Reply to Eastern magnet Humanities program vs Archdiocese of DC middle school

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Reply to "Eastern magnet Humanities program vs Archdiocese of DC middle school"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]If you value indoctrination then go catholic, but if things like critical thinking or academics matter then Eastern.[/quote]

LOL

I’m not Catholic, but MCPS certainly does its own version of ‘indoctrination’.  And to think that any MCPS middle school values critical thinking and academics is a bit…laughable.  MCPS middle schools are not very strong at all.  [/quote]

You don’t know anything about the magnet program at Eastern do you?[/quote]

My DD’s good friend attended the Eastern Magnet for a year and then came back to our home MS.  Went on to a Magnet HS and had a good experience there.

[/quote]

Is it possible to know why they decided to return to their home MS? Thanks again![/quote]

My child is a current 8th grader and students that have left have done so either because the bus ride was interfering with other activities, or because they moved further away and the bus ride was worse, or they moved out of MCPS entirely, or just because the enriched humanities and English wasn't enough to compensate for the logistical hassle. The last group is more likely to be kids who weren't "sold" on Eastern to begin with, and who would have attended TPMS instead if the lottery had worked out for them.

The Humanities magnets are incredible...for the right kid, but they are not the right fit for every kid. They are a much better fit for kids with "big theater kid energy" than for kids who don't want to work in groups, or speak in front of crowds, or write screenplays. [/quote]

Thank you so much! My child loves LOVES writing, especially creative writing since DC was 7 (and even had a screenplay written by DC stage-read in Bryant park in NYC in a children’s playwriting  competition). But DC is naturally introverted so doesn’t have the “big theater kid energy” and we are unsure how DC will react to numerous group work.  With that said, after seeing the virtual open house for Eastern and the writing program, DC is adamant that it’s the school DC wants to be in despite the commute. So maybe that’s definitely something we need to consider. [/quote]

The [b]big theater kids eat everyone else alive and not in a good way.[/b] They are overbearing in groups and dominate class discussion making it about "me me me." [b]DD told me her math class is basically a private lesson for one girl who can't keep up[/b] and also told me the English teacher basically told one classmate to basically shut up, although she obviously didn't use those words but it was a firm admonishment. The teacher said the girl was talking too much but was not contributing anything to the discussion. She was just making noise to make noise. [/quote]

I'm confused by the math comment because math isn't a part of the Eastern magnet program? So if an EM kid can't keep in the math class, that's not the fault of the magnet, that's a problem with the school's general education math placement process.

Also disagree with the "big theater kids" label.   It is true that EM kids like to read, write, and discuss things but that's not theater energy.  Discussion in class is not about performance at Eastern it is about substance - if your kid prefers classes where no one participates in discussion or raises their hand to add something then Eastern magnet is wrong for them. But, quite contrary to what you describe, magnet students who speak are on point and adding to a real high-level discussion. This, in fact, is what DC hated about coming back to her base HS - discussion in HS was boring, people said dumb and egregiously wrong stuff all the time which the teacher would not correct and students talked just to get points for talking without adding worthy substance. It was literally painful for DC to witness HS discussion, whereas at Eastern she was regularly blown away by thoughts of her peers - more diverse group with more accurate, on point thoughts.
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