upper Caucasia is just bizarre.

[Anonymous]

Having a 4th grader on Capitol Hill is enough to make anyone unhinged.

[Anonymous]

This thread (as expected) devolved into typical DCUM troll farming. What I find so amusing abut DCUM is the juvenile retort that anytime anyone says anything positive they are a "booster", as if supporting or expressing happiness with something is something about which people should be embarrassed.

I don't have a kid at Basis. I don't have a horse in this race. I do find it crazy that (like most everything else on DCUM) there are so many people who just reflexively lash out at people who have the audacity to express love or enjoyment at something. It surely rings as jealousy. Why else would someone else being happy with their school or experience anger others so?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Having a 4th grader on Capitol Hill is enough to make anyone unhinged.

+100. Exactly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This thread (as expected) devolved into typical DCUM troll farming. What I find so amusing abut DCUM is the juvenile retort that anytime anyone says anything positive they are a "booster", as if supporting or expressing happiness with something is something about which people should be embarrassed.

I don't have a kid at Basis. I don't have a horse in this race. I do find it crazy that (like most everything else on DCUM) there are so many people who just reflexively lash out at people who have the audacity to express love or enjoyment at something. It surely rings as jealousy. Why else would someone else being happy with their school or experience anger others so?

No skin in the game? Pipe down.

Why else? Because BASIS isn't an independent school. It's a corporate enterprise heavily subsidized by our tax dollars. It's also school that syphons off half of the UMC 4th grade families from CH's DCPS ES programs with the strongest neighborhood buy-in, although BASIS offers conditions for teaching tweens that should never have been sanctioned by the DC ed powers that be (no outdoor space, gym etc.).

The rub is that DCPS deserves the brain drain, and then some. Some of us don't like this picture from any angle, not for the taxes (particularly property tax) we pay to live in Ward 6. In point of fact, the DCPS Ward 6 MS threads on DCUM tend to be angrier than any related to BASIS.

[Anonymous]

My taxes also pay for BASIS and I am happy we have a choice and can our child to a school that offers a quality education. You're just green with envy.

[Anonymous]

Green with envy about...what? We kept an open mind about BASIS. My oldest earned straight As but the building was joyless, teaching very uneven, too many disruptive kids in class, young admins (who ultimately quit) barely competent, parent input not appreciated. We're lucky to be in a position to put DC public schools behind us (just last year) because they're just not too hot past ES, wherever you look, despite increasingly favorable demographics. I say this having lived in the District for almost 30 years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I roll my eyes when 5th grade BASIS families jump on DCUM to wax enthusiastic about how much their children love this over-rated program. A school with BASIS DC’s particular building, management model and curriculum can only be so good.As kids get older, you tire of schlepping them to quality extra-curriculars and other sourcing inputs necessary to ensure that they get a well-rounded education as teens. You also get fed up with paying to supplement on the enrichment front to the tune of thousands and thousands of dollars a year for decent music, performing arts, art, foreign language, sports or whatever.. If we could do it over again we’d probably have moved to Arlington. BASIS essentially offers half an education, not more.

Few BASIS MS parents can see that far ahead.

You can’t really evaluate Basis without understanding the context most patents are coming from. Our assigned middle school (Stuart Hobson) didn’t seem like a good fit because DC is tortured by too much chaos and has seen how chaotic the S-H kids seem to be out and about in the neighborhood. She wasn’t willing to even try. We can’t afford private. I considered MoCo for years, but DH loves our neighborhood and would be crushed to live in the suburbs. So…? We played the lottery and were thrilled to have Basis as a choice.

At the same time, it’s not a perfect fit for DC or our family and not the school I’d choose if I had several strong choices. We have our grumbles. But we didn’t have several strong choices, and at least it’s (mostly) teaching DC a lot, and we like most of the kids. DC is considering other high school options but may decide to stay at Basis because supposedly high school is more enjoyable than middle school. As much as DC is torn now, I think high school might end up being a great experience. Most things in life are not either all great or all bad.

All the Basis schools, including the private ones, have the same curriculum. So, your kids are studying the same stuff at the same time as kids paying $40-45,000/year in McLean, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Silicon Valley, etc.

I am sure there is more hand-holding and attention in the privates. But you are not paying anything for Basis DC. So, what do expect?

For many of us, Basis is far and away the best option in DC.

