Reply to student admissions and TJ lawsuit

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]
This parent coaches being the gatekeepers happens A LOT in Elementary School, exp…Science Olympiad, Math Counts, FLL, CompSci competitions.
Then when the students go to Middle School and try out with the Teacher Coaches…those preferred kids get to check “experience” next to the forms and have a leg up on other kids. 
[/quote]

Anyone can sign up for AMC8 through FCAG or through any school or program offering the test.  Anyone can sign up for CML as a homeschooler, Math Kangaroo, or mathleague.  Anyone can get a free AoPS account and use alcumus, Mathcounts trainer app, FTW, or any of the forums there.  If Mathcounts and Science Olympiad are handled properly, selection should be competitive and based on performance on a test.  I'm not saying that gatekeeping isn't happening, but a motivated family should be able to work around it.  [/quote]

You’re presuming reliable internet access and the technology to be able to run those apps or programs. That’s not a given for many of these families.[/quote]

What percentage of kids in our county are you claiming to not have internet enabled cellphones, at a minimum? Internet is NOT the problem, it's not using it to learn, or just not being aware of the opportunities available.[/quote]

A much higher percentage than you seem to think. I don't fault you for not being aware of the challenges that these families face, but don't pretend like you are.[/quote]

Back up your claim with numbers if you believe that a significant portion of families in FCPS in 2022 do not have access to internet. In addition, please explain why you believe these families are worrying, thinking, or even aware of TJs existence, and how TJ would serve them with respect to the problems they have to deal with in their life.[/quote]

1) You have to actually set foot in these schools to have any idea of what these kids experience. FCPS doesn't publish numbers of kids who don't have internet access, but when you are on the ground, you become aware of their existence and commonality.

2) They shouldn't have to be "worrying about TJ" in order for their kids to have access to TJ if they're capable of handling it. And as unfortunate as it is, there's a MUCH bigger delta between the educational experiences and opportunities at say, Mount Vernon and TJ versus the experiences at Langley and TJ. That should go without saying.[/quote]

[b]So without any data you're implying that poverty rate is synonymous with internet access based on your above anecdote[/b]. Let's say that's true, that's almost 5.5% in FCPS. Nobody is disputing the huge resource gaps between TJ and Mt Vernon, or really any other school here, including even Langley. [b]How many kids from let's say Mt Vernon do you believe could actually be successful at TJ (by that I mean graduating with good grades)? I don't believe the numbers are very significant[/b]. I completely agree that those few kids should be given every opportunity to not only apply to TJ, but also to prepare for the rigor starting in elementary school. That's a resource problem right there. FCPS should be identifying and providing/supporting those kids from elementary by all possible means. But they're not doing that. The main issue here is that TJ is slowly being racially 'reformed' to significantly lower the admission bar in the hope that more underrepresented minorities will take part without regard for whether the applicants can actually succeed. For instance, rather simply eliminating letters of recommendations and tests, they should be adding additional data points, i.e multiple tests, etc. to best identify those who could succeed there.[/quote]

1) I provided data in another post.

2) The idea that there are not very many kids in the Mt. Vernon area that could be successful at TJ is not something that we can just accept as fact. You can believe whatever you want, but the reality is that we won't know the answer unless they have an opportunity. Additionally, it is a false choice to suggest that we should EITHER be improving access to TJ OR seeking to improve educational opportunities for students in those areas. We should be doing both things and the folks on the School Board want to do both things.

3) The Admissions Office has been asserting for years that there are thousands of students in each cycle who could be very successful at TJ. What they are saying is that the difference between the bottom students who have been selected and the top ones who haven't been selected in years past is basically negligible. I assert that indeed, they may have been selecting several of the wrong students because the standardized testing model allows families to pose children who are relatively workaday as being brighter than they are through test prep.

Not ALL of the wrong students, mind you - there are far more students who have deserved to be at TJ over the years than there are those who have not. But the kids at TJ know who the kids are that don't belong there and who got in through extensive and expensive prep. It makes itself clear pretty quickly. When kids who don't do much in terms of extracurriculars have to stay up past midnight in order to keep up - unless you're talking about a genuine IEP-level processing issue - that's a sign that you've got a kid who probably doesn't belong.[/quote]

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