Reply to FCPS High School prestige ranking

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Two things can be true.
IB can be a good program.
IB is not the right program for FCPS.

FCPS is ridiculous to go through a boundary study while they keep IB as the program in some schools.

Compare the value.  IB loses here.[/quote]

I do see some value to this take. But PPs continue to conflate value of IB with the performance of the schools where it’s been placed. Zero correlation.

If your average American suburban parent is more comfortable with AP, ok, no issues. But to sayFCPS should just do away with IB shows defensiveness toward other students’ elite hs record.[/quote]

The thread is about which high schools is FCPS are prestigious - associated with excellence in their academics and extra-curricular programs.

One hallmark of a prestigious school is a pervasive culture of achievement. IB schools in FCPS don’t have that culture. To the contrary, they tend to single out a small number of kids as deserving special attention, which underscores their top achievers are exceptions to the general mediocrity of those schools.  [/quote]

I can decode the title of a thread. And it quickly morphed into IB bashing.

The hallmark of a prestigious school is its rigor. IB’s tops AP’s. And it’s ok that it isn’t for everyone.

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The IB program limits students to 3, maybe 4 HL classes, which cannot be taken until senior year.  AP students have no limit on the number of courses they can take that are at that level, and they can take them in whatever grade they are ready to.  Therefore, AP is more rigorous.[/quote]

The IB program requires students to take 6 high-level classes, taken over two years. There's English, World Language, Social Sciences, Science, Math, and an Elective. On top of a Theory of Knowledge class, write an essay, and complete 150 hours of service outside of class.

Students at IB schools can take IB courses like one takes AP courses -- focusing on which individual AP courses they want to take. Or one can take all the IB classes and go for the certificate. At my child's IB school, students can even take AP courses beginning their sophomore year.[/quote]

No, the IB program requires students to take 3-4 higher level classes and 2-3 standard level classes (6 total). They cannot take more than 4 higher level classes.[/quote]

Both the standard-level and the higher-level IB courses get an additional 1.0 bump to the GPA, just like AP courses. The IB courses begin sophomore year, with IB chemistry and (potentially) math.

While the courses may be called IB standard level, they're treated the same as an AP course in terms of GPA boost. The GPA boost is given because of the difficulty of the course, just like AP courses. By junior year, if a students wishes to go for an IB diploma, they will be taking six courses with the 1.0 GPA boost (six advanced courses), potentially seven courses if a student takes an IB elective.
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Colleges do not give credit for standard level courses.  Per the IBO, they are equivalent to high school honors courses, not first year college courses.  A student must take 2 or 3 of these courses, whereas in an AP program they could take college-level courses instead.[/quote]

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