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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I wouldn't want to send my kid to a school that is a pressure cooker. I would much prefer to send my kid to an academically rigorous high school. There is a difference between the two. [/quote]
What is the difference? Is it the competitiveness?[/quote]

DP: My impression of the academically rigorous, but not "pressure cooker," is a lack of fear about performance or grades or the future or of failure. It comes from a down-to-earth, humble awareness that there are many paths to success and that not everyone has the same ultimate goal. My sense of kids that fit such a place is that they are internally-motivated and enjoy the rigor because they enjoy the academics. They aren't in the class to get an A, though they might; they are there to learn Latin or philosophy, or to understand history or chemistry. Grades are secondary to that. If the joy comes from understanding, then you can be at peace with a B or even in spite of a C, as long as in the end, you understood. There is a kind of peace that comes with such an attitude.

Of course, if you do get a C, there will be some stress at home no doubt![/quote]

NP. In my experience, it's a lot easier to not fear failure, and to be at peace with a B, if you know college and grad school are paid for and you have a very secure financial safety net at home. I think public magnet schools like TJ may have more kids where the fear of failure isn't just a fear of disappointing parents. There's also a financial element, and that influences the level of competitiveness among the students. [/quote]

This x1000.

When there is security, getting a B is not the end of the world. A kid who gets unconditional support at home (e.g., no pressure to go to a SLAC), and does not worry at that stage about financial security, is going to be in a much better position not to worry about a grade or two. If you are the first in your family to contemplate college, or if your financial aid packages will be in jeopardy, then that pressure can loom.[/quote]

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