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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Thanks for the test score breakdown, PP.

Poor kids do AS POORLY at Piney Branch as they do at Rolling Terrace, which is a much higher needs school overall than Piney Branch.

Poor kids do BETTER at ESS, Sligo Creek, Forest Knolls, Oakland Terrace, and other nearby schools than they do at PBES, which is definitely distressing, and sends up alarms for anyone with Black or Latino kids, or kids with special needs.

I think this is what was meant upthread by judging a school by how well it is doing by the kids who aren't getting outside enrichment. Piney Branch is always going to have more middle class kids than many of the schools in the neighborhood, but presence of middle class kids alone doesn't mean a school has excellent teachers.

We know from extensive research that middle class kids will do fine no matter what, particularly on standardized tests. But what is happening at PBES that is keeping poorly kids from working to the level of nearby schools with similar demographics?

That's an open question and one that probably deserves an answer. The best case scenario is that PBES just doesn't spend much time on test prep. The less great scenario is that the size of PBES and the presence of very vocal very demanding middle class white parents, is negatively impacting the experience of the poor kids at the school.

[/quote]
Some of the issue with PBES may be size. There are over 600 students in a school with only three grades. Rolling Terrace, where students do similarly poorly, has over 900 students. Oakland Terrace, Highland View and ESS are all smaller. Forest Knolls may be larger, but it covers grades k through 5. Piney Branch, with over 300 kids per grade, it is more comparable to a middle school or high school. I feel like that has to have some impact on student achievement.[/quote]

The information available online states that Piney Branch has fewer than 600 total students; however, it will likely reach 650 in the next 1 to 2 years.[/quote]

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