Anonymous
08/16/2012 00:30
Subject: TJ Prep?
Lots of kids are smart enough for TJ without prep courses. If yours is, good for you. Others may try to prep, but I bet that is a 25% bet.
Anonymous
08/15/2012 23:29
Subject: Re:TJ Prep?
The question is, if a student needs extra help in order to gain entrance into the school and then needs extra help to survive there, does he/she really belong in one of the top ranked science/math schools in the nation? Perhaps the student is very hard working and overall quite bright but just either not passionate about math/science or just does not have an innate high ability for it.
Anonymous
08/14/2012 07:10
Subject: TJ Prep?
Anonymous wrote:But if a kid is willing to work hard, why is getting the extra help a problem? Some kids had extra help and worked hard to take the admissions exam, and then they might want to continue to get extra help and work hard in classes at school.
Some of the freshmen were being required by their teachers to get extra help during study hall. If they are willing to work hard with the teacher helping them, why is that any different from getting help to prepare for the entrance exam? If it was acceptable to get extra help before taking the entrance exam, why shouldn't it be just as acceptable to get extra help when they are actually attending the school? Isn't it all just hard work and preparation which will lead them to success, whether it occurs before they take the exam or after?
There is a certain standard of performance that students need to met at every level, in every class. If they fail to do so, then there is no point for them to advance to the next level. For example, students who have taken Algebra I are expected to know how to simplify, factorize and solve algebraic equations. It certainly would be a problem if they consistently fail to demonstrate how to solve such problem in the Algebra II class. But, if a student is versed in Algebra I topics but has difficulty with related topics in Algebra II, then the hard work/extra help solution is the right course of action.
Anonymous
08/13/2012 23:39
Subject: TJ Prep?
But if a kid is willing to work hard, why is getting the extra help a problem? Some kids had extra help and worked hard to take the admissions exam, and then they might want to continue to get extra help and work hard in classes at school.
Some of the freshmen were being required by their teachers to get extra help during study hall. If they are willing to work hard with the teacher helping them, why is that any different from getting help to prepare for the entrance exam? If it was acceptable to get extra help before taking the entrance exam, why shouldn't it be just as acceptable to get extra help when they are actually attending the school? Isn't it all just hard work and preparation which will lead them to success, whether it occurs before they take the exam or after?
Some of the freshmen were being required by their teachers to get extra help during study hall. If they are willing to work hard with the teacher helping them, why is that any different from getting help to prepare for the entrance exam? If it was acceptable to get extra help before taking the entrance exam, why shouldn't it be just as acceptable to get extra help when they are actually attending the school? Isn't it all just hard work and preparation which will lead them to success, whether it occurs before they take the exam or after?
Anonymous
08/13/2012 22:28
Subject: TJ Prep?
Anonymous wrote:So, then it's really not a problem that one third of the freshman class at TJ needs extra help.
It certainly is a problem. The question is what is the real source(s) of the problem and how to address it without a jerk knee reaction.
Anonymous
08/13/2012 21:37
Subject: TJ Prep?
So, then it's really not a problem that one third of the freshman class at TJ needs extra help.
Anonymous
08/13/2012 20:17
Subject: Re:TJ Prep?
Success usually comes from hard work. If hard work equals "getting help" then students that prepare for class, their assignments and for test are generally successful. I would not advise a student or employee otherwise -- no matter how young or old!
Some of course may "succeed" from "who you know", legacy and generations of helping hands from extended family, friends and trust funds.
Some of course may "succeed" from "who you know", legacy and generations of helping hands from extended family, friends and trust funds.
Anonymous
08/13/2012 14:14
Subject: Re:TJ Prep?
Anonymous wrote:The FCPS vision for TJ was a school for those who are passionate in math and science and excel in them. If DC needs a lot of prepping to get in, perhaps DC does not belong there. That is probably why 1/3 of the freshman class needed remedial math and science tutoring. They prepped and got in - once there, they couldn't keep up. Not very good for a teen's self esteem.
It does make logical sense that if the child gets extra help before taking the test that he or she might be used to getting extra help when attending the school. Is prepping just like tutoring?
Anonymous
08/13/2012 13:20
Subject: Re:TJ Prep?
Anonymous wrote:Really then why bother with attending school at all!!! We could save millions/billions with doing away with schools in general and everyone can learn via the computer!
These teachers need to make an effort and COVER the material they are suppose to teach! It is ridiculous to toss the complete blame on the students -- the teachers and administrators are also accountable for the problems. I think some of the TJ teachers just got lazy since all the previous classes could make-up for their teaching inadequacies but with the application changes the newer crop of students couldn't overcome their lack of teaching.
