Reply to So, what is wrong with Hardy?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]

Yep, test scores are the biggest deterrent.  Ward 3 kids simply perform at a much higher level, as a whole, than kids from outside of Ward 3, as a whole.  Hence the tit-for-tat about snobbery and racism; but when you get down to it the scores speak for themselves.  You can argue about the generational, social causes for lower test scores, but that's beside the point when parents desire the best possible education for their kid(s), in the present.  Parents tend to want high-achieving kids to be surrounded by (mostly) other high achieving kids.  Once this is acknowledged, what else is there to discuss other than uniforms and P.E.?[/quote]

Anyone who works in education in DC will tell you that this isn't really true.  Teachers who 'inherit' high performing students don't have to work nearly as hard as those who do not.  Income level is still the largest determining factor for academic performance meaning high SES children consistently score higher than low SES children.  There's no special magic happening at any WOTP schools.  Remove many of those teachers to a low performing school and they wouldn't be able to get anywhere close to the same results.  So, you're not necessarily getting the best possible education.  What you're getting is a school with other children who are high performing, many also high SES, and typically more resources, because parents can afford to provide them when the District wont.[/quote]

Thanks for your insight, PP.

You're right.  Teachers matter, but not that much.  Facilities matter, but not that much.  Extra-curriculars matter, but not that much.

What matters most is how many well-prepared, hard-working, well-supported children, i.e., high-SES children, are at the school.  Those children will educate each other and challenge each other to reach his or her full potential.

So, how many IB children are at Hardy this year?  How many in the 6th grade?

[/quote]

Actually not what I wrote or implied.  People look at test scores and assume that means that the school with the test scores has the best when it comes to quality education.  That's not the case.  There are a lot of things that go into test scores and one of the biggest factors is parental involvement, couple that with level of education and income of the parents and you've got factors that the school doesn't control, but play a huge role.  If you have a class full of my kids, who are the children of two well-educated, gainfully employed, very involved parents, then you've got a different situation than someone working at a school where the opposite is true.    The point is, don't avoid Hardy (or other schools) simply because of test scores.  [/quote]

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