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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I wonder how the Banneker folks are feeling so proud when they only graduate less than 20 kids with IB diplomas each year and they are a preferential admissions school?[/quote]

Banneker is a magnet in name only. They make most of the incoming 9th graders repeat 8th grade math. My kid is at Banneker for 9th. Not impressed so far. Forced to repeat 8th grade math with 75% of the incoming class. Way too much hw, decent amount of busy work. My kid did not get into Walls but wants to apply again for next year. School communication is terrible. All the emphasis seems to be on academic work. No clubs or activities. If this is the best DCPS can offer, it is sad.[/quote]

That’s the way Banneker has been for years.  And I think the forcing everyone to take Algebra I in 9th grade makes the school much less appealing to kids in advanced math classes in middle school.[/quote]It makes sense when you realize that Algebra I in 8th grade is often a recipe for disaster. [b]It is better to get every student on the same page[/b], especially in math than to push kids, many of whom did not get adequate instruction on the subject in middle school, to higher levels of math just so the school can look good.

At Walls, despite my DS literally begging anyone who would listen to let him retake algebra I freshman year, they forced him to take geometry, and then algebra II. They straight up told me when I brought it up that the only reason DS wanted to take algebra I was so he could get an 'easy A' on a subject he already knew. This despite the fact that on multiple occasions DS had explained that his algebra I teacher left his middle school a few months into the school year he was taking it, and the remainder of the class had been taught by a rotating cast of substitutes, administrators, and younger grade math teachers who had never taught the subject before.

And from my experience not just with DS, but also with my younger kids (who, for obvious reasons, did not go to that middle school) and kids I knew is that the quality of Algebra I classes in middle school is not nearly as good as in high schools, and many schools, especially 10-12 years ago when it was the 'hot new thing' in middle school education to teach it, were not prepared to teach it effectively. While kids who are naturally gifted at math can generally piece it together, many who are not (like DS) were utterly failed. And this decision can set people back, math requires people to understand each piece before moving on, and I honestly think that one decision to refuse to let DS retake Algebra I seriously hurt his mathematical understanding for years to come.
  
Especially at a school like Banneker - whose student population tends to be less well off then Walls or Wilson or other comparable environments - it makes total sense to teach every student Algebra I as a building block to ensure competency. It actually fits right into their mold, which is a highly academic institution designed to provide a challenging, but effective education using more traditional methods. It is not a school for everyone - they have been very open about that - its not the school for the parents who want their kid to get an associates degree at high school graduation, or for kids who don't have the drive to succeed under traditional educational concepts - but its outcomes are far better then those at comparable schools because those traditional concepts - hard work, repetition, high expectations - are highly effective.[/quote]

My kid is by no stretch of the imagination a math whiz, and he would have been bored senseless if he had re-taken Algebra in 9th grade.  As it was, he LOVED geometry and did really well in it in 9th grade.

What I think you should be advocating for is sensible math placement and allowing kids to chose what class makes sense.  My kid opted out of AP calc and tool regular old on-level calculus because he wanted to learn the material but knew he wouldn't really get it if he was racing to keep up all the time.  In the opinion of my buddy who teaches college physics, this should be much more common because, as you say, a lot of kids who take accelerated math are not ready for it.
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