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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote]The story was a mess, but did say clearly that the top 15% that you mention were allowed to take the test. This is just lowering the bar for test taking, not entrance into the school overall. The underlying hope is that some of the poorer kids from those schools will be able to pass the test. Now I have no idea if the bar for passing the test is being lowered.

There is already a clear attention to 'race' in the enrollment of kids to the high school, but I have never seen the formula. [/quote]

I agree the story was a mess. It also did not provide a credible explanation of why the policy change was being postponed for a year.  Yes, I understand that apparently the change was not properly published on a website - but who was hurt by that?  It seems no one, since the top 15% were informed by letter that they would be eligible to take the test.  So, big deal if it wasn't on the website - all the people that it affected were notified.

Also, someone needs to explain to me what is so wrong about trying to increase diversity this way.  It strikes me as similar to what Texas has done - offering UT admission to every high school valedictorian.  That has successfully increased diversity at UT.[/quote]

The story may have confused things a lot.  Were the top 15 (is it a hard number of students or percentage of the class) allowed to sit for the exam?  I read the story as that they were not this year but are going to allow that exception next year.  The 4 or 5 on PARCC is clear on the website, it was stated at the open house, it was stated at High School Night at Deal so I assume at other middle schools as well and it is clear on the MySchoolDC application.  I have no idea how this standard could have been a surprise.  I talked with an admissions officer at the Walls open house and he told me about this exception (to allow the top students at every middle school to sit for the exam).  I do not see a problem in letting more students sit for the exam.  Also, the fact that students that do not be the threshold criteria is also not new, this apparently happened even when there was just a minimum GPA requirement.

[/quote]

The top 15 were not allowed to take this year's exam, unless they scored a 4 or 5 on PARCC. But they were TOLD earlier this year that there was a way around that -- that top 15 students would be able to sit for the exam. And then, it turned out, that the policy isn't going to be in place for another year, effectively meaning these students have lost their chance.

I do wonder if the top 15 policy only applies to DCPS, or would it also be allowed for charter school students. Since SWW is supposed to be open to all students I would think that it would. [/quote]

I have a charter 8th grader and we were told nothing about a policy change. Is the point to seek diversity but only from dcps?[/quote]

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