For OP, would potential out of state tuition play a factor in your decision? In general, I would think that BCC and it feeder middle school is much better than Wilson/Deal. Maybe I've off.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do the DCI discipline issues affect well behaved students? I mean this question in all seriousness. Is DCI not removing a misbehaving child from a classroom? Or are there behaviors outside of the classroom (hallway, school yard, bullying, etc)?

I don't think DCI has "discipline issues" as much as it has inexperienced teachers who lack strong classroom management skills. Toss in 25 middle schoolers ... and things can get chaotic. There are NO middle schools without rowdy behavior in halls, or bullying.

FWIW DCI, like most charters, has far more staff turnover than a traditional public school. There are pluses and minuses to each.

Personally, I'd choose BCC if moving is an option.

Classroom teachers can have the strongest discipline but if there are SJW and policies that do not hold children and their parents accountable it becomes an environment in which chaos reins. I’ve worked in DC charters, DCPS and now MCPS. Hands down MCPS has been the better environment for learning. Discipline is not perfect but I don’t have children cursing me out, throwing chairs, bringing knives to school and threatening to stab another student, refusing to do classwork, and admin in DCPS who were trying to keep suspension rates down. Anyone remember that big WashPo story about how DCPS principals weren’t formally suspending students with actual paperwork? DCPS principals were gaming the system in order to keep suspension rates down by telling children and their parents that they were suspended but did not formally file paperwork because it didn’t fit within the Mayor’s framework of black/brown or poor children not being suspended.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe compare IB diploma outcomes?

You can’t. IB tests were not given last year and DCI is too new.

IB still awarded diplomas last year based on assessments over the year rather than the IB final. I think those were all graded by the IB, not just the schools. That said DCI has only one year of results. Watch for results this year and the next three to compare.

Does anyone know what the BCC diploma results are? Does BCC have all kids in IB diploma program, or just a few who test-in? DCI has basically all kids doing IB (like 2/3 diploma 1/3 career). There is a nice video about this approach on their facebook this week.

At BBC, you have to be in the IB diploma program. But even if you're not in the formal IB program, you can still take some IB classes. At least that's how it used to work

That’s still how it works. There are about 80-100 kids (out of a class of 500 or so) who opt in to doing the full diploma program, but other kids can pick and choose to take some IB classes, especially if they have demanding extracurriculars.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:BCC is one of the top 500-odd schools in the country, probably top 40 in the state of Maryland. It's also very large, largely white/Asian, and largely wealthy. This kind of privilege has advantages (strong academics) and disadvantages (produces shallow, cliquey kids who are drunk on their parents' money and sometimes, alcohol/drugs). It's a competitive school, and if your kid thrives in a competitive environment, the academics are stellar. DCI is a new school, very diverse, very nurturing, relatively small. Academics are uneven, but smart, driven kids will thrive.

I'm a BCC parent, think highly of the school, but the above description isn't really correct. According to MCPS, BCC's student body is currently 57.6% white, 5.4% Asian, 14.3% African American, 17.2% Hispanic, and 5.3% Multiracial. I can't rank the academics vis-a-vis other MCPS or DC schools, but it's far more challenging than my own HS experience was a billion years ago. I'm sure there's tons of privilege and the usual teenage partying, but my kid experiences zero of that - so there's a reasonably large and happy cohort of dorky students as well!

I'm a BCC alum (and IB program alum) - these numbers aren't far off when I attended though I think free and reduced lunch was higher, but the makeup of the honors/IB program classes in the middle school and high school was white/Asian (and, honestly, barely Asian). I think the class below us had one black student. The on-level or non-honors classes were primarily black and latinx, and it was basically two schools within one building. In the honors/IB programs, there was a lot of privilege and there were a lot of shallow, cliquey kids - nowhere near the same level at Whitman or the privates at the area, but still not great. It was a really great education though and I do know many of fellow classmates grew up to be much less shallow and cliquey than they were at that age and I do think everyone's perspectives were really broadened and challenged through IB. But if diversity is important to you in your child's experience and you expect your child to be in the IB diploma program at BCC, I'd check out the stats on the program. You have to pay to take the IB exams and it isn't cheap - there were a few scholarships available, but as far as I am aware, no one was taking advantage of it in the early years. Hopefully that's changed.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe compare IB diploma outcomes?

You can’t. IB tests were not given last year and DCI is too new.

IB still awarded diplomas last year based on assessments over the year rather than the IB final. I think those were all graded by the IB, not just the schools. That said DCI has only one year of results. Watch for results this year and the next three to compare.

Does anyone know what the BCC diploma results are? Does BCC have all kids in IB diploma program, or just a few who test-in? DCI has basically all kids doing IB (like 2/3 diploma 1/3 career). There is a nice video about this approach on their facebook this week.

At BBC, you have to be in the IB diploma program. But even if you're not in the formal IB program, you can still take some IB classes. At least that's how it used to work

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wait. Your child is 10?

Do you not have 3 years of DCI middle school to get through before you make this choice?

If OP is going to switch to BCC, she is better off moving now the middle school that feeds BCC.

Yes, DD said she would like to start and stay in a MS to HS program so she had continuity in friendships. She's just not particular in which school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe compare IB diploma outcomes?

You can’t. IB tests were not given last year and DCI is too new.

IB still awarded diplomas last year based on assessments over the year rather than the IB final. I think those were all graded by the IB, not just the schools. That said DCI has only one year of results. Watch for results this year and the next three to compare.

Does anyone know what the BCC diploma results are? Does BCC have all kids in IB diploma program, or just a few who test-in? DCI has basically all kids doing IB (like 2/3 diploma 1/3 career). There is a nice video about this approach on their facebook this week.

Anonymous wrote:Wait. Your child is 10?

Do you not have 3 years of DCI middle school to get through before you make this choice?

If OP is going to switch to BCC, she is better off moving now the middle school that feeds BCC.

Anonymous wrote:DCI definitely has discipline issues because the person in charge of student culture should never have gotten the job and is completely incompetent. Don’t send your child there if you have a better option, which in your case, you do.

This. You have much better options.

OP, it sounds like you have better options with either Deal or whichever strong Montgomery County MS you're child could attend due to her father's residence, especially if your big concern is peer group. Deal is an IB school too, FYI. I would compare the high schools too so your child could go to the feeder MS so she'll have friends in HS. Deal is much better than DCI. Wilson is a little better than DCI and if your DC gets into Walla then that's a lot better than DCI. Compare Deal and Wilson to the MD schools and pick the best and don't look back.

Anonymous wrote:What kind of discipline issues? We are trying to make a similar decision and any kind of information would be helpful.

The typical: drugs, sex, fights, daily class disruptions, etc. I say typical, but I actually never experienced those things when I was in high school; I’m just guessing those things are typical based on what I’ve heard what high school is like now.

Wait. Your child is 10?

Do you not have 3 years of DCI middle school to get through before you make this choice?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe compare IB diploma outcomes?

You can’t. IB tests were not given last year and DCI is too new.

Well, then I’d take the IB school with a track record.

This.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe compare IB diploma outcomes?

You can’t. IB tests were not given last year and DCI is too new.

Well, then I’d take the IB school with a track record.

What kind of discipline issues? We are trying to make a similar decision and any kind of information would be helpful.

DCI definitely has discipline issues because the person in charge of student culture should never have gotten the job and is completely incompetent. Don’t send your child there if you have a better option, which in your case, you do.