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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I am all for this, and if they do open I hope I can get my 3rd grader in from the lottery.

Genuine question to this group, especially those who oppose this. If I have an elementary-age kid who is very advanced, and is struggling with boredom at our DCPS school, where do you think I should send them?

I have asked around and don't get the sense that charter schools are any more advanced, so I haven't really bothered to go that route. It feels like maybe our only option is to move to a Wilson feeder, where it sounds like maybe the classes are a bit more advanced just due to the socio-economics of the students. But I'd love to not have to buy a $2 million house just to give my kid a little extra challenge in elementary school. A BASIS elementary feels like a great alternative, and it offers something new for EOTP families. Happy to be told I'm wrong though! Please do tell me what kind of options you'd recommend. [/quote]

Honest response is to move to Fairfax. If you want to stay in DC and don't want to move to W3, then you need to supplement on your own.[/quote]

Never happening. This is why I support a BASIS elementary school. I shouldn't have to move my entire family just to get a little extra challenge in upper elementary + middle schools. The city has great school options for early childhood through 2nd grade; and great high school options. There's a huge hole in the middle that needs to be filled. BASIS elementary would be just the start. [/quote]

Do you hate your kid? If so, send them to BASIS elementary.

Signed,
Current BASIS parent [/quote]

What’s bad about basis? 
Signed,
Just enrolled off lottery.[/quote]

NP.  Here are the pros and cons.

Pro: Your kid will learn things. You will not be worried that the school they attend is too easy.

Cons: The administration is truly awful. The facilities are truly awful. Some of the teachers are shockingly bad. Sometimes they get fired mid-year because they are so bad that the school can’t justify keeping them on and then they are replaced by a different bad teacher. The teachers who are great usually end up leaving to teach in DCPS, where they get more money and less administrative chaos.  Discipline is punitive and your child will be disciplined for other children’s bad behavior. The stress level is high. If your child is doing poorly, everyone will know, because BASIS announces who is doing well three times a year. Parent and student concerns are dismissed. [/quote]

You sound a bit unhinged.  Your child was disciplined for other children's bad behavior?  Give me a break.

Here is my take:

1) The administration is fine.  Too bad the current HOS is leaving though.  We'll see how the new one does.  In my experience, the administration has been quite responsive and flexible, and they have assisted us with several issues and implemented one of our suggestions.  I highly doubt that you would see that kind of responsiveness and flexibility at a DCPS school.  We certainly didn't see that at our DCPS elementary school.

2) Some teachers are bad but that is true for any school.  Fortunately, unlike DCPS, bad teachers don't stay and are replaced.  Some of the replacements have been excellent.  I would say overall that the teaching quality is high.

3) Teachers who have left Basis have have been ill, gone to private school, moved out of the area, etc.  I can only think of one who went to a DCPS school.  Other than going to Walls, I doubt that any other DCPS school would be alternative.  In fact, a couple teachers who left have actually returned to Basis.

4)  There are no fights at Basis and bullying is minimal.  My kids have never been disciplined, so I can't speak to that.

5) Definitely agree that the curriculum is advanced.  My kids learned a lot more in middle school than I ever did.

6) Definitely agree that the the school is rigorous and can be stressful.  I wouldn't recommend Basis for kids that are not academically inclined and willing to work hard.  [/quote]

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