Reply to Down county MS/HS...what are you worried about?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Crime, drugs, violence

There are diverse schools mid-county that have less of these issues.[/quote]

Are kids being beaten up in school everyday just because they walk side by side another kids in the school?  Aren't drugs available in all schools?  What is being stolen?  [/quote]

If you look at safety at a glance (http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/regulatoryaccountability/Safetyglance/) for Blair as an example, 20% of kids do not feel safe, 7% of parents think the school is not safe. So clearly there is a disconnect between what the parents think and what the kids think.

40% of kids say bullying is an issue and 60% think stealing is an issue. Those are high numbers.

Northwood have physical fights weekly. 35% of students do not feel safe at school.
[/quote]

Okay, there is some truth to safety, test scores, and other issues with the schools in Down County.  I can't disagree with the Safety at a Glance Information.   However, there is still a level of veiled racism that exist in MCPS that folks just push under the rug.  Even in the Down County schools the expectations for black and Latino students are not that high.  Some teachers automatically assume that a black or a Latino student doesn't measure up and they treat that student according to their own personal biases.   That's why so many AA families end up choosing private and parochial schools for their children because the cards are stack against their child in some MCPS.  Even AA students from high SES and ivy legacies still encounter the veil racism at MCPS no matter if they reside in Down County or not.  MCPS just lumps all Latinos and blacks into the same category of "those students" instead of teaching towards the individual student's needs.   Here you have above average black and Latino students who are mistakenly thrown into the lower groups because some bias teacher assumed that  the student was below average.  Some parents have to fight tooth and nail just to get certain schools to recognize that their child is not below average and that they want the school to have higher expectations for their child.  People get sick of the fighting, the stereotyping, and the fact that some people in MCPS don't have high expectations for every student.

Yes, some people may avoid Down County because of testing data, etc.  However, I can't deny that the negative perceptions about blacks and Latinos don't have something to do with people's view about Down County as well.  The division and veiled racism in MCPS is too obvious to ignore.   [/quote]

Some of these children come from families where education and achievement are not emphasized.  These are single parent families, working 2-3 jobs and are just trying to put food on the table.  Good bless them!  My child is fortunate to have parents that know how (and have the time) to be an advocate, and I wouldn't call my experience a "tooth and nail" fight.  For example, my AA child was recommended not to take all honors classes and a AP course in the 9th grade because it might be overwhelming.  We ignored the recommendation and my child completed the year with a 3.85.  Next year my child is registered for several AP classes as opposed to honors classes that were recommended.  We just ignored the recommendation.  The bottom line is [b]we set the standards as parents,[/b] not the school system.

There is subtle racism everywhere.  Not just in public schools.  Privates have their issues, and I laugh at people who think that private school erases some of these perceptions.  And there's a whole world of perceptions waiting for them at college and in the workforce.   Want your AA or hispanic child to go to a competitive college?  You better start getting them ready!!  Just wait until they dorm with a student who has never been to school with a AA or hispanic child, let alone visited a home of another child not of the same race.  Use this as a learning experience for your child.  Along the way, they will learn how to advocate for themselves.  [/quote]

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