Exactly what are the reasons MCPS are going down the toilet and what areas will be hit hardest?

[Anonymous]

Has anyone read the Kirwan Commission report? dls.maryland.gov/policy-areas/commission-on-innovation-and-excellence-in-education#! Read it and weep. Serious cognitive dissonance going on when I mention this report to my neighbors. Folks, even though you pay a lot of taxes this includes your students. (Basically Maryland students rank in the 30s -- and about 2 years behind their international peers). Nearly half of MCPS's fourth graders read below grade level. (Of course they would -- this county is a 'whole word' county -- no phonics going on here even though the evidence is pretty overwhelming. Reading 'wars' are over and phonics won.). For the folks on the Western side of the county, let's be real -- the reason your kids are doing better than their socioeconomically lower peers is in large measure that you pay for C2, Kumon, Lindamood-Bell, Mathnesium, Abacus Math et al. when the instruction dips but you don't want to admit it. These 'test preps' are literally in every shopping center on the West side! I would be much happier if we simply paid for low income kids to get private tutoring...than in joining Erlich's social engineering joy ride to impress the New York Times' Editorial Board. It would be much better to spend the Kirwan money that may be coming our way than in more poor instruction in the schools. (Although given that MoCo is the cash register for the rest of the state -- and dismal representation we have in Annapolis -- it is questionable how much we will receive in funds.) Curriculum is everything and MCPS' decision to stick with a sub-optimal one for so long (including the Discovery Education scandal two years ago) really did it for our family. Also, while we are at it, the best curriculum in the nation the past twenty-five years was developed in Massachusetts -- and MCPS (when they finally got a chance to select a new one) picked... New York's. So they can look look good I'm guessing? Nice one, Rockville -- the PR folks really are the only ones doing their job well over there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone read the Kirwan Commission report? dls.maryland.gov/policy-areas/commission-on-innovation-and-excellence-in-education#! Read it and weep. Serious cognitive dissonance going on when I mention this report to my neighbors. Folks, even though you pay a lot of taxes this includes your students. (Basically Maryland students rank in the 30s -- and about 2 years behind their international peers). Nearly half of MCPS's fourth graders read below grade level. (Of course they would -- this county is a 'whole word' county -- no phonics going on here even though the evidence is pretty overwhelming. Reading 'wars' are over and phonics won.). For the folks on the Western side of the county, let's be real -- the reason your kids are doing better than their socioeconomically lower peers is in large measure that you pay for C2, Kumon, Lindamood-Bell, Mathnesium, Abacus Math et al. when the instruction dips but you don't want to admit it. These 'test preps' are literally in every shopping center on the West side! I would be much happier if we simply paid for low income kids to get private tutoring...than in joining Erlich's social engineering joy ride to impress the New York Times' Editorial Board. It would be much better to spend the Kirwan money that may be coming our way than in more poor instruction in the schools. (Although given that MoCo is the cash register for the rest of the state -- and dismal representation we have in Annapolis -- it is questionable how much we will receive in funds.) Curriculum is everything and MCPS' decision to stick with a sub-optimal one for so long (including the Discovery Education scandal two years ago) really did it for our family. Also, while we are at it, the best curriculum in the nation the past twenty-five years was developed in Massachusetts -- and MCPS (when they finally got a chance to select a new one) picked... New York's. So they can look look good I'm guessing? Nice one, Rockville -- the PR folks really are the only ones doing their job well over there.

NY has the best public HS in the country. Many non-magnet schools near the top. Syosset, Great Neck etc. VA and DC best schools are magnet not public schools open to anyone. Good choice

[Anonymous]

As much as the Council and the teachers hated Jerry Weast, he ran a tight ship. Since he left, mcps has been going down hill. Those of you who don't think so are in denial. Those who think the boundary assessment study (or whatever the hell it's named) is going to fix poverty and raise your home values are insane. Of course I must be racost/a biggot/live in a W cluster to think so (NOT)!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My sense is that a typical QO buyer pursues a very different American dream that a Wootton parent, hence the house prices are not really connected. I would expect more impact on Northern Churchill disrroct home values and the morr desirable parts of RM.

I wrote almost a year ago that the social justice warriors can grab for our schools, but they will never get our kids. Sadly, yet unsurprisingly, it appears to be the case.

Just hoping to hold on to the good teachers for as longas we remain here. The exodus at RM has already started; other schools are pending.

