MCPS elementary these days...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I might do private for academics for non gifted kids, but the small social circle would give me pause.

For very high achieving kids, I would choose MCPS magnet, at least at the HS level.

Catholic HSs offer the same classes as their public counterparts: AP, IB, and dual enrollment options. I sent my high achieving kid to one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I might do private for academics for non gifted kids, but the small social circle would give me pause.

For very high achieving kids, I would choose MCPS magnet, at least at the HS level.

And it's difficult to get into the HS magnets without the rigor of elite ES and MS classes in MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP are you talking independent Catholic? If not, I really don't think a Catholic school is better than MCPS, certainly in terms of rigor of work/curriculum.

Especially not in math.

Having sent my kids to both Catholic and public, I’d say the Catholic was far more rigorous. And Math seemed more intentional with a firmer foundation. And this was a parish school, not an independent.

I’m also a teacher, so I’m rather critical of curricula. But everybody’s milage varies, and schools are all different. Some publics are better than some privates, and the opposite is also true.

Then your Catholic is a unicorn. Kids who go from public to Catholic are bored to tears in math, and kids who go from Catholic to public are nearly always behind in math. It’s very well known.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP are you talking independent Catholic? If not, I really don't think a Catholic school is better than MCPS, certainly in terms of rigor of work/curriculum.

Especially not in math.

Having sent my kids to both Catholic and public, I’d say the Catholic was far more rigorous. And Math seemed more intentional with a firmer foundation. And this was a parish school, not an independent.

I’m also a teacher, so I’m rather critical of curricula. But everybody’s milage varies, and schools are all different. Some publics are better than some privates, and the opposite is also true.

Then your Catholic is a unicorn. Kids who go from public to Catholic are bored to tears in math, and kids who go from Catholic to public are nearly always behind in math. It’s very well known.

No… it’s not. I’m sitting over here with two decades of experience. I’ve taught over 2,000 students in both settings.

That’s… just not remotely true. Is it true occasionally? Sure. But do I also see students from publics struggling in private classes? Absolutely. Some are placed back in Algebra for 9 because they don’t pass the placement exams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I might do private for academics for non gifted kids, but the small social circle would give me pause.

For very high achieving kids, I would choose MCPS magnet, at least at the HS level.

Catholic HSs offer the same classes as their public counterparts: AP, IB, and dual enrollment options. I sent my high achieving kid to one.

That’s a blanket statement that is not true of all Catholic HS. And just like most HS, just because a course is listed in the catalogue doesn’t mean it will be offered each year which is more likely to occur when there is less kids available.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I might do private for academics for non gifted kids, but the small social circle would give me pause.

For very high achieving kids, I would choose MCPS magnet, at least at the HS level.

But it's not a choice parents/students get to make. There are a very limited number of spots. Same with CES and immersion programs someone mentioned earlier. Very limited spots and a lottery to get in.

MCPS definitely sees groups and not individual kids, at least when it comes to the high-achieving kids whose parents have resources. That is a group that is ignored -- thrown the bone of magnets and left to fight for the scraps. The philosophy of the Board of Ed is definitely that public schools are serving a Purpose. And that is providing education in order to lift up those kids that truly meed it. Worthy goal? Yes. But they figure the group of high achieving kids with well-educated parents will do fine wherever. Which is true. But most parents want their kids to be challenged and engaged and seen, not just getting by and "fine". Public schools serve a very important purpose. But it's definitely not to meet the needs of every individual kid. If there were unlimited resources, I'm sure they'd do better by all the kids, even those that would be "fine" wherever. But there are limited resources, so MCPS is gonna spend it where it's most needed. If parents have resources, spend it on your individual kid. Win-win.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mcps experience in ES varies widely from school to school. Some are very small with warm, supportive communities if engaged parents who volunteer regularly. Others are massive and feel very impersonal with huge segments of the population being completely unaware or involved in what’s happening at school.

Bethesda ES is one of the massive schools and it was fine until second grade for all three of our DCs. Agree with PP who commented about mcps only seeing groups, not individuals. We absolutey felt that way at BE. When we moved to private with our eldest we were blown away by how well our DD’s teachers knew our daughter. The care and quality of instruction, student:teacher ratio, flexibility and creativity was night and day. We were fortunate to be able to afford private (although it was a stretch) and it absolutely was the right choice for our family. That said, we have friends who were zoned for other ES and their experience was totally different (better) than ours at BE. Principal, size of school, and parent engagement matter.

So does ability to be able to weed out people you don’t want, throw out those who don’t immediately conform, and never have to go over a pre-determined enrollment. We should give public schools the same flexibility.

But then what kind of society would we have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I might do private for academics for non gifted kids, but the small social circle would give me pause.

For very high achieving kids, I would choose MCPS magnet, at least at the HS level.

Catholic HSs offer the same classes as their public counterparts: AP, IB, and dual enrollment options. I sent my high achieving kid to one.

That’s a blanket statement that is not true of all Catholic HS. And just like most HS, just because a course is listed in the catalogue doesn’t mean it will be offered each year which is more likely to occur when there is less kids available.

I think you’ll find that these courses are offered every single year at most Catholic high schools.

I go to district-wide PDs. Most schools comment on needing additional sections of these courses because demand is high.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think that a lot of what you are describing is overblown. Talk to your own neighbors - what is their experience with your home ES? Is the administration good? Is the building sufficient for the number of kids? A good principal in a large-enough building can make the numbers work.

