Reply to FAQ: What is the "Big 3"? (or "Big 5", or "Big 10", etc)

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Well said.  I really think the Potomac posters are overly sensitive and obsessive.  Potomac Parents, why does it bother you that so many of us are not familiar with your school?  If you are secure with your school, why are you so preoccupied with getting affirmation from the rest of us?  D.C. has so many good schools that it's very difficult to stand out.  Potomac may not be one of the Big 3, but according to this thread, it's "hot stuff" in McLean.  Frankly, you should be satisfied with that.

[quote=Anonymous]Thank you, PP for posting the numbers for Potomac. I see now that it is one of the good schools in this area. I don't see, though, how one could, as a least a few PPs have tried to do, call Potomac one of the Big 3 or Big 2. I guess from your post I see that some people use the term "Big 3" to refer to the three schools their family deems the best for them. If these advocates for Potomac are using "Big 3" in that sense, I understand. Most people use the term, though, to refer to the schools that most people in the DC area to be the top schools. Under thsi definition I would consider it fair to call Potomac one of the "Big 10." What do you think? I think people are feeling hurt that their school is not regarded more highly by people on this thread, but if one is that sensitive on this topic, one should avoid threads titled "Big 3."[/quote][/quote]

I don't think the Potomac posters are being sensitive at all - seems like they are being much more rational and not trying to promote themselves over others.   I've not seen one Potomac poster claim their school is better than another.  These posters are simply pointing out that not everybody in every area of DC agrees with the [b]relentless promotion[/b] of St Albans, Sidwell, and GDS as some kind of unanimous consensus top 3.  The issue is not just about defending the perceptions of one particular school, but of all other top schools like Maret, Holton, Potomac, Landon, SSSAS, Norwood, etc.

The real question here is why certain posters feel this obsessive need to constantly promote their school as one of the 2 or 3 best in town??  What insecurities are they feeding by needing to feel some warped sense of superiority because of what school their kid happens to attend.   If these posters were so secure with themselves and their schools, why EVER use a term like BIG 3???

What I find on this forum is that parents from [b]certain schools[/b] always seem to be the ones who are preoccupied with rankings... "my school is better than your school".   I have a feeling these are the same parents who are preoccupied with things like "my house is bigger than your house" or "my car is nicer than your car" or "my Ivy League school is better than yours" or "my handbag is more expensive than your handbag".   These parents are concerned about LABELS...and so for them, BIG 3 is just another label that's important to their own self worth and self identifty.

To each her own... but for me I'd rather associate myself with people who don't spend their time trying to prove their label (school/house/car, etc) is better than someone else's.   I'm more impressed with people (like the Potomac posters) who say "yeah, there are a lot of good schools in the area and each has it's own relative strengths and weaknesses.   You should check them all out and decide what's a best fit for your family"

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