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Independent schools and "advanced" kids: national problem?
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Anonymous
| There are a couple threads out with the gist that independent schools do not differentiate, so that "advanced" children must stay within grade-level curriculum even if they know the material. This is fascinating for many reasons, and leads to more questions. Would this be true of even the "best" independent schools nationally, for example, the Andovers of the U.S.? Is this true of St Albans which many consider to have a very rigorous curriculum? |
Anonymous
| This question is as silly as the rest of them. The more rigorous private schools are teaching at the upper ends of the applicable grade, if not beyond anyway. Moreover, most private schools do differentiate somewhat anyhow. Classes might be broken into several smaller groups. This is done very informally with no labels attached to each group. Finally, what is amusing here is that just because a kid is advance subject at a given age does NOT mean that the kid will continue to stay ahead forever. |
Anonymous
| There's not much need to differentiate if the curriculum is rich/challenging/engaging enough. You set minimum standards and provide support for kids who want to do more. And the more they do will differ from kid to kid. |
Anonymous
| I toured 10-15 private schools this fall and probably 8-9 of them stated that their students work at least 1 grade level above their current grade. All of the students. That is why they have the applicants IQ tested and have them visit for "playdates" in the early grades. If the kid isn't going to be able to keep up, the schools are not interested (at least not the ones I visited). One of the ones I toured has 2 classes in 3rd and 4th grades where the students have to be at least 2 yrs ahead in math and reading to be in that class. I asked if there were a lot of kids who fit the bill and was told, yes there are. |
Anonymous
| I don't think the question is silly. We went into an independent school thinking that the cohort would be superior for lack of a better word. It is not a particularly advanced group and won't be until perhaps the 4th or 6th grade when admissions opens up again. At the moment, there are a lot of staff and legacy kids, and they really do take up a lot of teacher time bringing them up to speed and managing their behavior. |
Anonymous
Please share which school had the classes 2 years head and math and reading? And which 8 or 9 had their students work at least 1 grade level above their current grade. Thank you very much. |
Anonymous
|
I also toured a number of well-respected private schools this year, observing 3rd and 4th grades, and while I was impressed with a lot of the benefits of the schools (small class sizes, etc.) I did not think that the level of work being done was any higher than what my children currently do in MCPS.
I think one big difference is probably that on-grade-level work is the baseline in privates, whereas in public school there can be many children working below grade level. |
Anonymous
| My son's elementary school cohort was superior than his middle schoo private school cohort. (It was a special class, all the teachers and parents with older children agreed.) A friend who teaches at a private but sends her child to a public thinks the same. Sorry but means doesn't necessarily translate into brains. |
Anonymous
I thinks it's a good question, too. Our independent school does not differentiate adequately. We're moving our child to a Fairfax GT center next year. The level of enrichment (foreign language, more art and Music, going deeper into the curriculum) in the early grades was far superior to the local public, but we feel that the level of challenge for our 'academically advanced' child will be far more appropriate at the GT center, as he is just coasting now, unchallenged and bored in the core subjects. |
Anonymous
They are in Baltimore. St. Paul's had the 3/4th grade class that is at least 2 grade levels above. Cathedral, Gilman, Friends, Calvert and a few Catholic schools all told the families taking tours that their students are working at least one grade level above their current grade in math and reading. |
Anonymous
That's what our experience was. DC is in an MCPS middle school magnet now and the level of enrichment is vastly better than it was at the Big Three independent. We are saving a lot of money too, LOL. |
Anonymous
|
We were in a K-8 school and our kid definitely needed more. School not able to do much for us and like some other very bright kids there, we eventually moved to other schools. Now at a school that offers a variety of levels into which kids are placed and we are very happy and our kid feels challenged.
In summary, privates handle it all differently and I think in part, size and budget are big determining factors in being able to address differing needs. |
Anonymous
| So for a bright child, it is simply better to attend MoCo elementary and certainly their magnets in elementary and middle than even the best independent school. I think a number of threads have now made this clear. I am confused by how many people we know, who are leaders in their fields, choose Big 3 schools. Means does not mean brains. But at least some these very smart people probably have reasonably smart children. Do these parents simply not understand that their kids are not getting the breath and depth of education that they could be getting in a public school? Or is the issue that not all the bright kids can get into the magnets (elementary and middle), and therefore the parents who are able to are sending them to independent schools. What do people on this board think about the "best" independent schools versus a good (but not magnet) Montgomery Country middle school and high school? |
Anonymous
| All of my friends who have opted for private have done so b/c the public school's emphasis on testing has really ruined the school experience (in our area at least; not all schools are test prep happy). I am paying tons of money b/c I want my DD to have a more developmentally appropriate education. Her friends at the local public K hate school already which is sad. They come over to play and I hear them saying that all they do is worksheets and listen to their teacher talk a lot. Their parents (at least the moms) are disappointed that the needs of the students seem to come in behind the need for their school to get higher test scores year after year. My DD loves school (which is the way it should be in K). She was reading at a second grade level in Sept so they put her up in a first grade reading group (which is working at a second grade reading level). She has art 3 times per week, music 3 times per week, PE 3 times per week, recess 2-3 times per day, Spanish twice a week. The only worksheets I've seen are to practice her handwriting. If your child is extremely advanced, they might not fit into a private school that cannot accommodate them but that is why the schools have tours, interviews and open houses. Ask questions and then ask if you can talk to parents whose child is in your child's situation. |
Anonymous
| PP: which independent school is your DD in? I like the sound of the reading groups, and your DD being placed in a more advanced one. |