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

[Anonymous]

Keep reading that MCPS are going down in flames in multiple posts. What exactly are the reasons, and what areas are likely to see their home values stunted as a result? Please use specific examples of why MCPS are going to crap and not some ambiguously defined score for schools posted on Zillow or redfin.

[Anonymous]

In don't think it is

Lots of posts after mine will talk about an influx of low income, low education families though

[Anonymous]

OP check out the VA school forum and you'll see the same paranoia. MoCo schools aren't going to crap but feel free to look at GS ratings to answer your question. You seem to be the type that would be interested in only those ratings.

[Anonymous]

IMO home values are stunted or reasons other than schools in MoCo. There are tons of new development for condos/TH with a starting price of like $700K, which is more expensive than some SFH in the area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP check out the VA school forum and you'll see the same paranoia. MoCo schools aren't going to crap but feel free to look at GS ratings to answer your question. You seem to be the type that would be interested in only those ratings.

Exactly. Everyone seems to be having a collective flip-out over their school districts at the moment. The reality is, of course, things are neither wholly good nor wholly bad anywhere. Whether a school works for your kid is a personal thing. No one can figure out what you need except for you.

[Anonymous]

^for other reasons

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP check out the VA school forum and you'll see the same paranoia. MoCo schools aren't going to crap but feel free to look at GS ratings to answer your question. You seem to be the type that would be interested in only those ratings.

Exactly. Everyone seems to be having a collective flip-out over their school districts at the moment. The reality is, of course, things are neither wholly good nor wholly bad anywhere. Whether a school works for your kid is a personal thing. No one can figure out what you need except for you.

+1, see this thread:

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/811180.page

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP check out the VA school forum and you'll see the same paranoia. MoCo schools aren't going to crap but feel free to look at GS ratings to answer your question. You seem to be the type that would be interested in only those ratings.

Exactly. Everyone seems to be having a collective flip-out over their school districts at the moment. The reality is, of course, things are neither wholly good nor wholly bad anywhere. Whether a school works for your kid is a personal thing. No one can figure out what you need except for you.

+1, see this thread:

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/811180.page

DP.. you beat me to it. I was just about to post this link.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP check out the VA school forum and you'll see the same paranoia. MoCo schools aren't going to crap but feel free to look at GS ratings to answer your question. You seem to be the type that would be interested in only those ratings.

Exactly. Everyone seems to be having a collective flip-out over their school districts at the moment. The reality is, of course, things are neither wholly good nor wholly bad anywhere. Whether a school works for your kid is a personal thing. No one can figure out what you need except for you.

Stop making sense, PP. This is not the type of response OP wants in the real estate forum

[Anonymous]

Mostly about entitled whiners imagining conspiracies that don't exist.

[Anonymous]

MCPS has been going down for the past 10 years.

1. Curriculum 2.0 fiasco. Parents and teachers hated it and complained but MCPS didn't listen. The John Hopkins audit validated all the complaints and said it was a disaster so now they are finally get rid of it. The whole thing really tanked MCPS' reputation. Parents no longer raved about the school. The elementary school grading process with everything being a P was a joke. The year it rolled out when they ended math acceleration kids who had been taking classes 2 years ahead and performing very well were sent back to repeat a remedial and laughably easy 2.0 class. Compacted math was a small comprise but still very behind the prior math acceleration pathway. This started to tip the scales toward VA and Howard county for people looking for good schools and sent others into privates.

2. Scandals. MCPS is truly unique in the sheer number and frequency of employee predators in the system. Issues of MCPS hiding predators or ignoring problems are on the same level as the Catholic Church. There have been so many incident. The one that stick out in my mind was when the middle school girl reported being molested by her teacher and the principal sent her back to his classroom. No punishment or consequences for the principal, just a "misstep". Bad management from Starr and then Smith in not getting rid of people who are a risk to kids and allowing staff to cover up crimes is a big black mark.

3. Plummeting test scores and performance with incompetent attempts to cover it up. Combination of changing demographics and bad curriculum. MCPS wants to blame the dropping scores on the changing demographics but the bad curriculum has had a far greater impact. MCPS focused more on hiding the problem than solving it. Kids failing Algebra exams at increasing rates? Lets not look at the new curriculum, lets just remove final exams so it won't be public.

4. Racial discrimination in the magnets. The new policy to reduce Asian American student representation in magnets is heinous and will drive high performing Asian American to other systems. This in turn will lower test scores.

5. Increasing poverty. MCPS has not responded to this very well. MCPS interpreted restorative justice process to mean not expelling dangerous, violent kids. Victims get to sit next to their attackers the next day.

6. Poor facilities management. Lead and mold way above EPA guidelines in elementary schools, ceilings with holes and leaks, plumbing problems, HVAC problems.

7. Horrendous capacity planning and forecasting.

8. Acrimonious relationship with the community and parents. MCPS motto " we don't care, were just here for our paycheck".

As to which areas will be hit the hardest? All of them. There is an ignorant lets cut off our nose to spite out face behavior going on in TP/Silver Spring. Some think that they will benefit if they can push changes that take down the W schools where they couldn't afford to live. This is short sighted because changes that hurt the W schools will hurt them too. Their property values won't rise if the top schools evaporate. In fact, the SS/TP schools will go down first because they are more on the edge.

