People who moved from DC to Arlington / suburbs in general -- did things improve for you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:OP asked those who’ve made the move whether their quality of life improved, not for DC residents to interject with comments about whether they still like their DC neighborhoods. Obviously there is some confirmation bias to be expected, but the fact that the DC residents feel obliged to weigh in suggests they are a bit more anxious about their circumstances, particularly as Covid-19 makes living in less spaces more desirable, than they want to admit.

As someone who did move out of DC and has no regrets other than the shorter commute, I can attest to the fact that the advantages when it comes to privacy, additional space, and superior public schools quickly outweigh the disadvantages for most of us.

Please stop it with this BS. So sick of this, especially now as DC is functioning leaps ahead of VA (who couldn't manage C-19) and MD, due to the union.

Yes, DC schools seem to be more nimble re: response to the pandemic. It seems somewhat school and teacher-dependent, but overall most people seem happy with distance learning at our neighborhood school.

To be fair, one city is probably easier to manage than a whole state.

I'm certain VA and MD have more IT and curriculum experts in the states, so it should have been easier to pull off. DC managed to deliver 100-page written curriculums for every grade in 6 business days, and continue to deliver them every 2 weeks. They have been nimble because they've been adjusting along the way, rather than VA who just threw up its hands.

I really don't care if your family wants to move to VA. I like VA and will probably retire there. But to use broad brushstrokes to denigrate DCPS and Wilson at this point is intellectually lazy at best, and dishonest and self-serving at worst.

PP here. To clarify, I'm actually in DC (having grown up in VA), and was responding re: our neighborhood school where people seem generally happy.

[Anonymous]

I think people need to realize the “blip” was only applicable to VA schools. MoCo schools are about the finish it’s sixth week of school and online distance learning doesn’t end until June 15th, unlike DCPS which is ending May 29th.

So, the crappiness only applies to VA and DCPS schools.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:We’ve made the opposite move, and are much happier in NWDC. It’s more beautiful than NOVA, and we love our DCPS elementary school much more. Teachers and families are great, it feels much more personal. I think some DC schools got so much better that this stereotype about NOVA schools being the best seems really outdated now.

Straw-man argument. Everyone knows DCPS has some decent elementary schools but the quality drops off sharply in middle and high school. Wilson would be in the bottom 1/3 in APS and bottom 1/4 in FCPS or LCPS.

It doesn’t really, unless you’re comparing cumulative scores of non-diverse and diverse schools for some reason. Our friend’ kids are doing great in Wilson.

If your kids privileged background ensures their success no matter where they go to school, would you feel comfortable sending them to Roosevelt?

Shocked that it's crickets.

I live in DC and didn't respond because my oldest is in third and we're IB for Wilson, as probably many here are. I don't know anything about Roosevelt and not sure I've ever heard of it. Presumably it's in DC.

I think parental education level/resources matter for academic outcomes, as the data suggests. But I'd also want a decent-sized peer group of motivated students--especially those that look like mine (I'm not white). Wilson seems to have that.

We'll also look at Walls too, if my kids can cut it, and possibly Ellington (currently doesn't seem very strong for academic outcomes, but will watch for improvement in the next few years).

Same here. Plus, that argument was a total straw man -- just because you're willing to send your kid to Wilson doesn't mean you think that they would do equally well in any school, no matter what. I wouldn't send my kid to Roosevelt, at least not as it stands, but that could change if the school changed in some ways. But I do plan to send my kid to Wilson -- again, unless things change such that I change my mind.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We’ve made the opposite move, and are much happier in NWDC. It’s more beautiful than NOVA, and we love our DCPS elementary school much more. Teachers and families are great, it feels much more personal. I think some DC schools got so much better that this stereotype about NOVA schools being the best seems really outdated now.

Straw-man argument. Everyone knows DCPS has some decent elementary schools but the quality drops off sharply in middle and high school. Wilson would be in the bottom 1/3 in APS and bottom 1/4 in FCPS or LCPS.

It doesn’t really, unless you’re comparing cumulative scores of non-diverse and diverse schools for some reason. Our friend’ kids are doing great in Wilson.

If your kids privileged background ensures their success no matter where they go to school, would you feel comfortable sending them to Roosevelt?

Shocked that it's crickets.

I live in DC and didn't respond because my oldest is in third and we're IB for Wilson, as probably many here are. I don't know anything about Roosevelt and not sure I've ever heard of it. Presumably it's in DC.

I think parental education level/resources matter for academic outcomes, as the data suggests. But I'd also want a decent-sized peer group of motivated students--especially those that look like mine (I'm not white). Wilson seems to have that.

We'll also look at Walls too, if my kids can cut it, and possibly Ellington (currently doesn't seem very strong for academic outcomes, but will watch for improvement in the next few years).

Same here. Plus, that argument was a total straw man -- just because you're willing to send your kid to Wilson doesn't mean you think that they would do equally well in any school, no matter what. I wouldn't send my kid to Roosevelt, at least not as it stands, but that could change if the school changed in some ways. But I do plan to send my kid to Wilson -- again, unless things change such that I change my mind.

The straw man argument is claiming that your kids will be fine in any school simply because they come from a privileged socioeconomic background. You hear that bogus claim made by people trying to hype up DC public schools compared to suburban schools. "Yes, DC public schools' test scores are way lower, but not for your demographic." But the argument breaks down when you point out that the parents wouldn't feel comfortable sending their kids to schools outside of DC's top schools like Wilson and Walls. Overall school quality really does matter.