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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]PP - and the parents getting most fired up about Math 4 appear to be the ones who super accelerated their kids in summer school so they could take Math 4 in 9th grade ... 10th and 11th grade parents know the drill at TJ, including with retakes ... [/quote]

Not really. Unhappy 10th grade parent here. I know the TJ math drill.  You do not normally have to wait until the end of the quarter for retakes. You may or may not be limited to one retake per quarter, but you can retake promptly (within a week or two).  A kid who can't retake until the end of the quarter does not know whether he gotten a better handle on the material.  And does. It really know where he or she stands gradewise, and whether they are in trouble or not. Which is a problem, because Math 4 concepts build on each other. Also, math tests are generally curved to some version of a B. The average on this test was a 61-- a D-,and no curve is being given.  Also, graded tests  tests are always returned promptly.  Under the self advocacy guidelines that is required so that kids can see what they missed and learn from their mistakes. These tests were graded more than a week ago.  Most kids have not seen their test, and none of the tests have actually been returned.  So it looks like they are trying to keep parents from seeing them.

I think the number of freshmen accelerated into Math 4 is making a bad problem worse. It is a really hard math class, and should not be your first TJ math test.  I'm sure that brought the average grade down. But, it is not just freshmen parents who are unhappy.  Believe me, my kid's sophomore friend's parents are also very, very unhappy.  About the grades (in my kid's carpool they ranged from a 54 to a 62).  About the lack of curve. Because flunking half the class is ridiculous.   About the retake policy on the test.  About the fact the teachers will not answer questions about point for test corrections, which is SOP in the math department.  And mostly about the complete breakdown in communication.

And having a new principal is not helping this situation. For all of his faults, Dr. glazer did good job with PR. He would have recognized there were a couple hundred pissed off kids with pissed off parents, had the math department articulate a plan and emailed it out to math 4 kids and parents. There would be a curve/test corrections/retakes. And mostly, what was being done to make sure there was not a repeat on the next test. He definately had shortcomings. But, he was good on communication and damage control.

The silence from the new principal is not a good sign. The longer parents speculate among themselves and get worked up, and the longer kids TJ vent, the greater the chance Jay Matthew's writes a "Half of the Kids at the Nation's Top STEM School Can't Pass a Pre-Calculus Test" hit job article.

A D- average on a major test is a problem. Someone needs to solve it and communicate. I nominate the person in charge. But will take answers (not rumors, actual facts) from any TJ Rep.[/quote]

Calm Down!! Why would any parent ask the car pool kids what their grade was? It's sneaky and invasion of privacy. I'm a freshman parent FWIW, let the teachers do their job and kids sort it out.[/quote]

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