Basis is not a first choice school for those spending 40k on a private. At least not in the dc area or Brooklyn. Never will be a first choice private school.

[Anonymous]

That's right because the BASIS franchise doesn't run full-fledged schools. They do AP prep academies on a shoestring, without much in the way of community, hands-on learning, character training, outdoor activities, cultural studies or enrichment. They can't pay or train their admins or teachers well enough to run stable schools.

In the District, if you can do better for your kids than BASIS without disrupting your lives by relocating, or breaking the bank on independent schools, you do.

I haven't heard "haters" on this thread as much as disappointment on the part of some unrealistic parents who hoped for more.

[Anonymous]

Nailed it. BASIS is not a "normal" place for a middle school education. Parents who know what they are signing up for and see how Basis for 4 years could be useful, in the big picture, whether that is because their child is coming from an elementary school with weak academics and they need to "jump start," or because they see it as a bridge between ES and Walls or private school, are probably satisfied, especially if their children are motivated learners who don't need extra support. Those who were hoping BASIS would be something else, are likely disappointed. In fairness to BASIS they are pretty up-front about what their school is like. The problem is that many parents don't have other options so they go into BASIS with unrealistic expectations. (The booster-types who couldn't possibly say anything negative about the choice they made for their kids' school is not helpful to this).

[Anonymous]

It seems like the anger is that people don't have enough options. That should be directed at the city, not at Basis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:BASIS boosters have furnished most of the one-note drivel on DCUM for almost a decade now. Kid loves the place, really. Who needs a well-rounded education? Not us!! We’re thrilled with a middle school where there’s little fun, creativity or choice to be had, an institution w/out a stable teaching force, a stable admin team, well-paid teachers etc. etc. Yes, it gets old. This has been an unusual thread because the boosters haven’t dominated.

If its been almost a decade, it's not some small group of parents.

I have never understood the Basis animosity out there -- its surreal. Why can't a kid like Basis and want to go there? I'm the ward 3 poster who is sending a kid to Basis over Deal. Both schools have benefits and drawbacks. But the anger on this board about the school is just bizarre and makes people sound unhinged.

Such an easy statement to make from Ward 3. Upper Caucasia is just bizarre.

PP here. Not sure I understand. Why is it easy to make a statement that the anger towards the school is bizarre? It is. It sounds more like people are just angry that they feel they don't have enough choices -- in which case, why are they ranting about Basis and not ranting about DCPS?

Separately, if you don't live in the Deal catchment , you also may not know about the drawbacks of the school, which are many. It's not a promise land; its a mixed bag like Basis and everything else.

[Anonymous]

+100. If all you're looking for are strong traditional middle school academics (in a narrow sense) and an orderly school environment, BASIS can work out. The odds of success are good if your kid is willing to work hard, can manage their time well, and performs at grade level or above.

But if you want a well-rounded middle school education, a progressive administration, an emphasis on language and cultural studies, strong support for exploring individual talents and interests, good facilities beyond adequate science labs, and a happy, healthy environment for preteens, look elsewhere. Move if you must.

[Anonymous]

Agree that Deal is not a promised land but its challenges are fairly predictable and normal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:BASIS boosters have furnished most of the one-note drivel on DCUM for almost a decade now. Kid loves the place, really. Who needs a well-rounded education? Not us!! We’re thrilled with a middle school where there’s little fun, creativity or choice to be had, an institution w/out a stable teaching force, a stable admin team, well-paid teachers etc. etc. Yes, it gets old. This has been an unusual thread because the boosters haven’t dominated.

If its been almost a decade, it's not some small group of parents.

I have never understood the Basis animosity out there -- its surreal. Why can't a kid like Basis and want to go there? I'm the ward 3 poster who is sending a kid to Basis over Deal. Both schools have benefits and drawbacks. But the anger on this board about the school is just bizarre and makes people sound unhinged.

Such an easy statement to make from Ward 3. Upper Caucasia is just bizarre.

PP here. Not sure I understand. Why is it easy to make a statement that the anger towards the school is bizarre? It is. It sounds more like people are just angry that they feel they don't have enough choices -- in which case, why are they ranting about Basis and not ranting about DCPS?

Separately, if you don't live in the Deal catchment , you also may not know about the drawbacks of the school, which are many. It's not a promise land; its a mixed bag like Basis and everything else.

Pointing out BASIS' limitations is hardly tantamount to "ranting," PP.