Reply to What is the goal of language immersion program in MoCty?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]
I agree that the demographics have changed in MoCo, although I wouldn't say drastically.  I do definitely agree that there is often limited interaction between in boundary and special program kids, but I think this varies by school and is a function of teacher and administrative leadership.  My child was in one special program where the principal openly worked hard (and IMO fairly successfully) so that there was no school-within-a-school feel.  My child was in a second special program where the principal and teachers in fact reinforce segregation between home school and the magnet program.  T[b]here have been several incidents where teachers have pulled magnet students aside and warned them in front of other students not to be friends with "those kids outside the magnet"[/b].  I don't know how you fix that kind of racism, but I don't think the answer is to end the programs.

As for abandonment of certain higher poverty schools by local middle class families, this isn't caused by the MCPS special programs alone.  I drive my child from west MoCo to a high poverty east MoCo school to participate in a magnet.  I am surprised by the number of car stickers I see for second tier (or lower) private schools at a significant distance from these middle income neighborhoods ($500K homes or less).  I have no way of telling whether these are white or black families who have fled the MCPS system, but it's clear that significant numbers leave for private school.   So, I'm not sure that eliminating these MCPS programs will solve the "flight" problem you describe.   [/quote]

Wow.  I sometimes feel we are a "professional magnet family" (2 kids, total of five magnets between ES and MS) and I have never ever seen or heard anything like this!

I think all lot of the intermingling between programs occurs in extracurriculars.  My DS knows and socializes with lots of kids outside of his MS magnet classes because he participates in several sports.  Similary, he knew the nonmagnet kids in ES because he played basketball with them at recess every day.  To me, this is a huge advantage -- he moves comfortably in lots of circles.

I live in what you'd probably consider one of those middle class neighborhoods (Silver Spring, houses $400K to $600K) and the only private school kids in my neighborhood went to Catholic school.  The vast majority go to the local schools and are having a good experience.

[/quote]
We're another "professional magnet" family and have never heard of a teacher warning magnet kids not to associate with non-magnet kids. MS and HS Magnet kids take classes every day with non-magnet kids in subjects like english, social studies, gym, foreign languages and art. The ES magnet in Takoma was only a few magnet classes, and the rest of classes were with non-magnet kids.[/quote]

This definitely happened.  Thankfully the child who was warned was no shrinking violet and had the presence to inform the teacher that, since she (the student) had good grades, she thought that she was perfectly capable of being able to pick good friends.  Nonetheless, the warning was clear to all those within earshot of this exchange.

At our high poverty middle school magnet, there is no recess.  Very few kids participate in after school activities -- the activities offered other than sports are mostly geared toward "at risk" students and thus don't draw magnet kids.  Plus many magnet students are coming from far away and don't or can't use the (minimal) after school bus routes.  There is some mixing of kids in some classes (health and PE mostly because the advanced math and languages are mostly filled with the magnet students even though it's not part of their program), but, it's not the kids that refuse to mix, rather some teachers who discourage it.

I do think that being in school with different races/classes/ethnicities is a huge advantage, I'm just saying that I don't necessarily think that the teachers and administrators on the ground are thinking universally and strategically about how to help make this happen as a positive experience in their school, and some are actively undermining it. [/quote]

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