Reply to Takoma, Easter Magnets. MCPS Pilots Universal Evaluation Process.

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]

MCPS refused to release the MS magnet test data on the admirred and rejected students after multiple requests.  Everyone is speculating but they they got no data to support their claim.   MCPS owns the data and has total control over your child’s school life;  it can be cc2.0 or magnet admission. 
Unless MCPS touches the UMC and MC white students’ benefit, they will not face real resistance.  UMC familes can affort private schools and can bring a lawsuit.
However, Asian families, most of them are first generation of immigrants, cannot afford private schools in this area and 100% depend on public school.  It is daunting task to navigate the school system which is totally different from their own school experience.  When they saw their child’s education opportunity is robbed by MCPS under the name of diversity, an angry reaction is the least you can expect.  Fortunately, for MCPS, the angry voice from Asian parents may be the only reaction from Asian parents. The affected Asian parents will not bring a lawsuit to MCPS, because they cannot afford, cannot find a lawyer to take their case, or decided to let it go because their own child already missed the chance and need to move on.

Dear PP, you are right, there will be no lawsuit from Asian parents!  [/quote]

Asian-heritage families who live in Potomac can't afford a lawyer? [/quote]

Most of Asian immegtant families in Potomac or North Potomac are working families with two professional jobs.  After paying for the $500-900K houses, mortgage, child care, Music/Sport/enrichment classes for kids cost them most of the income after tax and retiremen saving.  $45,000 cash for a private school each year,?  It is beyond most of the Asian families. [/quote]

Consider then the low income AA, African, or Latinx family downcounty with a gifted child who is getting Magnet as their only opportunity. [/quote]
The better approach would be to have more intervention and enrichment for K-2 in low performing schools to ensure that gifted children are challenged and nurtured so that they can easily qualify for the Magnet programs.  If you just change the selection criteria using a bogus peer group rationale you could end up with what has happened this year : roughly the same number of AA and HI students and more white students from DCC schools. Meanwhile many Asian and white students in W schools with higher scores did not get in.  Before you respond with the standard “but their scores are higher because they went to cram schools “ I just want to say that prepping is not as common as you might imagine and the results of prepping are not as positive as you might imagine. I know of kids who did prep who got in ( and it is not a high number) and I know of kids who prepped who did not. My child got into RMIB, Blair SMAC and CAP without any prepping and he was not alone [/quote]

I don't disagree w/ you generally, but prepping from the the Asian group is common and successful. My kid just finished at TPMS and was a little freaked out by how many Asian kids were carrying A++ study books geared towards the HS magnet test all Fall. Most kids got into magnet.  I'm sure these families prepped for MS exam as well. And, before anyone cries "sour grapes," my kid got into magnet, CAP, both Wheatons & RM. And, did not do a test prep class.

My issues w/ the new system is that in trying to remove emphasis from the test (I'm OK w/ that), it actually increased emphasis on the test by omitting the essays and teacher recs. These are where my kids were able to stand out. I think these are important aspects of application data that should be considered.

The bigger issue is that MCPS needs more enrichment. More magnet spots and more home school enrichment.[/quote]
Your child got into a bunch of Magnet programs without prepping (as did mine fwiw).  Do you really think the Asian kids he went to school with at the Takoma Magnet were successful in their HS Magnet applications because they prepped or do you think it is possible that they would be successful even if they had not.   I have never understood why the prep schools are so popular with some (but not all by a long shot) Asian families. I just think that it is a largely self selected group of highly intelligent and hard working kids in these classes who would probably be successful even if they didn’t prep [/quote]

I think prepping was a big part of it. My kid write great essays and had amazing teacher recs & nat'l/state level acheievments but did below median for Blair magnet on the test.  The test is part of the equation, so the idea of prepping is to max out the value of that part. I think those who take A++ do that.  They do like 13 weeks of 4 hr classes w/ homework and practice tests every other week.  Not sure about how many kids of which races/ethnicties prep, but all the A++ books my kid saw at TPMS were w/ Asian kids.  But, I see that these kids are working. I think it makes more sense to make sure that there are other student achievement criteria involved in selection and recognize that the test is just 1 factor.[/quote]

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