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[quote=Anonymous]I'm an educator who tutors children in DC, MD, and VA. I've also had the opportunity to observe and volunteer in schools throughout the region.

I would send my child to almost any DC elementary school. I know that would concern some DCUM posters, so let me explain. I don't worry about test scores. Scores do not account for progress from beginning of year to end of year for children who are behind grade level. Elementary school children are also notoriously terrible standardized test takers. The tests are dull, lengthy, and usually developmentally inappropriate. Also, there's nothing in it for the students if they do well. Test scores are a stand-in for SES more than anything else. A lot of modern pedagogy relies on small-group instruction and independent learning activities. So if a child one table over in the classroom is at a different reading, writing, or math level, I don't believe that affects my child too much as long as the classroom management is good.

What I look out for in DC-schools in two-fold. Generally, I think that teachers who have had to work with high-needs populations tend to have creative solutions to working with all students. They are more likely to switch things up and differentiate instruction. My only red-flag is if a school has an over-concentration of high-needs students. I know that realistically, it's hard for teachers and administrators to meet children's needs if more than 30 percent of their population is special education or coming from unstable living situations. (Keep in mind that lower income does not always mean unstable.) The other red flag for me is if there are old-school educators who believe in "spare the rod, spoil the child" philosophies. While they know better than to hit children in school, folks with those beliefs are unlikely to use positive reinforcement strategies in the classroom, and are more likely to insist that the solution to classroom problems is parental punishment at home. Keep in mind too that Title I schools have smaller class sizes.

What's great about DC is that the lottery lets you choose your school without having to move. If a school doesn't work out, you can always enter the lottery again. While secondary schools have been a weaker spot, we're starting to get some stronger contenders. Charters like DC International, Latin, and BASIS have been popular.

The Virginia curriculum is expansive. The state did not adopt Common Core, choosing to develop its own standards. That said, what students study in Virginia from year-to-year is not dissimilar to what students study in other states. The breadth of what is covered, particularly in secondary math and science is enormous. This means that some classes are rather fast-paced and opportunities for projects and hands-on learning can be limited. It seems to me like the instructional time spent on grammar and writing in Fairfax elementaries is limited, but my sample size is small. Teacher quality if fine, but the county has suffered some recruiting and retention consequences from insecure funding, poor sub pay, and RIF-ing new staff. Both Fairfax and Arlington have a lot of opportunities for various types of advanced courses, if that's something that interests you. Arlington has a science-focus elementary school that has a really interesting program. Test scores and diversity statistics scare many people away from Arlington, but neither has anything to do with the quality of the education that teachers are giving.

Montgomery County has benefited from having one of the more positive relationships between its union and it the schools' leadership. They developed "Curriculum 2.0," a modified version of the Common Core. They also provide their teachers with a fair amount of material that they can use through their network. Of all the schools districts that I've observed, MoCo seems to have the best teacher supervision programs for helping to mentor new teachers and improve teacher quality. That does not mean that every dud is ushered out of the classroom, particularly with the limits of tenure, but they do have good systems in place. The elementary spelling program is one that I believe in and is research supported.  
  
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