Also, just a note that I've heard from classroom teachers that peak "behaviors" are in this year's first and second graders, and that kindergarten teachers are reporting MUCH better socialized kids. I'm failing to do the math, but I think the kids most impacted by covid in terms of missing key "how to be a human" skills were the ones who would have been in pre-K at the time.

At our school, it’s third grade. And yes, this year’s kindergartners are better adjusted. If I had a third grader at our school, I’d send to private.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You,also have to wonder about what they're teaching and not teaching.

Exactly. MCPS teaches from a critical social justice perspective. So every lesson is infused with this garbage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I might do private for academics for non gifted kids, but the small social circle would give me pause.

For very high achieving kids, I would choose MCPS magnet, at least at the HS level.

Catholic HSs offer the same classes as their public counterparts: AP, IB, and dual enrollment options. I sent my high achieving kid to one.

? that's not the same as a magnet program. Every MCPS HS offers AP, and some IB. But, not every HS has a magnet program which draws very high achieving kids from all over the county. MCPS is huge, which is both a strength and weakness. The large size means that there are more high achieving peers, but it also means that the class sizes are larger.

Have two kids: one went through the magnet route, and the other didn't, but that DC also has taken AP and IB classes, so that's no different to private.

As I said, for super high achieving kids, MCPS magnet is a better choice. That's why every year there are private school kids who apply to these magnets.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I might do private for academics for non gifted kids, but the small social circle would give me pause.

For very high achieving kids, I would choose MCPS magnet, at least at the HS level.

But it's not a choice parents/students get to make. There are a very limited number of spots. Same with CES and immersion programs someone mentioned earlier. Very limited spots and a lottery to get in.

MCPS definitely sees groups and not individual kids, at least when it comes to the high-achieving kids whose parents have resources. That is a group that is ignored -- thrown the bone of magnets and left to fight for the scraps. The philosophy of the Board of Ed is definitely that public schools are serving a Purpose. And that is providing education in order to lift up those kids that truly meed it. Worthy goal? Yes. But they figure the group of high achieving kids with well-educated parents will do fine wherever. Which is true. But most parents want their kids to be challenged and engaged and seen, not just getting by and "fine". Public schools serve a very important purpose. But it's definitely not to meet the needs of every individual kid. If there were unlimited resources, I'm sure they'd do better by all the kids, even those that would be "fine" wherever. But there are limited resources, so MCPS is gonna spend it where it's most needed. If parents have resources, spend it on your individual kid. Win-win.

Indeed, but if they did get into a magnet, I'd choose the magnet over a private.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP are you talking independent Catholic? If not, I really don't think a Catholic school is better than MCPS, certainly in terms of rigor of work/curriculum.

Teacher who just posted. My kid had nightly homework starting in kindergarten. Spelling tests each week, daily grammar and writing instruction, handwriting, midterms and finals starting in 3rd grade. He also wrote his own speeches and delivered them in yearly oratory contests each year. Yearly Ted talks with partners on current events too. He started reading novels in third grade. I think they read 2-3 each trimester. Summer reading was 3-5 books each summer plus essays on 1-3 of them.

His education was top notch and affordable. He was an atheist through most of his MS and HS years and his teachers encouraged him to participate in discussions in religion class. The brothers at his HS were happy to have engaged students like him.

I teach in public school and we aren’t allowed to give homework. Students don’t read books. They read passages and excerpts. It’s all to prepare them for MCAP testing. Very little grammar, writing, and spelling instruction. No public speaking, attendance doesn’t matter, etc. I could go on. It’s night and day.

Very similar experience - I am also an MCPS teacher. My four children attended a combination of public and private - we started in public, switched to private, older two finished in private and my younger two advocated to return to MCPS for high school because they were very sports focused. Day and night differences, just as described above. The independence my kids developed in elem and middle school by preparing reports, giving oral presentations, grammar, rich quality literature discussions, etc. is not something I could put a price on. Even my youngest with ADHD who dislikes school admits he is still using notes he took in MIDDLE SCHOOL HISTORY to prepare for his (public) h.s. quizzes. As much as he complained about the amount of homework, reports, projects, etc. while at private school, he said he felt like he was actively learning vs now where he can do the bare minimum and still do okay. My second to youngest started college last year and actually commented on how it was a good thing she had to take midterms and finals in middle school because otherwise she would feel more stressed about college exams (no finals or midterms with MCPS - only took AP exams).

And yes, while there are still behavior issues at any school, there was a definite line not to be crossed at the private schools my children attended. There is no line with MCPS, and no real consequences for extreme behavior. Add in these huge class sizes and Honors English for all 9th and 10th graders regardless of ability level, and it’s no wonder there are so differences between public and private. Even something as simple as wearing a uniform and having dress code standards communicates the message to students the importance of looking neat and presentable when the time arises. As much as I value creativity and freedom of expression (I am an art teacher), it’s important to know when / how one should dress, act, speak, etc. in different situations.

My younger two have throughly enjoyed their MCPS hs experience - and, I guess that’s what truly counts, but there are such HUGE academic and life skill differences and expectations at public vs private schools. I’m happy my younger two had a good hs experience but there is a noticeable difference in their work ethic after four years of MCPS vs when they first entered (and compared to my younger two who attended private high school).

[Anonymous]

Which private vs which MCPS if you can say??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP are you talking independent Catholic? If not, I really don't think a Catholic school is better than MCPS, certainly in terms of rigor of work/curriculum.

Definitely not in math (with very rare unicorn exceptions).