Reply to What is the real reason MCPS uses Lottery for Middle School Magnet Program

Forum Index » Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS)

Reply to "What is the real reason MCPS uses Lottery for Middle School Magnet Program"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous]At least NYC'S g and t tried to serve everyone who scored above 90%. Giving a lottery option for harder classes isn't any different from DC's lottery system for all schools: you get lucky or you don't.

While I commend mcps for having their heart in the right place, and wanting to help all students excel, our experience with a bright kid pushed into "normal" classes at TPMS was dismal. (We missed the application deadline for magnet because we moved into the county too late.) There are some students who need to be challenged in school. It's not any different from needing an IEP.

What has always confused me about the MCPS magnet is this insistence that it has to be exclusive. Why? Doesn't cost more to have more advanced classes, either at a central school or at multiple locations. It wouldn't cost the county more to provide all learners who scored above 85% with an advanced curriculum.

The old system was bad because the applications were arbitrary and favored the UMC. (The year we missed the deadline I looked at the application and it relied heavily on recommendations and awards won, extracurricular interests, etc. Hallmarks of a middle class.) It was later changed to a pure test-based system--better in some ways, but due to the limited number of seats, missing out on providing opportunities to any kids who got less than straight A's, or less than 99%. Now, I know many parents of straight A 99% achievers will chime in here to explain to me how their children are truly truly special and deserve a tranche above all others, and perhaps that's true: but I can tell you from my experience of being one, that bright kids who get B's also benefit from challenging classes. In fact, some of them may need them, because if they aren't challenged they don't engage at all. For us it was significant when our kid stopped falling asleep in English class because English started being actually interesting to them. Like night and day.

Gifted education shouldn't be as arbitrary as a lottery. Ever. It also shouldn't only be reserved only for the highest scorers. Moco has pivoted from one bad selection process to another bad selection process, when the simple solution would have been to meet the needs of all the students.

[/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics