GreatSchools makes segregation easy!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ah yes, the magic solution to getting Common Core federal funds each year: Bring up the low hanging fruits' tests scores!

The rest can just marinate for 13 years and the parents can supplement, donate and, of course, pay their ever increasing property taxes.

What, specifically, are "Common Core federal funds"? What Department of Education program are they allocated through? What federal law provides for the funds?

Don't be purposely obtuse. That was "Race to the Top" grants under Arne Duncan.

If MCPS wants to get grants that no longer exist, they really will need a magic solution. Test scores won't do it; they'll need a time machine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree. But, disagree with generalized blanket statements that it implies ( White/Asian smart, non W/API dumb)

I also used Great Schools when buying our home as my DD went to a previous GS 3 school. All minority, she was the top student who moved up a grade for Reading and Math. We moved to a GS 9 school and in CM she has a partner at the top and lots of similar peers. And they have Literature circles so she is always challenged with peers.

Signed, an African-American Mom

I actually think your point shows how GS's new methodology is flawed. It figures "equity" scores by comparing test scores by race and not by SES, which is really what matters and really where the achievement gap is.

For example, Bethesda Elementary's GS rating overall is a 9 - their test score rating is a 9, academic progress rating is a 6, and equity rating is a 10 (because kids of all races score equally on standardized tests, since they are all of high SES).

In contrast, a school like Flora Singer in Silver Spring scores an overall GS rating of 6 - with a test score rating of 7, the same academic progress score of 6 as Bethesda Elementary and an equity rating of 3 because of the disparity in scores among races, which in this case is most likely an SES issue - the Hispanic students there (who tend to be of lower SES than the white students at that school) have a test score rating of 3, while white students there have a test score rating of 10)

Yep. PP here. Besides, there are a handful of Non-White or Asian kids at the top and included with AAP. I don't believe those kids are included with the mainstream scores on the At A Glance scores. And yes, higher SES changes the game. My family is high SES and my DHs family solid MC and in my family all take education very seriously and many go to Ivies. Exposure to knowledge and education starts at day 1 not K. That mindset helps set the stage for high achievement but I am not sure if it is that way with others. One can guess...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

And it's not just white people. Blacks seek out other blacks. Hispanics congregate in communities with other Latinos. Entire neighborhoods spring up around ethnicities, particularly immigrant communities. These people aren't particularly interested in "diversity."

Segregation just naturally happens, like sunrise/sunset and the weather?

Walk into the lunch room at any high school that is considered very diverse in any area of the country. Tell me what you see. I'll save you the trouble I will tell you:
The kids segregate themselves. Sure there will be some tables with almost all of one group but a couple of different kids, but the norm you will see are tables and tables of kids of one specific group. And this happens at even the most diverse schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

And it's not just white people. Blacks seek out other blacks. Hispanics congregate in communities with other Latinos. Entire neighborhoods spring up around ethnicities, particularly immigrant communities. These people aren't particularly interested in "diversity."

Segregation just naturally happens, like sunrise/sunset and the weather?

Walk into the lunch room at any high school that is considered very diverse in any area of the country. Tell me what you see. I'll save you the trouble I will tell you:
The kids segregate themselves. Sure there will be some tables with almost all of one group but a couple of different kids, but the norm you will see are tables and tables of kids of one specific group. And this happens at even the most diverse schools.

I frequent Wheaton Mall, which is walking distance from Einstein HS. I get teary-eyed watching truly diverse groups of kids hanging out in and around the mall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

And it's not just white people. Blacks seek out other blacks. Hispanics congregate in communities with other Latinos. Entire neighborhoods spring up around ethnicities, particularly immigrant communities. These people aren't particularly interested in "diversity."

Segregation just naturally happens, like sunrise/sunset and the weather?

Walk into the lunch room at any high school that is considered very diverse in any area of the country. Tell me what you see. I'll save you the trouble I will tell you:
The kids segregate themselves. Sure there will be some tables with almost all of one group but a couple of different kids, but the norm you will see are tables and tables of kids of one specific group. And this happens at even the most diverse schools.

Yes, if the population is segregated outside of the school, it shouldn't be a surprise that the population is also segregated inside of the school.

But I'll give you a spoiler alert: residential segregation is the result of deliberate government policy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a liberal and I don't think this is a race/racist issue at all. Parents who want top schools, want top schools. They really don't care if the other children are green as long as they are highly intelligent and academically motivated. They want their children to compete and be influenced by peers who push them forward. From PEW studies the highest scoring races are africans, asians, south asians and then whites followed by african americans and hispanics. I don't think white racists would be too pleased with their kids peers on the spelling bee being black, yellow and brown. Not to mention all of our african, asian and south asian friends prioritized high ranking schools in deciding where to live.

While we may not like the scores, they are reality. It s not accurate to say that scores don't mean anything. Its a measurement and it shows you the general academic capabilities of the class. If your school is a 4 then yes there is a large population of underperforming students in your school.

