Reply to Jackson Reed Biomedical Academy

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]In our experience, people considering the JR biomedical academy (aka Academy of Health Sciences) should think twice. Unfortunately, the teacher in charge of that academy has a history of questionable grading practices and playing favorites. Perfectly capable high-performing students who love the content continue to drop out as a result of her demoralizing behavior. Grading is largely mysterious and subjective, and most grades are not entered into Aspen until the very end of each term. There’s almost no feedback provided in Canvas, so students have no idea where they stand until it’s too late. Asking questions or challenging a grade is a risky proposition, usually entailing some form of retribution down the road. All of this is well-known among students and has much to do with their overall feeling about their time in this academy.

My student dropped JR’s biomed academy due to these circumstances, despite an ongoing interest in the content, and is far from the only one. There are plenty of other meaningful ways to demonstrate interest in this area, including AP Biology and internships, that don’t take an unnecessary mental health toll. This situation has been going on for years, parents have voiced concerns, and yet the problems persist.

If you choose the JR biomedical academy, please understand these risks. Unfortunately, in our experience, it’s not a matter of learning and enjoying the material.[/quote]

This is 100 percent my child's experience.  They dropped it after the 2nd year despite loving the subject matter and wanting a career in the health care field.  DC is a top student, worked very hard, and knew the material backward and forward but teacher wouldn't put grades into Aspen until the end of the term and wouldn't provide feedback...so there was no opportunity to understand why a grade was lower than expected.  Many, many students drop for this reason.[/quote]

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