Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 08:24     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
Anonymous wrote:I agree that the scenarios are all pretty tolerable for the Janney, Lafayette, Murch families that remain in boundary for those schools. I think, however that it is silly to make them controlled choice and mix up the families going to them given that they are doing so well now. They don't need a specialized program at one of those schools. Put those resources elsewhere.

I also think the NW boundary changes make senses and all the schools that the boundaries are moving homes between are very good schools and will continue to get better.

Further I support making slots at these schools available to children serves by low performing schools. That said, unless there is an income weight I fear that the majority of those set aside seats will go to high SES families zoned for low performing schools that have the resources to get their kids across town daily. This will not do much to close the achievement gap.


DO you really think this plan was devised in any part to close the achievement gap?
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 08:15     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
I agree that the scenarios are all pretty tolerable for the Janney, Lafayette, Murch families that remain in boundary for those schools. I think, however that it is silly to make them controlled choice and mix up the families going to them given that they are doing so well now. They don't need a specialized program at one of those schools. Put those resources elsewhere.

I also think the NW boundary changes make senses and all the schools that the boundaries are moving homes between are very good schools and will continue to get better.

Further I support making slots at these schools available to children serves by low performing schools. That said, unless there is an income weight I fear that the majority of those set aside seats will go to high SES families zoned for low performing schools that have the resources to get their kids across town daily. This will not do much to close the achievement gap.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 07:45     Subject: Re:What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choi
Anonymous wrote:Jeff, that about sums up my understanding of the proposals, and I'm at a loss as to why so many Ward 3 parents are hysterically suggesting that under reform, they will be presented with choice sets that include choices from the most remote and frightening quadrant of the city -- see above -- Marion Barry Educational Center vs. Janney -- as if....

Reality is that these proposals will be mostly status quo for those who have good options now, and for those who do not.


Except high school city wide would be awful.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 07:43     Subject: Re:What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choi
Jeff, that about sums up my understanding of the proposals, and I'm at a loss as to why so many Ward 3 parents are hysterically suggesting that under reform, they will be presented with choice sets that include choices from the most remote and frightening quadrant of the city -- see above -- Marion Barry Educational Center vs. Janney -- as if....

Reality is that these proposals will be mostly status quo for those who have good options now, and for those who do not.
jsteele
Post 04/07/2014 06:52     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
Anonymous wrote:
jsteele wrote:
Anonymous wrote:"Controlled choice" is an Orwellian term. It is not choice if someone else controls it. Imagine having stretched and spent bongo-bucks for a tiny pre-WW II center hall brick colonial in AU Park so that your kids can attend Janney. Then someone in control says, because of the 20% OOB set aside, your choice will be to to Southeast and choose between Marion Barry Educational Center and Michael Brown Elementary School. Congratulations.


Under example A, the most extreme risk you face as a Janney parent is sending your kid to Murch or Lafayette. But, I am sure trauma specialists will be available to help you cope.


Jeff you seem to be the only one who understands this.

We were thinking of renting IB for deal, and are terrified that we could rent in tenleytown and our kids get sent elsewhere. That is possible in all 3 scenario, correct?


Lots of people understand it a lot better than me. Keep in mind that the three examples presented were only examples and not actual policies. We don't know what type of policy suggestions will result from this. But under these scenarios, if you rented in Tenleytown your middle school options would be:

Example A: Lottery between two closest schools which would be Deal and, I"m guessing, Hardy.

Example B: Deal

Example C: Lottery between schools in your choice set which would be Deal and Hardy.

Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 06:25     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
jsteele wrote:
Anonymous wrote:"Controlled choice" is an Orwellian term. It is not choice if someone else controls it. Imagine having stretched and spent bongo-bucks for a tiny pre-WW II center hall brick colonial in AU Park so that your kids can attend Janney. Then someone in control says, because of the 20% OOB set aside, your choice will be to to Southeast and choose between Marion Barry Educational Center and Michael Brown Elementary School. Congratulations.


Under example A, the most extreme risk you face as a Janney parent is sending your kid to Murch or Lafayette. But, I am sure trauma specialists will be available to help you cope.


Jeff you seem to be the only one who understands this.

