Anonymous wrote:My daughter recently asked if we could look in to St. Andrew's for high school. We know a few families whose children are there now and a few that have graduated. Most of them loved it, commenting that it is a warm community and the teachers are wonderful. Multiple of them also commented that it was a pretty small school that did feel limited socially. They seem to have pretty good college placements, so there is that, but there also seem to be a large number of students that are seen as awkward and viewed as non-traditional learners. While I do love that there isn't a homogeneous crowd, I'm concerned that the relatively small size of the school mixed with the greater number of awkward kids might make it feel as if it is a special needs school and that my more traditional kid will be frustrated in that situation. I will say that when I mention she may apply there, about half of the people I tell are surprised because she is incredibly bright and they believe it to be for children with learning issues, similar to Burke or Field. Is this all completely off base?

Why worry about someone else’s neuro bigotry?

Or just maybe the teenage girl who changed schools in 9th grade faced with new social circles, having to make new friends, etc was just being a teenage girl — and in another month will think her new classmates are not at all awkward but are all terrific.

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Anonymous wrote:I have always heard good things about SAES. I will though say that my DD has a friend who moved from their well-known, very rigorous K-12 to SAES very recently for high school. Friend tells DD that she feels like most kids at SAES are “awkward” or “quirky” or have some kind of “diffference” she never experienced at her former school. It was not a criticism just her observation. She likes the school.

Maybe the kids at her previous school were all sheep. Or maybe your daughter's friend is just not very accepting of differences. Tis a pity.

There is a real strain of this kind of sentiment among at least a few Saint Andrews parents on this board. It seems like it’s gotten worse in the last year two. You’re not representing your kid’s school very well.

I wouldn't assume that the poster was a St. Andrew's parent. This is an anonymous board so anyone can post whatever they want. I'm a parent new to SAES and haven't encountered anyone who would post snark like that. We've been really happy with the school so far. There are a broader range of students than at our prior school which has been great. No one is asking my kid how they did on this paper, exam, quiz, etc. which our student really appreciates. Our child finds the students helpful, supportive, and friendly but not unpleasantly competitive. At our former school there were kids who were constantly asking what did you get and caring only about grades. It created a really stressful environment that did not appear to be good for anyone. So far our child has not run into that at all and is enjoying being around kids who view him as a classmate and friend and not as the competition.

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Anonymous wrote:I have always heard good things about SAES. I will though say that my DD has a friend who moved from their well-known, very rigorous K-12 to SAES very recently for high school. Friend tells DD that she feels like most kids at SAES are “awkward” or “quirky” or have some kind of “diffference” she never experienced at her former school. It was not a criticism just her observation. She likes the school.

Maybe the kids at her previous school were all sheep. Or maybe your daughter's friend is just not very accepting of differences. Tis a pity.

There is a real strain of this kind of sentiment among at least a few Saint Andrews parents on this board. It seems like it’s gotten worse in the last year two. You’re not representing your kid’s school very well.

Anonymous wrote:I have always heard good things about SAES. I will though say that my DD has a friend who moved from their well-known, very rigorous K-12 to SAES very recently for high school. Friend tells DD that she feels like most kids at SAES are “awkward” or “quirky” or have some kind of “diffference” she never experienced at her former school. It was not a criticism just her observation. She likes the school.

Maybe the kids at her previous school were all sheep. Or maybe your daughter's friend is just not very accepting of differences. Tis a pity.

I have always heard good things about SAES. I will though say that my DD has a friend who moved from their well-known, very rigorous K-12 to SAES very recently for high school. Friend tells DD that she feels like most kids at SAES are “awkward” or “quirky” or have some kind of “diffference” she never experienced at her former school. It was not a criticism just her observation. She likes the school.

We are a new SAES family with a very bright child with some LDs. We feel absolutely thrilled with the environment, families, and teaching!

Shhhh! All SAES parents. (Let's keep our awesomeness an in-house secret)

Anonymous wrote:For anyone that has a child on the main campus currently, has the traffic or anything else been affected by the high profile son attending? Didn't seem like it when we went for our tour, but thought those who have been there for years would know better.

