Anonymous wrote:Remember our President's campaign theme song -- "You can't always get what you want."

Yes you’re right, we peons whose kids didn’t make it into HB should just accept our lot. ? I’m more of the “Yes we can” type of person. Speak up if you don’t like it!

Remember our President's campaign theme song -- "You can't always get what you want."

Anonymous wrote:New poster -
I have an 8th grader at Swanson who has had a great experience. He spent all of last year in the trailers and I never heard about a rat/rodent problem.
I think the school is doing a very good job of providing a very good education for my kid. Class sizes are kept small - which is an Arlington mission.
I always get the feeling that it's the PARENTS who are freaking out and the kids are adjusting and adapting quite well.

My 7th grader has been very happy with Swanson. I have never talked to a Swanson kid who is bothered by the overcrowding. It is largely a parental complaint.

Anonymous wrote:The thing about lockers doesn't fly anymore:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/schools-and-lockers-no-longer-the-right-combination/2018/01/24/9aa4222a-fa09-11e7-ad8c-ecbb62019393_story.html?utm_term=.6c4e5dd05b47

Yes, it does. We are talking here about MS students’ locker use. The article you linked discusses HS students’ locker use. Big difference. When a kid gets to MS they transition from ES where they had everything at their desk, hooks in the classroom for coats, and maybe switching for 1-2 classes to MS where they switch for every class and have to learn how to manage stuff without a desk or a hook. MS students absolutely still use lockers. I agree HS students don’t.

The thing about lockers doesn't fly anymore:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/schools-and-lockers-no-longer-the-right-combination/2018/01/24/9aa4222a-fa09-11e7-ad8c-ecbb62019393_story.html?utm_term=.6c4e5dd05b47

New poster -
I have an 8th grader at Swanson who has had a great experience. He spent all of last year in the trailers and I never heard about a rat/rodent problem.
I think the school is doing a very good job of providing a very good education for my kid. Class sizes are kept small - which is an Arlington mission.
I always get the feeling that it's the PARENTS who are freaking out and the kids are adjusting and adapting quite well.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What I don't understand is why all Arlington schools can't have a "town hall" like HB Woodlawn. What is preventing them from being similar to that school? Why is there even a need for HB Woodlawn?

Why can’t Arlington use the many years of data about what “works” at the choice schools and apply those principles to ALL of the schools at that level? Why can’t every elementary school be like ATS or ASFS? It’s absurd to have these microcosms of choice and privilege when they’re letting so much flounder.

Not to derail but asfs isn’t and hasn’t been a choice school for some time now. It is at 125% capacity. There is a whole grade in trailers.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What I don't understand is why all Arlington schools can't have a "town hall" like HB Woodlawn. What is preventing them from being similar to that school? Why is there even a need for HB Woodlawn?

Why can’t Arlington use the many years of data about what “works” at the choice schools and apply those principles to ALL of the schools at that level? Why can’t every elementary school be like ATS or ASFS? It’s absurd to have these microcosms of choice and privilege when they’re letting so much flounder.

What works at the choice schools is that parents willing to put effort into their children’s education apply to them. There’s no hocus pocus that makes them great. Make every school an ATS minus the lottery and you’ll have floundering ATS schools.

Hey now, you know that saying "parents willing to put effort into their children's education is a dog whistle for another issue." I don't disagree at all, I think most APS schools are fairly equal with talent and available resources, but I think the difference is what happens at home.

I don't agree about resources being equal.

I think another factor here is the set of expectations that a lottery school like ATS can have because they can use a stick. Don't make your kid do their homework? Bye. Don't get them here on time? Bye. Have unexcuses absences? Bye. Don't send them to summer school before K, complete the summer packet, get them reading by the end of K? Bye. I don't think they use that stick, but the threat of it may be enough. And it probably doesn't hurt that most lower SES kids who gets in to ATS have completed a year of VPI preschool prior to K. At other schools with larger populations of disadvantaged students, this may not be the case. While we can't replicate the threat of being kicked out of the school at neighborhood schools, I do wish we were able to increase the number of kids who have access to a high quality affordable preschool program. I think it really makes a difference, at least in the early years, and definitely for students who are ELL. That's one additional year of learning English.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, ATS and HB have not expanded significantly. Your percentages mean nothing when you are talking about a MIDDLE SCHOOL and HIGH SCHOOL enrollment that is barely bigger than the incoming class of 6th graders at Swanson.
You know what schools HAVE expanded significantly in recent years: Oakridge, McKinley, Ashlawn, Claremont, Swanson, Williamsburg, W-L. Please don't insult our intelligence re: HB and ATS.

Does anyone know how big the incoming 6th Grade class at Swanson will be?

I heard about 500