Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One way to better understand the quality of education of one school or another is to perform more granular apples to apple analysis. Simple averages for standardized state test that GS uses for its ratings only serves to identify which high-schools draw a higher percentage of affluent kids. A better approach is to look at the granular data. When you isolate for race which is proxy a for socioeconomic status there is not much of a disparity between the performance of kids of the same backgrounds across these schools. For example, when you compare average SAT scores for MCPS schools for a larger demographic common to all these schools the GS narrative falls apart and it becomes clear they're not all that different.

Blair 1326
Walter Johnson 1275
Wooton 1262
Churchill 1257
Wheaton 1173
Einstein 1148
Kennedy 1088

https://montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/sharedaccountability/reports/2017/1771102HS%20Princ_SAT%20Partic_Perf%20Class%20of%202017.pdf

This is really helpful. Thanks!

But the number are not helpful unless you are realiziing that standardized test score only correlate with parent income and eduation..one should not assume that Blair has better teachers or classes..only more advantaged students. Your individual child will not get a better education just because the school has higher scores.

Anonymous wrote:One way to better understand the quality of education of one school or another is to perform more granular apples to apple analysis. Simple averages for standardized state test that GS uses for its ratings only serves to identify which high-schools draw a higher percentage of affluent kids. A better approach is to look at the granular data. When you isolate for race which is proxy a for socioeconomic status there is not much of a disparity between the performance of kids of the same backgrounds across these schools. For example, when you compare average SAT scores for MCPS schools for a larger demographic common to all these schools the GS narrative falls apart and it becomes clear they're not all that different.

Blair 1326
Walter Johnson 1275
Wooton 1262
Churchill 1257
Wheaton 1173
Einstein 1148
Kennedy 1088

https://montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/sharedaccountability/reports/2017/1771102HS%20Princ_SAT%20Partic_Perf%20Class%20of%202017.pdf

This is really helpful. Thanks!

Anonymous wrote:

While there are several posters who love Silver Spring on this board, Silver Spring is generally not a desirable place to live .Its cheap and that is basically the only draw. Another poster used the saying "People want the Silver Spring price without the price of Silver Spring". Montgomery County does not offer many professional jobs so many commute to DC an/or VA. Its just not practical to commute from SS to VA. Silver Spring used to attract two income families that have commutes into DC and Baltimore or Columbia but now those families are choosing Howard County schools as they've surpassed MCPS. Families with one spouse commuting to VA are choosing VA or the western side of the county where the schools are good.

Most of eastern Montgomery County is Silver Spring. Lots of people live there. Maybe they're all sitting around every evening thinking, "Boy, I sure do wish that I could live in Bethesda," but I doubt it.

If you care about GS ratings, you aren't going to be interested in either Blair or Kennedy. The schools in what is called the DCC have the worst performance reputation in MCPS. The DCC is different from other areas and has been the number #1 focus of MCPS for improvement for years. This is good and bad. On the good side there is more choice at the high school level and many magnet/special programs to attract UMC/MC to the area. Many of these special programs are only available if you are in the DCC so your kid is not competing against other kids in the county to get in. The schools are not under resourced. On the bad side, the school performance isn't changing or improving. The academic and skill level range is a big problem. Many kids in these areas are 2-3 years behind grade level. MCPS doesn't do tracking until high school so you have one teacher trying to get kids with huge academic deficiencies up to grade level. If your kid is independently motivated and you are willing to heavily supplement at home you'll be fine. Parents of kids that are more easily influenced by their peers or who are smart but not smart enough to get into the gifted program run into problems and get left behind in the slower classes.

While there are several posters who love Silver Spring on this board, Silver Spring is generally not a desirable place to live .Its cheap and that is basically the only draw. Another poster used the saying "People want the Silver Spring price without the price of Silver Spring". Montgomery County does not offer many professional jobs so many commute to DC an/or VA. Its just not practical to commute from SS to VA. Silver Spring used to attract two income families that have commutes into DC and Baltimore or Columbia but now those families are choosing Howard County schools as they've surpassed MCPS. Families with one spouse commuting to VA are choosing VA or the western side of the county where the schools are good.

