I agree that the experience at GDS can vary significantly depending on the teacher. In our experience, there is considerable inconsistency, and the curriculum—both in terms of content and implementation—seems much more uneven than at other schools we know.

We have also noticed a significant change in the Middle School under the current principal, unfortunately not for the better. It will be interesting to see whether the new Head of School brings greater consistency and stronger leadership. In my view, the leadership transition was overdue, and I am hopeful that it will lead to positive changes.

Anonymous wrote:Certainly your kid will have a different experience. GDS English teachers are hit or miss. Some have degrees in English and others have degrees in sociology etc. Some have graduate degrees and others seem to have no degrees. And most have very little experience teaching HS before coming to GDS.

Name one teacher at GDS, English or otherwise, who doesn't have a college degree.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is true at literally any school

No, GDS is special.

Is this a joke? If you actually believe children are especially victimized at GDS you lack perspective and are very likely not going to help them be resilient when something unlucky or unfortunate happens to them, which is an unavoidable part of life.

It’s all about equity.

Certainly your kid will have a different experience. GDS English teachers are hit or miss. Some have degrees in English and others have degrees in sociology etc. Some have graduate degrees and others seem to have no degrees. And most have very little experience teaching HS before coming to GDS.

Is there any school where this isn't the case? Even with the same curriculum, teachers are going to have different standards and expectations. There have always been more or less difficult graders.

Current GDS HS parent here. Yes 100%. Depending on the teacher the student’s experience (the same grade the same subject) will be different. Some teachers are known for being extremely difficult in terms of grading so difficult that literally nobody gets A. But it is not that they give different grades to the same level of knowledge. It is just that what they consider in grading is different. Some give extensions without a grade penalty others don’t. Some allow corrections to the quizzes without a grade penalty others don’t. Some even consider tardies in grading (this one is pretty rare but it happens). So the ones whose grading is considered harsh are the ones without any flexibility so the student should be absolutely perfect to get any A and most teenagers need some grace here and there.

This is literally the point of GDS. Different teachers have different strengths and appeal to different kids. Kids will get a variety of teachers and be exposed to a variety of ideas and learn about each of those teachers' areas of expertise. Some kids want a more rigorous schedule where they'll learn more, and others want to coast, and they can kind of create the path they want. GDS is definitely not a school where all kids just want an easy A. A lot of kids complain about classes where they aren't learning anything, even if they're getting a good grade. The kids expect more than good grades. They actually want to learn, and they know they can learn by having a wide variety of teachers.

Try not to get hung up on middle school grades. They don’t matter very much unless you are applying out. Is your kid learning?

“Harsh” is overused when it comes to complaining about grades. I’d ask whether the kid is learning and open to feedback.

Anonymous wrote:It’s absolutely relevant if one child is held to different standards than another

It’s called life. And it happens all the time.

Anonymous wrote:OP here, clarifying: my friend feels her child’s work is graded more harshly in teacher 1’s class than comparable work in teacher 2’s class. This is the MS.

To be clear, this happens throughout K-12 and college and even extends to work - some people have great or bad bosses starting out and that makes a huge difference. Some kids thrive with challenging teachers or bosses. The easier path is not always better.

Anonymous wrote:It’s absolutely relevant if one child is held to different standards than another

Meh. Luck of the draw happens all throughout life and generally evens out over the long run. Better to accept that than be a control freak.