Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
It TJ wasn’t such a prize in terms of perceived college admissions then it’s just a magnet high school for kids wanting more stem opportunities. It does not have to be the “school fir the very smartest and most prepared kids who want to get into the best stem colleges”. It can just be the county’s magnet school for stem. If parents just understood that the base high schools could provide equal opportunity for college admissions TJ would just be the school for kids who want the focus on stem. That’s what it should be. It’s a lottery but your mathematically gifted kid (and algebra in 5th is just accelerated. Who knows if that kid will be mathematically gifted) hours also be well served at any FCPS high school.

You are so off base. No one wants to attend TJ for college admission purposes. Everyone knows that kids get better college offers if they’re top 5-10% at their base high school than they would get at TJ. The gifted kids want the specialized classes that are available at TJ but not any base schools. Kids who are very accelerated in math would have a lot of post calc specialized classes in math and physics at TJ. They will run out of classes at the base school. There is no point in admitting kids to TJ who will mostly take classes that would have been available at their base school. There is a point in admitting kids who will have a lot of space in their schedules for specialized TJ classes.

Anonymous wrote:
It TJ wasn’t such a prize in terms of perceived college admissions then it’s just a magnet high school for kids wanting more stem opportunities. It does not have to be the “school fir the very smartest and most prepared kids who want to get into the best stem colleges”. It can just be the county’s magnet school for stem. If parents just understood that the base high schools could provide equal opportunity for college admissions TJ would just be the school for kids who want the focus on stem. That’s what it should be. It’s a lottery but your mathematically gifted kid (and algebra in 5th is just accelerated. Who knows if that kid will be mathematically gifted) hours also be well served at any FCPS high school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The admissions process gave extra weight to FARMS as well as other “experience factors” so it’s not a surprise that the numbers went up.

+1. I would add it looks like a little too much weight to jump from 2% to 25% of the incoming class.

Probably those kids had no chance before the 1.5% rule since the wealthy preppers made it impossible.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Favoring kids with more math acceleration for TJ just creates an academic enrichment arms race.

I know it’s hard for some posters to realize but this dynamic isn’t good for anyone. It’s not good for the wealthy or Asian kids to be pushed so hard. And it’s not good for the URMs that are completely shut out from the competition.

And you’re thinking “but my kid actually wants to spend 10 extra hours a week studying math”. Fine. But please consider how your kid being rewarded fir that in TJ admissions causes three other families to make their kid who doesn’t do the same.

Bottom line. TJ admissions should not be a competition. If a middle schooler is interested and her grades and test scores meet a certain requirement she should be just as qualified for admission as the so-called “wonder kids” in pre calculus and winning competitions.

But what about the kids who are legitimately highly gifted in math? The kids FCPS chooses to bump up a year or more who take Algebra in 5th or 6th grade aren’t there because their parents paid for prep. Certain kids really do need TJ, since math at the base schools will be too easy for them, and they’ll run out of classes by 11th grade.

If you want to eliminate the math arms race, get rid of summer geometry. Then, the kids in Algebra 2 or pre calc will just be the highly gifted and not the prepped.

Anonymous wrote:Favoring kids with more math acceleration for TJ just creates an academic enrichment arms race.

I know it’s hard for some posters to realize but this dynamic isn’t good for anyone. It’s not good for the wealthy or Asian kids to be pushed so hard. And it’s not good for the URMs that are completely shut out from the competition.

And you’re thinking “but my kid actually wants to spend 10 extra hours a week studying math”. Fine. But please consider how your kid being rewarded fir that in TJ admissions causes three other families to make their kid who doesn’t do the same.

Bottom line. TJ admissions should not be a competition. If a middle schooler is interested and her grades and test scores meet a certain requirement she should be just as qualified for admission as the so-called “wonder kids” in pre calculus and winning competitions.

Anonymous wrote:Favoring kids with more math acceleration for TJ just creates an academic enrichment arms race.

I know it’s hard for some posters to realize but this dynamic isn’t good for anyone. It’s not good for the wealthy or Asian kids to be pushed so hard. And it’s not good for the URMs that are completely shut out from the competition.

And you’re thinking “but my kid actually wants to spend 10 extra hours a week studying math”. Fine. But please consider how your kid being rewarded fir that in TJ admissions causes three other families to make their kid who doesn’t do the same.

Bottom line. TJ admissions should not be a competition. If a middle schooler is interested and her grades and test scores meet a certain requirement she should be just as qualified for admission as the so-called “wonder kids” in pre calculus and winning competitions.

Anonymous wrote:Favoring kids with more math acceleration for TJ just creates an academic enrichment arms race.

I know it’s hard for some posters to realize but this dynamic isn’t good for anyone. It’s not good for the wealthy or Asian kids to be pushed so hard. And it’s not good for the URMs that are completely shut out from the competition.

And you’re thinking “but my kid actually wants to spend 10 extra hours a week studying math”. Fine. But please consider how your kid being rewarded fir that in TJ admissions causes three other families to make their kid who doesn’t do the same.

Bottom line. TJ admissions should not be a competition. If a middle schooler is interested and her grades and test scores meet a certain requirement she should be just as qualified for admission as the so-called “wonder kids” in pre calculus and winning competitions.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The admissions process gave extra weight to FARMS as well as other “experience factors” so it’s not a surprise that the numbers went up.

+1. I would add it looks like a little too much weight to jump from 2% to 25% of the incoming class.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The admissions process gave extra weight to FARMS as well as other “experience factors” so it’s not a surprise that the numbers went up.

+1. I would add it looks like a little too much weight to jump from 2% to 25% of the incoming class.

Anonymous wrote:The admissions process gave extra weight to FARMS as well as other “experience factors” so it’s not a surprise that the numbers went up.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
So we are back to the fact that TJ is only for advantaged kids. Disadvantaged kids can neither compete in admissions nor even successfully attend the school. Not saying your completely off base. But is that the real purpose of a public high school? Of course not every kid has the chops for a selective magnet school. But should TJ give stronger consideration to a kid who took Algebra II in 8th grade over a kid who took geometry or even Algebra I? When all three kids have shown superior ability in math and want to go to TJ?

And just because a child was unable to participate in extracurriculars in elementary school and middle school doesn’t necessarily mean they won’t be able to in high school when such things require less support from parents.

TJ isn't just for advantaged kids, but it certainly isn't for severely disadvantaged kids, especially those who haven't shown the initiative to self-study or seek out opportunities. No rigorous program ever could be. Unless they water down TJ pretty significantly, those kids are being set up to fail.

Also, kids in Algebra I have not shown superior math ability. They're not in the top 10% in FCPS or really anywhere anymore. Algebra I in 8th is pretty average in most places. Kids getting accepted with Algebra I should be the exception and not the rule, and these kids should have some compelling reason for being below standard in math for an elite STEM magnet.

Middle school extracurriculars don't require anything at all from the parents. The kids stay after school for an hour and then take the late bus home. If they can't even do that in 8th grade, what makes you think that they'll be able to do so in 9th?

Latest class is 25% FARMS. I wonder how many are in the severely disadvantaged. It makes sense that severely disadvantaged kids with some holes to fill/some areas to catch up on will have a higher chance of encountering difficulties staying on top of the curriculum/assignments. More than the racial makeup changes, it was shocking to me that TJ went from less than 1 percent FARMS to one in four. One in four is a huge number. Will teachers adjust the level so too many don't get left behind?

Did not realize that! Giving the admissions committee the benefit of the doubt, I'm assuming each of these kids is more than capable of managing well at TJ. I hope TJ and everyone involved (e.g. the PTSA) does everything necessary to make sure these kids are successful.