I'd suggest looking in Howard if you need to be north of the city and looking in the Churchill or Walter Johnson clusters if there might be a possibility that you would work in VA or downtown DC. Churchill is generally known for being super expensive but its fall/winter now. There are always older houses in Potomac that do go in the 700-800K range as retirees just want to sell and move on. You just need to plan to update things over time. These houses are usually nicer and larger than the ones in Blair but not as nice as the new houses up in Poplar Run. The upside to Churchill is that it holds its value if you maintain the house, is far enough away from the bussing fears to avoid that problem and is a super safe no crime area with the best schools in the county.

One way to better understand the quality of education of one school or another is to perform more granular apples to apple analysis. Simple averages for standardized state test that GS uses for its ratings only serves to identify which high-schools draw a higher percentage of affluent kids. A better approach is to look at the granular data. When you isolate for race which is proxy a for socioeconomic status there is not much of a disparity between the performance of kids of the same backgrounds across these schools. For example, when you compare average SAT scores for MCPS schools for a larger demographic common to all these schools the GS narrative falls apart and it becomes clear they're not all that different.

Blair 1326
Walter Johnson 1275
Wooton 1262
Churchill 1257
Wheaton 1173
Einstein 1148
Kennedy 1088

https://montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/sharedaccountability/reports/2017/1771102HS%20Princ_SAT%20Partic_Perf%20Class%20of%202017.pdf

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kennedy is not well regarded. The least desirable in the DCC.

Blair isn't especially well regraded save for being the "best" school in the DCC. Even then most of that reputation is by strives pining for the Magnet program which most everyone doesn't get invited to.

Yes, only by people who are afraid of colored folks, but it's the school that put MCPS on the National stage.
Go to Stuy or Bronx Science and ask them about a school in MoCo, MD.

I am happy that you are happy, just know it takes more to make me happy. I would imagine that people at Stuy or Bronx Science would respond with a "isn't Thomas Jefferson in MoCo?, that is a good school!".

Look at those DCC rates, yuck. And people in silver spring think there isn't white flight going on. Look up the levels from 5,10 & 20 years ago, they are sky rocketing. SJWs always say that at a point that high poverty levels in schools affect the whole school, how then say that their snowflakes aren't affected? It is either one or the other at a systemic level

Northwood: 52.45%
Wheaton: 49.74%
Kennedy: 46.86%
Einstein: 39.65%
Blair: 36.26%

They would not. They are not clueless as you. They know their geography and are familiar with their competitors.
Your second paragraph just proved the point : only to people who are afraid of colored folks.

Anonymous wrote:[

I am happy that you are happy, just know it takes more to make me happy. I would imagine that people at Stuy or Bronx Science would respond with a "isn't Thomas Jefferson in MoCo?, that is a good school!".

Look at those DCC rates, yuck. And people in silver spring think there isn't white flight going on. Look up the levels from 5,10 & 20 years ago, they are sky rocketing. SJWs always say that at a point that high poverty levels in schools affect the whole school, how then say that their snowflakes aren't affected? It is either one or the other at a systemic level

It's hard to know if you're saying yuck about poor people or people who aren't non-white, so ok, let's look at both.

percent white, percent poor for 2018-19; 2013-14; 2008-09

Northwood: 14%, 53%; 15%, 48%; 25%, 31%
Wheaton: 9%; 50%; 8%, 59%; 10%, 53%
Kennedy: <5%, 47%; <5%, 54%; 10%, 42%
Einstein: 21%, 40%; 21%, 42%; 22%, 37%
Blair: 23%, 36%; 23%, 37%; 26%, 31%

Nope - no "sky-rocketing" rates of poor people and people who aren't non-white. Northwood has gotten more poor and less white; Wheaton has stayed the same in poorness and whiteness; Kennedy has stayed the same in poorness and gotten less white; Einstein has stayed the same in poorness and whiteness; Blair has stayed the same in poorness and whiteness.