[Anonymous]

PP has hit the nail on the head.

I don't think the boundary assessment will lead to any meaningful change (maybe on boundary edges). It was brought up by the Student member of the Board of Education: parents don't want this, only students (not low income parents who want to keep their title 1 or focus label, which comes with federal money, smaller class sizes and extra services for students and families, and not parents who spent a premium on their house to attend a particular school). I don't think any elected official really cares what students think, and elected officials will be in charge of deciding what happens. Students don't buy homes or pay taxes, and they are transient, amd most aren't old enough to vote. MCPS said they aren't going to be bussing kids, so what could they do?

It's a big exercise in wasted time and money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:MCPS has been going down for the past 10 years.

1. Curriculum 2.0 fiasco. Parents and teachers hated it and complained but MCPS didn't listen. The John Hopkins audit validated all the complaints and said it was a disaster so now they are finally get rid of it. The whole thing really tanked MCPS' reputation. Parents no longer raved about the school. The elementary school grading process with everything being a P was a joke. The year it rolled out when they ended math acceleration kids who had been taking classes 2 years ahead and performing very well were sent back to repeat a remedial and laughably easy 2.0 class. Compacted math was a small comprise but still very behind the prior math acceleration pathway. This started to tip the scales toward VA and Howard county for people looking for good schools and sent others into privates.

2. Scandals. MCPS is truly unique in the sheer number and frequency of employee predators in the system. Issues of MCPS hiding predators or ignoring problems are on the same level as the Catholic Church. There have been so many incident. The one that stick out in my mind was when the middle school girl reported being molested by her teacher and the principal sent her back to his classroom. No punishment or consequences for the principal, just a "misstep". Bad management from Starr and then Smith in not getting rid of people who are a risk to kids and allowing staff to cover up crimes is a big black mark.

3. Plummeting test scores and performance with incompetent attempts to cover it up. Combination of changing demographics and bad curriculum. MCPS wants to blame the dropping scores on the changing demographics but the bad curriculum has had a far greater impact. MCPS focused more on hiding the problem than solving it. Kids failing Algebra exams at increasing rates? Lets not look at the new curriculum, lets just remove final exams so it won't be public.

4. Racial discrimination in the magnets. The new policy to reduce Asian American student representation in magnets is heinous and will drive high performing Asian American to other systems. This in turn will lower test scores.

5. Increasing poverty. MCPS has not responded to this very well. MCPS interpreted restorative justice process to mean not expelling dangerous, violent kids. Victims get to sit next to their attackers the next day.

6. Poor facilities management. Lead and mold way above EPA guidelines in elementary schools, ceilings with holes and leaks, plumbing problems, HVAC problems.

7. Horrendous capacity planning and forecasting.

8. Acrimonious relationship with the community and parents. MCPS motto " we don't care, were just here for our paycheck".

As to which areas will be hit the hardest? All of them. There is an ignorant lets cut off our nose to spite out face behavior going on in TP/Silver Spring. Some think that they will benefit if they can push changes that take down the W schools where they couldn't afford to live. This is short sighted because changes that hurt the W schools will hurt them too. Their property values won't rise if the top schools evaporate. In fact, the SS/TP schools will go down first because they are more on the edge.

1. I'm assuming you're in MCPS? You do know that the curriculum is changing starting in September, right?
2. I'm actually glad the "scandals" are coming out in public now instead of being swept under the rug. Please tell me a specific example where a predator has recently been given a pass.
3. Plumetting test scores? which test scores? PARCC? The one that other school systems have ditched because of it's uselessness? the one that teachers have openly admitted to hating? They're getting rid of that test too. thank God. Nothing to do with changing demographics.
4. what racial discrimination? Has this been proven? MCPS decides to do universal screening and MCPS parents are now furious that their little Larlas are no longer getting accepted. God forbid a brown kid gets into the program. I'm Asian by the way.
5. How are you relating increasing poverty to restorative justice? What now? And really, I feel like you are being a bit over the top by your claim that victims are literally sitting next to their attackers. A bit much. I haven't seen any of that. And shame on you for correlating poor kids with being violent.
6. Old facilities- yes, there are some of those. And yes, this is a big county with a set budget. They can't fix it all at once.
7. Horrendous capacity planning- yes, agreed. although I'm glad to hear that they've stopped building in some areas.
8. Uh.. completely disagree on this one. I've never encountered such BS. Majority of teachers, staffers that I've met and I've met plenty are all here for the kids.

Some people are extremely OVERKILL with a major axe to grind. Perspective is a beautiful thing, people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP check out the VA school forum and you'll see the same paranoia. MoCo schools aren't going to crap but feel free to look at GS ratings to answer your question. You seem to be the type that would be interested in only those ratings.

The entitled people aren’t getting what they want, but can’t afford private because they spent all their money on a mortgage for a sh*tshack zoned for a W.

[Anonymous]

I bet if we could go waay back, there were a lot of people complaining about MCPS. When I was somewhat new to this forum, I looked at some of the old posts, pre 2.0, and sure enough, there were people complaining about MCPS.