Outside math enrichment

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD with 800 in SAT math have never done these enrichments, she did a 2 week prep for SAT, but never enrolled in there year long programs, seems excessive. Her only friend doing these classes is on the low math track

The difference is your child is extremely bright and probably on the highest math track.

As an MCPS HS math teacher, I can safely say most kids in that track were heavily prepped. Not sure why some parents love to pretend otherwise. There's really no shame in putting in a little effort.

Not really, it is kids on low math track taking these classes, never heard on kids on the same track as DD ( calc BC 11th grade) doing these enrichments

Kids on the high tracks often take outside classes in elementary to get ahead and onto that track in the first place. That enrichment is also a form of prep. It's not like the high track kids had talent in a vacuum.

That's usually the case with anything whether it's basketball, soccer or math.

+1 Personally I would love if there was not this ‘arms race’ of prepping, but because I know so many do it forces us to do this too so my kids are not at a disadvantage.

Regarding academic enrichment, I also have to supplement because the MCPS ES curriculum is so watered down unfortunately. Again I would love to rely on the school to teach my kids but I have seen that I cannot, and - like many going to public schools - can’t afford the tuition for schools that would. It is a shame our school system is not more rigorous.

[Anonymous]

I am grateful for outside math enrichment. My kid's MCPS compacted class has 32 students, and the RSM has 6 students. Gets way more in 2 hours of math each week outside of school than in the 7.5 hours of math in school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD with 800 in SAT math have never done these enrichments, she did a 2 week prep for SAT, but never enrolled in there year long programs, seems excessive. Her only friend doing these classes is on the low math track

The difference is your child is extremely bright and probably on the highest math track.

As an MCPS HS math teacher, I can safely say most kids in that track were heavily prepped. Not sure why some parents love to pretend otherwise. There's really no shame in putting in a little effort.

Not really, it is kids on low math track taking these classes, never heard on kids on the same track as DD ( calc BC 11th grade) doing these enrichments

Kids on the high tracks often take outside classes in elementary to get ahead and onto that track in the first place. That enrichment is also a form of prep. It's not like the high track kids had talent in a vacuum.

That's usually the case with anything whether it's basketball, soccer or math.

Except sports, outside of a minimum level of physical education for health purposes, is not the mandate of schools. Extracurricular. The opportunities available within public education should not be differentially reserved for those with means.

Whether you approve or not is irrelevant. People are doing this in droves. Look at all these booming prep centers.

Look at the post to which the sports-analogy poster was replying:

"Kids on the high tracks often take outside classes in elementary to get ahead and onto that track in the first place. That enrichment is also a form of prep. It's not like the high track kids had talent in a vacuum."

There's nothing particularly wrong with outside prep. Supporting a child's interests and learning is wonderful, given the resources, and the MCPS curriculum may not be delivering to need. "I approve!" (...as long as children are benefitting, and aren't being taken for a ride by the prep industry with messages of keeping up with the Joneses; overzealous parental push can also be damaging, but I wouldn't want to have to judge what is appropriate in that arena, with so many different family values -- I'd just hope folks were aware enough to stop short of psychological damage...)

What isn't OK is a public good derived from the common wealth, such as enriched/advanced programs in public education, accruing to those with means over those without, all other factors being even. The critique has to do with how MCPS is alloting opportunity -- they need to devise a way to do so that better identifies those with equivalent ability but may not have had the means to supplement.

[Anonymous]

When DC was in ES the moms who were in the PTA and volunteered for things all lived super close to the school, knew each other, and gave side eye to people outside of their clique. Since they seem happy to do everything, I just let them.

[Anonymous]

Oops, wrong thread!

[Anonymous]

Eureka Math is not ideal, but it’s better than the curriculum many local private elementary schools use (Bridges). My kid started at a local private and then switched to MCPS. Found out she was basically a year behind because of the poor private math curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does nobody else see this is just a way of advertising/generating demand for a paid service, when what's really needed is a better focus on enrichment offerings within the system?

Of course, you’re right! But any parent that has kids in MCPS the past 5-10 years knows that this is an uphill battle.