Now, if what you're really yearning for is the Montgomery County of, I don't know, 1975 - yes, that's gone. You can deal with this fact, or you can shake your fist at it. It's up to you.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kennedy is not well regarded. The least desirable in the DCC.

Blair isn't especially well regraded save for being the "best" school in the DCC. Even then most of that reputation is by strives pining for the Magnet program which most everyone doesn't get invited to.

Yes, only by people who are afraid of colored folks, but it's the school that put MCPS on the National stage.
Go to Stuy or Bronx Science and ask them about a school in MoCo, MD.

I am happy that you are happy, just know it takes more to make me happy. I would imagine that people at Stuy or Bronx Science would respond with a "isn't Thomas Jefferson in MoCo?, that is a good school!".

Look at those DCC rates, yuck. And people in silver spring think there isn't white flight going on. Look up the levels from 5,10 & 20 years ago, they are sky rocketing. SJWs always say that at a point that high poverty levels in schools affect the whole school, how then say that their snowflakes aren't affected? It is either one or the other at a systemic level

Northwood: 52.45%
Wheaton: 49.74%
Kennedy: 46.86%
Einstein: 39.65%
Blair: 36.26%

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kennedy is not well regarded. The least desirable in the DCC.

Blair isn't especially well regraded save for being the "best" school in the DCC. Even then most of that reputation is by strives pining for the Magnet program which most everyone doesn't get invited to.

Yes, only by people who are afraid of colored folks, but it's the school that put MCPS on the National stage.
Go to Stuy or Bronx Science and ask them about a school in MoCo, MD.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also consider these elementaries feeding to Einstein: Woodlin, Flora Singer, Oakland Terrace, and Rock View.

And these feeding to Northwood: Forest Knolls, Highland View, and Sligo Creek.

All well-liked Silver Spring area schools.

+1. Kennedy isn't discussed as much on DCUM, so I don't know much about it. The stereotype is certainly that it is an a lower income than the others (Blair, Einstein, Northwood). Agree with those elementary schools - they are very strong (I'm mostly familiar with Woodlin, FS, and OT).

2018 FARMS rates at DCC high schools:

Northwood: 52.45%
Wheaton: 49.74%
Kennedy: 46.86%
Einstein: 39.65%
Blair: 36.26%

Anonymous wrote:Also consider these elementaries feeding to Einstein: Woodlin, Flora Singer, Oakland Terrace, and Rock View.

And these feeding to Northwood: Forest Knolls, Highland View, and Sligo Creek.

All well-liked Silver Spring area schools.

+1. Kennedy isn't discussed as much on DCUM, so I don't know much about it. The stereotype is certainly that it is an a lower income than the others (Blair, Einstein, Northwood). Agree with those elementary schools - they are very strong (I'm mostly familiar with Woodlin, FS, and OT).

My child is in Blair CAP. I'm impressed with the school overall- not just the CAP classes. His math teacher is very good, for example, and the school is well run.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kennedy is not well regarded. The least desirable in the DCC.

Blair isn't especially well regraded save for being the "best" school in the DCC. Even then most of that reputation is by strives pining for the Magnet program which most everyone doesn't get invited to.

The question is Kennedy or Blair. We seem to agree on the answer.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kennedy is not well regarded. The least desirable in the DCC.

Blair isn't especially well regraded save for being the "best" school in the DCC. Even then most of that reputation is by strives pining for the Magnet program which most everyone doesn't get invited to.

But it is the best school in the DCC so if you can go there, if you can do better than blair do that

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kennedy is not well regarded. The least desirable in the DCC.

Blair isn't especially well regraded save for being the "best" school in the DCC. Even then most of that reputation is by strives pining for the Magnet program which most everyone doesn't get invited to.

Do what now?