Here's the problem - there are downsides to being in a public school with a large population of underperforming students. More resources are spent toward getting a larger group of students up to basic levels instead of giving higher performing students more challenging activities. In a high performing school, there can be 2-3 compacted math classes and only one regular math class. In a lower performing school, there may be no compacted math class available for a capable students because there are not enough other students to fill a class. Higher performing students do their homework, answer questions in class, come prepared and aren't disruptive. Many parents believe that having peers with these traits is better for their kids.

Funny you should say that. A little while ago my -- white -- DC participated in our ES's school-wide spelling bee. Out of 50 or so finalists, the overwhelming majority was Asian (and South Asian), with white kids being underrepresented (our school is majority white). And it wasn't a mind-blowing, super difficult competition, just your regular, run-of-the-mill elementary school spelling bee. Made me wonder if some ethnic groups really do value education more than others, and this preference manifests itself by kids' taking time to study for the bee.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Funny you should say that. A little while ago my -- white -- DC participated in our ES's school-wide spelling bee. Out of 50 or so finalists, the overwhelming majority was Asian (and South Asian), with white kids being underrepresented (our school is majority white). And it wasn't a mind-blowing, super difficult competition, just your regular, run-of-the-mill elementary school spelling bee. Made me wonder if some ethnic groups really do value education more than others, and this preference manifests itself by kids' taking time to study for the bee.

No. The explanation is that spelling bees are a South Asian-American extracurricular activity.

http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2010/06/why_are_indian_kids_so_good_at_spelling.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ah yes, the magic solution to getting Common Core federal funds each year: Bring up the low hanging fruits' tests scores!

The rest can just marinate for 13 years and the parents can supplement, donate and, of course, pay their ever increasing property taxes.

What, specifically, are "Common Core federal funds"? What Department of Education program are they allocated through? What federal law provides for the funds?

Don't be purposely obtuse. That was "Race to the Top" grants under Arne Duncan.

correct, aka Common Core but call it RTTT https://www.cato.org/blog/getting-common-core-federal-facts-right

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ah yes, the magic solution to getting Common Core federal funds each year: Bring up the low hanging fruits' tests scores!

The rest can just marinate for 13 years and the parents can supplement, donate and, of course, pay their ever increasing property taxes.

What, specifically, are "Common Core federal funds"? What Department of Education program are they allocated through? What federal law provides for the funds?

Don't be purposely obtuse. That was "Race to the Top" grants under Arne Duncan.

correct, aka Common Core but call it RTTT https://www.cato.org/blog/getting-common-core-federal-facts-right

So the Department of Education is still issuing these grants?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

And it's not just white people. Blacks seek out other blacks. Hispanics congregate in communities with other Latinos. Entire neighborhoods spring up around ethnicities, particularly immigrant communities. These people aren't particularly interested in "diversity."

Segregation just naturally happens, like sunrise/sunset and the weather?

Walk into the lunch room at any high school that is considered very diverse in any area of the country. Tell me what you see. I'll save you the trouble I will tell you:
The kids segregate themselves. Sure there will be some tables with almost all of one group but a couple of different kids, but the norm you will see are tables and tables of kids of one specific group. And this happens at even the most diverse schools.

You know why this is right because even in diverse schools the majority of students in the top classes are Asian and white and the majority of the students in the lower classes are Hispanic and black. The reason for this is a combination of SES AND culture and is why the achievement gap is ALWAYS going to exist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

You know why this is right because even in diverse schools the majority of students in the top classes are Asian and white and the majority of the students in the lower classes are Hispanic and black. The reason for this is a combination of SES AND culture and is why the achievement gap is ALWAYS going to exist.

I told my high-school kid the other day that, according to DCUM, kids with families with ethnic heritage from Asia value academics and work hard, and kids with ethnic heritage from Latin America or Africa don't. She said that she has a lot of classmates that DCUM should meet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is there a correlation between the percentage of white students and the test scores of the school or not? If yes, GS only presents the fact. numbers don't lie.

See Figure 3 here: https://education.umd.edu/research/centers/mep/research/k-12-education/does-school-composition-matter-estimating-relationship

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

You know why this is right because even in diverse schools the majority of students in the top classes are Asian and white and the majority of the students in the lower classes are Hispanic and black. The reason for this is a combination of SES AND culture and is why the achievement gap is ALWAYS going to exist.

I told my high-school kid the other day that, according to DCUM, kids with families with ethnic heritage from Asia value academics and work hard, and kids with ethnic heritage from Latin America or Africa don't. She said that she has a lot of classmates that DCUM should meet.

There are a lot kids at my child's elementary school that they should meet as well. The Ethiopian kids, who are mainly First Generation Americans, are giving the white and Asian kids a run for their money.

[Anonymous]

Sorry I should have clarified yes most Africans value education and most African Americans don't.

When you look at demos overall most of the black population is low SES in low classes with the immigrant families being outliers much like the Asian immigrant families. And yes I am well aware that there are some Asians who identify with ghetto culture but again they are the minority in MoCo overall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sorry I should have clarified yes most Africans value education and most African Americans don't.

When you look at demos overall most of the black population is low SES in low classes with the immigrant families being outliers much like the Asian immigrant families. And yes I am well aware that there are some Asians who identify with ghetto culture but again they are the minority in MoCo overall.

Alternatively, you could just stop posting generalizations based on stereotypes. Please.