MCPS is focused on Equity. Not excellence and certainly not enrichment. Go to the BOE meetings, read the MCPS emails, learn about what teacher training is like, ask older parents in your neighborhood. The main goal is to close the Achievement Gap. Enrichment does not help MCPS achieve that goal.

There were parents asking for enrichment at my kids’ ES and MS for years. Never happened. Every kid is put into the same useless Advanced English class. And the teachers are supposed to ‘differentiate’, which is close to impossible.

So, as a parent, you can watch your child disengage and get overlooked. Or, pay for private. Or, you find ways to enrich the abysmal ES and MS Math curriculum outside of school.

Is it possible that the pandemic boom in online self-paced programs will actually give the differentiation that we've always pretended teachers can give?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD with 800 in SAT math have never done these enrichments, she did a 2 week prep for SAT, but never enrolled in there year long programs, seems excessive. Her only friend doing these classes is on the low math track

The difference is your child is extremely bright and probably on the highest math track.

Or more likely they're misleading you to draw attention from an uneven playing field.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD with 800 in SAT math have never done these enrichments, she did a 2 week prep for SAT, but never enrolled in there year long programs, seems excessive. Her only friend doing these classes is on the low math track

The difference is your child is extremely bright and probably on the highest math track.

As an MCPS HS math teacher, I can safely say most kids in that track were heavily prepped. Not sure why some parents love to pretend otherwise. There's really no shame in putting in a little effort.

Some may not be prepped. We prepped our child not for enrichment because the elementary curriculum was weak but we did it ourselves with work books.

Look at the prep industry in VA. People spend over $20k over the years to prepare their children for the possibility of getting into TJ. Places like Curie even are singlehandedly responsible for 30% of all admission. Can't imagine what the percentage of preppers is, but guessing if one of the many places is contributing 30%, the real number is closer to 90%.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD with 800 in SAT math have never done these enrichments, she did a 2 week prep for SAT, but never enrolled in there year long programs, seems excessive. Her only friend doing these classes is on the low math track

The difference is your child is extremely bright and probably on the highest math track.

As an MCPS HS math teacher, I can safely say most kids in that track were heavily prepped. Not sure why some parents love to pretend otherwise. There's really no shame in putting in a little effort.

Some may not be prepped. We prepped our child not for enrichment because the elementary curriculum was weak but we did it ourselves with work books.

Look at the prep industry in VA. People spend over $20k over the years to prepare their children for the possibility of getting into TJ. Places like Curie even are singlehandedly responsible for 30% of all admission. Can't imagine what the percentage of preppers is, but guessing if one of the many places is contributing 30%, the real number is closer to 90%.

Claims there, aside, here's another example that shows the need to employ better ways to identify children with the ability/need, rather than the resources/prep. Of course, there'd be overlap between the two groups -- I fully expect that some of those prepping have natural ability, but even if a smaller percentage than claimed are due to prep, then FCPS ends up reserving publicly-funded privilege to those with means.

Spend the $20k to support an interest? Great, if you have the dough! Spend even more for private ed? Up to you!

The combination of low capacity in public advanced/enriched programs and utilization of criteria by public school systems for access to those programs that inherently favors those with means? Disgusting on both counts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD with 800 in SAT math have never done these enrichments, she did a 2 week prep for SAT, but never enrolled in there year long programs, seems excessive. Her only friend doing these classes is on the low math track

The difference is your child is extremely bright and probably on the highest math track.

As an MCPS HS math teacher, I can safely say most kids in that track were heavily prepped. Not sure why some parents love to pretend otherwise. There's really no shame in putting in a little effort.

Not really, it is kids on low math track taking these classes, never heard on kids on the same track as DD ( calc BC 11th grade) doing these enrichments

Kids on the high tracks often take outside classes in elementary to get ahead and onto that track in the first place. That enrichment is also a form of prep. It's not like the high track kids had talent in a vacuum.

That's usually the case with anything whether it's basketball, soccer or math.

+1 Personally I would love if there was not this ‘arms race’ of prepping, but because I know so many do it forces us to do this too so my kids are not at a disadvantage.