What exodus at RM? I don't see any exodus, and I live in the cluster. If anything, I see more families with school aged kids moving into my neighborhood. Our ES bus stop has exploded.

Right. Not sure what that PP is talking about. RM is even running over capacity. An exodus would even be desirable but it’s the opposite that is happening.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My sense is that a typical QO buyer pursues a very different American dream that a Wootton parent, hence the house prices are not really connected. I would expect more impact on Northern Churchill disrroct home values and the morr desirable parts of RM.

I wrote almost a year ago that the social justice warriors can grab for our schools, but they will never get our kids. Sadly, yet unsurprisingly, it appears to be the case.

Just hoping to hold on to the good teachers for as longas we remain here. The exodus at RM has already started; other schools are pending.

What exodus at RM? I don't see any exodus, and I live in the cluster. If anything, I see more families with school aged kids moving into my neighborhood. Our ES bus stop has exploded.

Right. Not sure what that PP is talking about. RM is even running over capacity. An exodus would even be desirable but it’s the opposite that is happening.

Right? And then there's that thread about the development making the cluster even more crowded. What exodus? If there was such an exodus why are there so many new developments?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As much as the Council and the teachers hated Jerry Weast, he ran a tight ship. Since he left, mcps has been going down hill. Those of you who don't think so are in denial. Those who think the boundary assessment study (or whatever the hell it's named) is going to fix poverty and raise your home values are insane. Of course I must be racost/a biggot/live in a W cluster to think so (NOT)!

The goal of the assessment study is not to raise home values. The mission of the school system is to provide the best education to all kids, not to raise your home value.

[Anonymous]

NY has the best public HS in the country. Many non-magnet schools near the top. Syosset, Great Neck etc. VA and DC best schools are magnet not public schools open to anyone.

Good choice.



Before you make this your final answer, please compare Massachusetts to New York on the NAEP test results. https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ Massachusetts is nearly 20 points higher on Math, Reading, and Science scores for 4th, 8th and 12th grades. This is statistically significant. (New York currently is on par with Maryland’s dismal scores). Agree with you that New York's curriculum is probably better than the drivel MCPS peddled for nine years with Pearson (for the Rockville crowd you have to give them credit for walking down the street without bumping into someone else) but why not copy Number 1 if you actually want to be Number 1? See that's what gives them away -- MCPS is focused on their optics, not on raising expectations and getting results for all of our kids. What hurts here is that Massachusetts made it to the top by having their business community lobby for the schools – and forced the union to accept higher teacher standards in exchange for more funding. This is where the lack of a vibrant business community hurts. Kirwan Commission is not demanding this trade-off – just more dollars. Where is our Jack Rennie? https://www.renniecenter.org/about The irony – many of the buildings where our once vibrant Montgomery County companies used to be (Celera Genomics, for instance) are now occupied by MCPS bureaucrats. (Celera: https://www.yellowpages.com/rockville-md/mip/celera-genomics-3872408) (MCPS: https://www.superpages.com/bp/rockville-md/montgomery-county-public-sch-L0505246706.htm )

[Anonymous]

https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/how-do-states-really-stack-2015-naep

Maryland's schools are awful. Worse than New Mexico, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Georgia, etc. YIKES.

[Anonymous]

This is how states stack up.

[Anonymous]

Asian-Americans are still doing well. When you have lots of AA and HI kids or low-income White kids, your performance will drop.

[Anonymous]

How does this track with the number of Asian-American students in each state?

Anonymous wrote:

This is how states stack up.

[Anonymous]

Who cares about state performance?

Maryland Crown Jewels in Montgomery County, in New York it in Nassau County Long Island.

Both states have large sections of crappy crime ridden neighborhood with crappy schools. Average them in and state goes lower

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Who cares about state performance?

Maryland Crown Jewels in Montgomery County, in New York it in Nassau County Long Island.

Both states have large sections of crappy crime ridden neighborhood with crappy schools. Average them in and state goes lower

One-eyed man among the blind is king. If your kid wants to only go to Montgomery College and study automotive repair then I guess you can be complacent.

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/maryland/rankings

[Anonymous]

Attract Asian-Americans in your district and you will have good schools and low crime. It is a win-win. Asian-Americans are moving to HoCo in droves though!

[Anonymous]

MoCo.. how does it feel to receive the same vitriol you’ve given PG county for the last few decades. Sucks doesn’t it?