Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The poster on the other thread about Parkland was very excited that they finally had enough students to fill an Algebra 2 class and not bus kids to the high school. This is REALLY worrisome as most high and mid performing schools have plenty of students taking Algebra 2 in MS. How on earth does a "STEM" magnet barely have enough kids to qualify for Algebra 2 in 8th grade??

OP- is your child academically strong enough to apply to TPMS? Parkland does not sound like an advanced STEM program and the test scores pretty much support that too.

Isn’t that a moot point since I didn’t think that kids in the JW cluster would be selected for Takoma Park since it was identified as a school with a large enough peer group.

Not true, there is at least 1 kid from JW at TPMS magnet in the 6th grade class. Large enough per group doesn't equal zero kids admitted to magnet. You are misinformed.

I'm a parent of a current Parkland 8th grader. He's on the advanced track--he's in Geometry, Physics, Intro to Engineering Design, etc. etc.

Looking back over the past 2 years...I can say that he really enjoyed his time there. During his first year there, he participated in a field trip to Space Camp in Huntsville with his teacher and classmates. He didn't participate in any long-distance trips last year but could have if he wanted to.

The school has a partnership with Kid Museum and has a cohort of students who regularly participate in collaborative activities. The students showcase their work through an all-school community presentation at AFI Silver Theatre known as STEAM Night. We also have had Parkland community movie screenings at AFI--last year the school had a themed Space Week and invited all Parkland families to view a science/space-related movie with a Q & A session with the director after the film.

As we start the second month of school, the local trips scheduled this month include a visit to the new iFly facility and down to D.C. I really like how the teachers really try to take advantage of various activities and venues throughout the area. The teachers and school staff are great as well. I can genuinely say that my son has thrived with his teachers, counselor, and administrators. The teachers have provided my son with activities that have just enough challenge not to discourage him.

We haven't had any bullying issues--my son says that the vibe is that everyone's allowed to be their unique selves. He says that his friends at Argyle and Loiderman say that Parkland is where all the smart kids in the area go to school.

Re: test scores--Parkland certainly holds its own especially when one considers that half of the school qualifies for free/reduced lunch.

Good luck with your decision!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The poster on the other thread about Parkland was very excited that they finally had enough students to fill an Algebra 2 class and not bus kids to the high school. This is REALLY worrisome as most high and mid performing schools have plenty of students taking Algebra 2 in MS. How on earth does a "STEM" magnet barely have enough kids to qualify for Algebra 2 in 8th grade??

OP- is your child academically strong enough to apply to TPMS? Parkland does not sound like an advanced STEM program and the test scores pretty much support that too.

Tilden doesn’t teach Alg 2 at the school (students go to WJ), but it is considered “high performing”.

Agreed. I think this previous poster is confused about the accelerated math course of study. 7th grade algebra 1 and 8th grade geometry is essentially the most any students are accelerated at this point. MCPS got burned a while back by accelerating too many students who really missed out on the basics.

Anonymous wrote:The poster on the other thread about Parkland was very excited that they finally had enough students to fill an Algebra 2 class and not bus kids to the high school. This is REALLY worrisome as most high and mid performing schools have plenty of students taking Algebra 2 in MS. How on earth does a "STEM" magnet barely have enough kids to qualify for Algebra 2 in 8th grade??

OP- is your child academically strong enough to apply to TPMS? Parkland does not sound like an advanced STEM program and the test scores pretty much support that too.

Isn’t that a moot point since I didn’t think that kids in the JW cluster would be selected for Takoma Park since it was identified as a school with a large enough peer group.