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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]People want more/better options for middle school in DC.  Every DCUM thread lately makes that abundantly clear.  BASIS is a wonderful option for many (not most) families who want their kids receiving a public education in DC.  Comparing schools and scores is tricky because of the reasons mentioned regarding enrollment and which tests students are taking, whether they are taking a rest after having been at the school for a few years, etc.  Comparing college acceptances is difficult, too, because you have to factor in class size, whether a school is a pure lottery or application school, etc.  There’s no precise “fair” or “clean” way to compare schools most of the time.  I think zealous BASIS advocates and haters alike invite criticism and backlash by sometimes overlooking the fact that the comparisons are not apples to apples.

Why are there so many threads like?  Some guesses.  Some people seem quite bitter about BASIS; maybe it’s because they think it takes away top students from DCPS middle schools, or maybe it’s because their kid didn’t do well, or maybe it’s because they hate charter schools in general.  Or maybe it’s because they are trolls who like to start these discussions repeatedly.  Or maybe the numerous threads are because BASIS tends to attract type A families who aren’t afraid to vocalize concerns or defend their school.

My biggest theory as to why there are so many discussions is that people tend to second guess whether they made the right decision in sending or not sending their kid to BASIS (it’s not a normal school!) and they need everyone else to agree with their decision.  [/quote]

I think BASIS is the rare school where it's actually a very good thing that there are lots of informative threads in it, because it will not work for every kid but will work wonderfully for some kids. Some families love and and think it's the best public option in DC for their kids, some loathe it and want to burn it down. (We are in the category of "this is a great fit for middle school and a good back up plan for high school." My son is really happy so far.)

Attrition would be less if an issue if families and kids came in knowing as many details as possible and self selected into the model.

DCI and Latin both seem like places where any kid will basically be fine. [/quote]

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