Really...open your eyes and mind. This wish may be closer at hand than you think. Come back in 25 to 50 years.
There is certainly a push to make online education an alternative to the traditional system. Although online education has its advantages and does serve certain group of students (especially adults) quite well, it remains to seen whether it can replace the brick-and-mortar schools. I personally doubt it. In my mind, educating school-age kids, whether at home (parenting) or outside (formal schooling) requires personal (face-to-face) contact and care and cannot be effectively done remotely via the internet.
Anonymous
08/13/2012 09:47
Subject: Re:TJ Prep?
Really then why bother with attending school at all!!! We could save millions/billions with doing away with schools in general and everyone can learn via the computer!
These teachers need to make an effort and COVER the material they are suppose to teach! It is ridiculous to toss the complete blame on the students -- the teachers and administrators are also accountable for the problems. I think some of the TJ teachers just got lazy since all the previous classes could make-up for their teaching inadequacies but with the application changes the newer crop of students couldn't overcome their lack of teaching.
Really...open your eyes and mind. This wish may be closer at hand than you think. Come back in 25 to 50 years.
Anonymous
08/13/2012 08:05
Subject: TJ Prep?
Really then why bother with attending school at all!!! We could save millions/billions with doing away with schools in general and everyone can learn via the computer!
These teachers need to make an effort and COVER the material they are suppose to teach! It is ridiculous to toss the complete blame on the students -- the teachers and administrators are also accountable for the problems. I think some of the TJ teachers just got lazy since all the previous classes could make-up for their teaching inadequacies but with the application changes the newer crop of students couldn't overcome their lack of teaching.
These teachers need to make an effort and COVER the material they are suppose to teach! It is ridiculous to toss the complete blame on the students -- the teachers and administrators are also accountable for the problems. I think some of the TJ teachers just got lazy since all the previous classes could make-up for their teaching inadequacies but with the application changes the newer crop of students couldn't overcome their lack of teaching.
Anonymous
08/13/2012 08:02
Subject: Re:TJ Prep?
Anonymous wrote:
Whine, whine, whine. If you have difficulty just google the topic! Try Sol Khan. Kids at TJ are not of below average intelligence. Since when did any public or privae school teacher today provide self motivated students with much enlightenment. Those teachers are far and few between in my experience. Thank God for the internet and a myriad of on-line and off-line resources for some of today's students cursed with bad teaching.
Really then why bother with attending school at all!!! We could save millions/billions with doing away with schools in general and everyone can learn via the computer! These teachers need to make an effort and COVER the material they are suppose to teach! It is ridiculous to toss the complete blame on the students -- the teachers and administrators are also accountable for the problems. I think some of the TJ teachers just got lazy since all the previous classes could make-up for their teaching inadequacies but with the application changes the newer crop of students couldn't overcome their lack of teaching.
Anonymous
08/13/2012 00:21
Subject: TJ Prep?
The primary role of a math/science educator is not to explain the course material to students. As was stated above, there are lots of credible online and offline resources that effectively explain math and science concepts to interested students. An educator is suppose to help these students identify and overcome their knowledge gaps and misconceptions that naturally develop in the learning process. Unfortunately, educative teacher feedback in math/science classes is lacking at TJ and other similar schools. The suggestion that students should be able to develop a meaningful understanding of complex math and science concepts on their own without any guidance and assistance from professional educators trivializes learning and misses the point of education.
Anonymous
08/12/2012 22:44
Subject: Re:TJ Prep?
The best teachers recognize the TJ students are smarter than themselves!
Anonymous
08/12/2012 22:43
Subject: Re:TJ Prep?
They are "teaching" themselves what the teacher should at the very least cover in class. We are talking about stuff the teacher needs to cover -- you are suppose to follow a curriculum!!!! The students should not have to go home and teach themselves what the teacher should go over. And yes, my child would "learn" the stuff ahead of time and maybe the teacher will go over it and maybe not.
Some of these teachers will solve the problems but get the wrong answers and then refuse to correct themselves when they are shown it is wrong by studeents (yes, this happened in child's chemistry class). The teacher insisted she was correct and that was that. After awhile, they just ignored her since she gave the wrong answers and her teaching sucked. The students helped each other to overcome this teacher otherwise they were in a world of trouble when they took the AP Chemistry class. It was the luck of the draw -- you get the bad teacher and you are in trouble when you move onto the higher level course.
Whine, whine, whine. If you have difficulty just google the topic! Try Sol Khan. Kids at TJ are not of below average intelligence. Since when did any public or privae school teacher today provide self motivated students with much enlightenment. Those teachers are far and few between in my experience. Thank God for the internet and a myriad of on-line and off-line resources for some of today's students cursed with bad teaching.