We were thinking of renting IB for deal, and are terrified that we could rent in tenleytown and our kids get sent elsewhere. That is possible in all 3 scenario, correct?
jsteele
Post 04/07/2014 06:20     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
Anonymous wrote:"Controlled choice" is an Orwellian term. It is not choice if someone else controls it. Imagine having stretched and spent bongo-bucks for a tiny pre-WW II center hall brick colonial in AU Park so that your kids can attend Janney. Then someone in control says, because of the 20% OOB set aside, your choice will be to to Southeast and choose between Marion Barry Educational Center and Michael Brown Elementary School. Congratulations.


Under example A, the most extreme risk you face as a Janney parent is sending your kid to Murch or Lafayette. But, I am sure trauma specialists will be available to help you cope.
Anonymous
Post 04/07/2014 06:10     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
Anonymous wrote:"Controlled choice" is an Orwellian term. It is not choice if someone else controls it. Imagine having stretched and spent bongo-bucks for a tiny pre-WW II center hall brick colonial in AU Park so that your kids can attend Janney. Then someone in control says, because of the 20% OOB set aside, your choice will be to to Southeast and choose between Marion Barry Educational Center and Michael Brown Elementary School. Congratulations.


Wow. I sympathize with the predicament but the way it is expressed is beyond racism.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2014 20:45     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
I have to say, props to Ward2 Education Network and the group there for really putting out some good info on this. Their twitter feed has been great and has alps led to some other groups which aren't really DCUM crowd to give me other perspectives on this.

Just want to say you folks are doing a great job with keeping the info getting to folks.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2014 20:40     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:"Controlled choice" is an Orwellian term. It is not choice if someone else controls it. Imagine having stretched and spent bongo-bucks for a tiny pre-WW II center hall brick colonial in AU Park so that your kids can attend Janney. Then someone in control says, because of the 20% OOB set aside, your choice will be to to Southeast and choose between Marion Barry Educational Center and Michael Brown Elementary School. Congratulations.


That's just not happening on the elementary level. All the proposals call for neighborhood elementary schools so you can just simmer down now.


Is that scenario better at MS or HS?
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2014 17:21     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
Anonymous wrote:"Controlled choice" is an Orwellian term. It is not choice if someone else controls it. Imagine having stretched and spent bongo-bucks for a tiny pre-WW II center hall brick colonial in AU Park so that your kids can attend Janney. Then someone in control says, because of the 20% OOB set aside, your choice will be to to Southeast and choose between Marion Barry Educational Center and Michael Brown Elementary School. Congratulations.


That's just not happening on the elementary level. All the proposals call for neighborhood elementary schools so you can just simmer down now.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2014 17:02     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
Vote Catania.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2014 16:59     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
"Controlled choice" is an Orwellian term. It is not choice if someone else controls it. Imagine having stretched and spent bongo-bucks for a tiny pre-WW II center hall brick colonial in AU Park so that your kids can attend Janney. Then someone in control says, because of the 20% OOB set aside, your choice will be to to Southeast and choose between Marion Barry Educational Center and Michael Brown Elementary School. Congratulations.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2014 15:35     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:

I'm not trying to pick on you, but you're back to the 'poor kids can't learn' argument.


I never said poor kids can't learn. Students at our so-called "failing schools" ARE learning, but not all students learn at the SAME level and rate. Test scores are highly correlated with SES.


Agreed - and it doesn't matter if I agree or not -- it's a FACT -- unlike some of the crap we've heard over the years.

This whole school reform mess in DC has been because of a denial by administrators that it was anything but crappy teachers who caused poor learning. That was BS and replacing and evaluating teachers didn't make any difference in test scores -- they are still aligned to SES. So maybe it's time to address the real problem? to find ways to make up for some of the deficit between high and low SES students? Or maybe not, if school administrators have no idea how to, so instead they play more stupid games -- like trying to spread the high SES kids around, because that will at least make the scores go up a little - in the schools the high SES kids go to -- IF -- IF you can get them to fall for this shuffle that the DME is peddling.

Anonymous
Post 04/06/2014 15:18     Subject: What are the odds of them eliminating neighborhood elementary schools in favor of controlled choice?
check out the word gap. You might learn something new, but not at the same level or rate as others.

https://www.unitedwayracine.org/sites/default/files/imce/files/SOH%20The%20Early%20Catastrophe%20-%20The%2030%20Million%20Word%20Gap%20by%20Age%203%20-%20Risley%20and%20Hart%20-%20summary.pdf