Regarding academic enrichment, I also have to supplement because the MCPS ES curriculum is so watered down unfortunately. Again I would love to rely on the school to teach my kids but I have seen that I cannot, and - like many going to public schools - can’t afford the tuition for schools that would. It is a shame our school system is not more rigorous.

I know exactly what you're saying, but I think the problem is the school system is just strained to the breaking point. Kids like mine that are above grade level just get warehoused in ES. They sit in classes like compacted math and learn almost nothing for two years, but there's no alternative. My youngest even told me they only have reading groups once a month while others get groups 2-3 times a week. Consequently, I'm on the hook for teaching reading and math.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD with 800 in SAT math have never done these enrichments, she did a 2 week prep for SAT, but never enrolled in there year long programs, seems excessive. Her only friend doing these classes is on the low math track

The difference is your child is extremely bright and probably on the highest math track.

As an MCPS HS math teacher, I can safely say most kids in that track were heavily prepped. Not sure why some parents love to pretend otherwise. There's really no shame in putting in a little effort.

Not really, it is kids on low math track taking these classes, never heard on kids on the same track as DD ( calc BC 11th grade) doing these enrichments

Kids on the high tracks often take outside classes in elementary to get ahead and onto that track in the first place. That enrichment is also a form of prep. It's not like the high track kids had talent in a vacuum.

That's usually the case with anything whether it's basketball, soccer or math.

+1 Personally I would love if there was not this ‘arms race’ of prepping, but because I know so many do it forces us to do this too so my kids are not at a disadvantage.

Regarding academic enrichment, I also have to supplement because the MCPS ES curriculum is so watered down unfortunately. Again I would love to rely on the school to teach my kids but I have seen that I cannot, and - like many going to public schools - can’t afford the tuition for schools that would. It is a shame our school system is not more rigorous.

I know exactly what you're saying, but I think the problem is the school system is just strained to the breaking point. Kids like mine that are above grade level just get warehoused in ES. They sit in classes like compacted math and learn almost nothing for two years, but there's no alternative. My youngest even told me they only have reading groups once a month while others get groups 2-3 times a week. Consequently, I'm on the hook for teaching reading and math.

This is exactly our experience as well. My kid is learning nothing in school. It's up to me to make sure she learns. That's why she takes both math and ELA enrichment courses. It's the only way she learns any content.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD with 800 in SAT math have never done these enrichments, she did a 2 week prep for SAT, but never enrolled in there year long programs, seems excessive. Her only friend doing these classes is on the low math track

The difference is your child is extremely bright and probably on the highest math track.

As an MCPS HS math teacher, I can safely say most kids in that track were heavily prepped. Not sure why some parents love to pretend otherwise. There's really no shame in putting in a little effort.

Not really, it is kids on low math track taking these classes, never heard on kids on the same track as DD ( calc BC 11th grade) doing these enrichments

Kids on the high tracks often take outside classes in elementary to get ahead and onto that track in the first place. That enrichment is also a form of prep. It's not like the high track kids had talent in a vacuum.

So You don’t think some kids are better than math than others naturally or just better learners?
I have two kids, one is good at math without prep, the other is below average and just not interested in any enrichment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD with 800 in SAT math have never done these enrichments, she did a 2 week prep for SAT, but never enrolled in there year long programs, seems excessive. Her only friend doing these classes is on the low math track

So, the two week course was also enrichment, and if she is on a higher math track, that is too. Not criticizing, but not sure why you set up that your kid does not get enrichment.

DP

It’s not like you can just sign your kid up for an enrichment class and the kid will magically perform better. My kid does AoPS, but she loves math and she willingly puts in the time and effort. She does Alcumus. She does the homework. She reads the textbook (the textbook has been a lifesaver!).

So it’s not about having the money to afford enrichment. Your kid needs to put in the work.

Just like you can’t just sign your kid up for an elite soccer camp.

[Anonymous]

I'm jealous. I tried to tiger parent my kids early on, now they (7th and 9th grade) claim that they hate math and that it's boring.

My son is failing 9th grade geometry.