Reply to Magnet application result High School

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I think being at TPMS or another magnet middle school makes the process that much harder from a social perspective because there will be a core group going to Blair and practically everyone applied.

My child got in from their regular MS and when they were trying to figure out if any friends got in the response she got most often was what are you talking about. They were paying no attention to the application process. These are top students who are in the cohorted math and history classes.[/quote]

I'm the OP about social development. Yes that's the point I was trying to make about the magnet middle schools. Of course there's always reshuffling from every level, elementary to M, MS to HS, but the cohort from the magnet middle schools going on to these HS magnet programs is particularly large. I don't know how to explain to my child that they can do very well, as well as their peers, work hard, and they have a different result. And yes, that's the point I was making about the roll out of notifications. It was at the end of the school day and all the kids were talking about, checking their email, etc. When my kid was hearing all of their friends wonderful results, and happy for the, but with nothing themselves, you can imagine what that does for their self image, but also the bigger understanding that all of their friends would get to go on together, and they will be left out.

I agree with PP that likely 500 applicants "deserve" the invitation, and at some point with the vast majority of applications it is splitting hairs. Clearly one of the answers is having more magnet seats, including at the MS level. But this observation is of course not new, and is likely not the direction MCPS will head to in the future with the general hostility nationwide towards gifted and talented education.

I'll admit I'm also biased towards my own experiences in gifted education, which did wonderful things for me as someone coming from a background of poverty. In our school district children were identified as deserving gifted education at the elementary level and those resources were provided to us at every level. There wasn't the faux scarcity of opportunities that there is in MCPS. In elementary the gifted education was done as a pull out class several times during the week. In middle school and high school there were full magnet programs at specific schools that everyone identified as gifted moved through (if they wanted to). So there was none of this bloodbath at every level, competing against one another, we all moved together. I regret my child isn't in a district that provides the accelerated education and gifted learning cohort to every student that needs it or would benefit from it.[/quote]

Congrats to the folks who 'got in". However, the way it has been handled is an absolute disaster. Making it so public by sending emails to kids in the middle of the week. Very thoughtless. 
Completely isolating and disheartening for kids who don't now get to be with their friends even though they did the work and have the grades and scores. I absolutely wish I didn't send my kid to TPMS. Better to be in home school and have a few kids go the magnet rather than be in this situation. I don't know how the rest of the school year is going to unfold. I am frankly worried. [/quote]

How else are they to handle it?  Just give all the slots to the TPMS kids?  What are you worried about for the rest of the school year?   It is what it is.[/quote]

Thanks for your opinion.[/quote]
DP. There are 100 students in TPMS magnet program, and there are 100 slots at Blair SMAC for the ENTIRE Montgomery County. So it's only logical that the county will have to reject certain kids from TPMS, along with hundreds of others from other schools.

Granted, they definitely should have done it in a more thoughtful manner but if you thought your child would be guaranteed a spot at a HS magnet simply by virtue of going to a MS magnet.. well, you probably should have kept them at a home school. [/quote]

Not the OP on the home school comment, but it's not a matter of going to a magnet HS "simply" because the child went to a magnet MS, but that the records of achievement are nearly identical. And then we get into the ridiculous splitting of hairs, which isn't a real reflection of whether one child should go and not another.[/quote]

Yep. The previous evaluation system was definitely more comprehensive. The current watered-down system with grades and MAP (which wasn't meant for this purpose) doesn't provide rich enough data to make an informed decision. No one is expecting a guaranteed spot but definitely expecting a more thoughtful evaluation system and process. [/quote]

Previous meaning including an external cogat/other test designed to measure potential fit. Not just a test like MAP which is not appropriate in the way it has been used. Better system elevates all participants. [/quote]

Not really. It was more designed to filter out those who couldn't afford the prep classes in order to keep out the riff Raff.[/quote]

Exactly! It was just gatekeeping...[/quote]

As if the current system is immune to prepping?? There are kids that prep for MAP, there are kids who used writing coaches for the essay, and whether or not a kid gets straight As can depend a lot on the home environment as well as the degree to which parents are running support in the background. Also just look in this thread at how many parents cite their child’s unique extracurricular as helping their chances.

Don’t pretend the current system is any less gatekeeping.[/quote]

My kids record of all As is entirely on him. Absolutely nothing I have done has assisted. He is 100 percent responsible for completing his home work and for keeping track of when it’s due. I also don’t take him to activities or prep him for tests. He got in to everywhere he applied.[/quote]

It pains me to read your posts. You are clearly deeply involved in your child's schooling. You've posted in every thread I've been scanning. Every single one in great detail about the application process and your opinions. Own it. You're very involved. Your child is lucky. Why do you like to pretend you're not?[/quote]

No I haven’t. I think there are multiple people whose kids got in to multiple places. Someone was posting their kid got in to 7. Mine only got in to 3. I haven’t posted about it before.[/quote]

Your posts use the same language as the posters who talk in great detail about their child getting in everywhere but it's not you. I believe you. Hope you can recognize the sarcasm.[/quote]

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