Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you want your daughter to be crushed by competition in HS, you should have had her apply to the top magnet schools in MD or VA. Even a top high school like Whitman - the top 10% of kids who are competing for Ivy admissions are cut-throat competitive. It is more of a sink or swim environment.

We are Asian, didn’t even bother try to apply because of current admission upheaval. But yes those would have been amazing options.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From what I know…. Through both personal experience at 3 of these schools and good friends at the others…..

GDS/Sidwell
Potomac
Maret/ Holton

Can’t comment on the others

I think most can agree with this, though I've heard somewhat mixed things about Maret lately.

Anonymous wrote:If you want your daughter to be crushed by competition in HS, you should have had her apply to the top magnet schools in MD or VA. Even a top high school like Whitman - the top 10% of kids who are competing for Ivy admissions are cut-throat competitive. It is more of a sink or swim environment.

Anonymous wrote:Well, I'll offer an experience. DD is about to graduate Madeira, and chose it over NCS and a couple of others.

It's not "coddling", but it is designed to not be a pressure cooker. They will push the kids as much as they can handle, but not to the breaking point. It's an individual thing (DD is pushed to the edge of her capability) rather than a collective thing where girls are played against one another.

They engender teamwork more than competition. An example: the graduation speaker isn't based on academic rank; it's a girl chosen by her peers based on an audition process.

In our experience this yields exceptionally self-aware and confident young women who have been in the workplace (successfully) several times in the last few years through the co-curricullum process. It may not be seen by those here (who tend to be very much flag-wavers) as being as rigorous as some others, but it is much more predictably lower pressure and less cut-throat.

There's remarkably little drama and bullying, and there's virtually no mean-girl vibe. Indeed, they encourage each other: during the recent musical, for example, girls cheered their peers who were changing the set between scenes.

DD has been accepted at one of her top-3 choices already. I believe she is exceptionally well prepared not only for college, but for life.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please stop trying to rank schools. It's meaningless.

My son’s highly ranked second best all-boys school in DC has not been better than private apart from smaller class size. Academics not better, clubs and opportunities not better, writing curicullum is worse.

I’ve read this like five times and literally can’t follow. Would someone please translate what is meant by the “second best all boys school….that has not been better than private…” So it is or is not a private? Why can’t I follow?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you want your daughter to be crushed by competition in HS, you should have had her apply to the top magnet schools in MD or VA. Even a top high school like Whitman - the top 10% of kids who are competing for Ivy admissions are cut-throat competitive. It is more of a sink or swim environment.

+1

Anonymous wrote:If you want your daughter to be crushed by competition in HS, you should have had her apply to the top magnet schools in MD or VA. Even a top high school like Whitman - the top 10% of kids who are competing for Ivy admissions are cut-throat competitive. It is more of a sink or swim environment.

Anonymous wrote:From what I know…. Through both personal experience at 3 of these schools and good friends at the others…..

GDS/Sidwell
Potomac
Maret/ Holton

Can’t comment on the others

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please stop trying to rank schools. It's meaningless.

My son’s highly ranked second best all-boys school in DC has not been better than private apart from smaller class size. Academics not better, clubs and opportunities not better, writing curicullum is worse.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please stop trying to rank schools. It's meaningless.

My son’s highly ranked second best all-boys school in DC has not been better than private apart from smaller class size. Academics not better, clubs and opportunities not better, writing curicullum is worse.

Anonymous wrote:i appreciated this more when you wanted your child crushed by college.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please stop trying to rank schools. It's meaningless.

My son’s highly ranked second best all-boys school in DC has not been better than private apart from smaller class size. Academics not better, clubs and opportunities not better, writing curicullum is worse.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:i appreciated this more when you wanted your child crushed by college.

Well I didn’t want to say it, but I do want her taken down a notch in high school. It’s a big world and she needs to know it.

I came from a small town, local “whiz kid” and my elite college destroyed me that I think my life would have been better at my state public university. Being on your own and failing at everything when everyone seems to find it so easy, not a good place.

I’ll be the one to say it 😬

Feels like you may have some unresolved issues.

Don’t thrust those onto your own kids.

Hah I do. But my kid is full teenager and so arrogant about how smart they are. It drives me nuts. I mean, maybe she is really brilliant and hard working? But I want to test her mettle before she has to head out on her own. Her MS experience has not done that.

Anonymous wrote:Please stop trying to rank schools. It's meaningless.