Reply to Deal, BASIS or Latin for a engineering-minded boy who also loves humanities

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Reply to "Deal, BASIS or Latin for a engineering-minded boy who also loves humanities"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]We've been extremely impressed by the math instruction at Deal.  Something like 30% of the 8th grade class is taking Geometry (after taking Algebra 1 as 7th graders), and the math department chair is awesome.  Just something to consider.

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BASIS.  Remember, we did not study for the DCCAS at BASIS, and I bet it is worthless because all our kids score advanced even though some are clearly more academic. At BASIS, your child I believe can continue to take Latin after the required two years.  The math is unbelievable, especially if you prepare your kid for Algebra I in 5th - this puts them into the LEAP math program and opens up all sorts of doors.  They do diagnostic testing for STARS and at the beginning of the year for math.  Latin is rigorous, English instruction is not lacking (and they actually teach them the parts of speech before they learn to write essays).  I would vote for BASIS with Deal and Wilson as backups.  There is nothing like taking Chemistry, Physics and Bio 6th-8th grade to prepare kids for the AP courses in those subjects.  We have been blown away and so have our kids.[/quote]

Here's the thing, though.  In my kid's [i]very specific demographic group[/i] [I am OP], the percentage of kids scoring "Advanced" is much, much higher at Deal -- not BASIS as you assert.  There is a critical mass of kids in this [i]specific demographic group[/i] at Deal, at BASIS, and at Latin.  And far and away, not even statistically close, this [i]specific group of kids[/i] scored best at Deal.

Now, to be clear, I am not a "score junkie," and I don't put great stock in the test itself or the test as a perfect measure of how well Kid X will do in life. Am much more holistic, which is why I penned the original post in the first place.

But.  The large gap between Deal and the other two schools -- again, [u]testing the very same sorts of kids with likely veryveryvery similar backgrounds[/u] is interesting.  Especially since everyone on DCUM talks about what a minimum baseline the DCCAS test really is in its current form.    I get PPs point that BASIS wasn't "teaching to the test,"  [good!], but I was under the impression that the students should nevertheless be able to nail the DCCAS anyway since it is purported to be "so easy."     Is this not correct?

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