Nope — not a bit different.

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Anonymous wrote:Burke is not a school for kids with LDs. It can accommodate kids with some minor LDs, but no more than any other independent. I've had kids at both SAES and Burke and they are night and day academically and socially.
- Current Burke parent

Was your experience at St Andrews not good academically or socially? - Curious bcse I too am looking for HS.

Just really different, that's all. My DD who graduated SAES loved it, and my current HS kid at Burke loves Burke. Different approaches to learning, different social scene, etc. Burke is a very progressive school and follows that model whereas SAES is much more traditional. It's about fit. (And btw - Burke and Field are not equivalent.) So definitely do the tours and figure out what feels right for you and your child. Good luck.

Agree it is all about fit. For my DC, St Andrews felt like the more academically challenging school but I want to emphasize the word “felt” because he preferred a somewhat more traditional approach. I haven’t looked at Burke for about 5 years, but my sense is that St Andrews is not nearly as traditional as some posters believe and that Burke isn’t quite as progressive in upper grades as in middle school. Calling teachers bybtheir first or last name is a distinction that takes on less significance as students get older, and when you want to cover a subject like calculus or bio, there can be variation but there are limitations as to how much.

Pedagogically, Burke is absolutely more progressive than SAES. Being a progressive school goes far beyond what name you call your teachers. And I would say academically Burke is more difficult as there is more emphasis on critical thinking and the school emphasizes student ownership, rather than a top down, teacher-directed approach.

You seem very certain that you know what the SAES curriculum and teaching style are like. Do you have a child who attends SAES? Do you teach there? I'm just wondering what the basis is for your conclusion?

Yes. Current student.

So, you’re not the poster who said your DD graduated from SAES?

For anyone that has a child on the main campus currently, has the traffic or anything else been affected by the high profile son attending? Didn't seem like it when we went for our tour, but thought those who have been there for years would know better.

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Anonymous wrote:St. Andrew's seems like the perfect place for my daughter. Does anyone know the acceptance rate for 9th? I know they about double the class size from 8th to 9th, adding over 40 kids, but do they turn very many away? (Not sure if I've ever heard of anyone that was not accepted.)

I know two boys who were waitlisted last year for 9th. Girls might have an advantage.

I know of kids not admitted for 9th. The school has gotten a lot more competitive (admissions-wise) in the past 2 years since SAES built the Student Center.

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Anonymous wrote:Burke is not a school for kids with LDs. It can accommodate kids with some minor LDs, but no more than any other independent. I've had kids at both SAES and Burke and they are night and day academically and socially.
- Current Burke parent

Was your experience at St Andrews not good academically or socially? - Curious bcse I too am looking for HS.

Just really different, that's all. My DD who graduated SAES loved it, and my current HS kid at Burke loves Burke. Different approaches to learning, different social scene, etc. Burke is a very progressive school and follows that model whereas SAES is much more traditional. It's about fit. (And btw - Burke and Field are not equivalent.) So definitely do the tours and figure out what feels right for you and your child. Good luck.

Agree it is all about fit. For my DC, St Andrews felt like the more academically challenging school but I want to emphasize the word “felt” because he preferred a somewhat more traditional approach. I haven’t looked at Burke for about 5 years, but my sense is that St Andrews is not nearly as traditional as some posters believe and that Burke isn’t quite as progressive in upper grades as in middle school. Calling teachers bybtheir first or last name is a distinction that takes on less significance as students get older, and when you want to cover a subject like calculus or bio, there can be variation but there are limitations as to how much.

Pedagogically, Burke is absolutely more progressive than SAES. Being a progressive school goes far beyond what name you call your teachers. And I would say academically Burke is more difficult as there is more emphasis on critical thinking and the school emphasizes student ownership, rather than a top down, teacher-directed approach.

You seem very certain that you know what the SAES curriculum and teaching style are like. Do you have a child who attends SAES? Do you teach there? I'm just wondering what the basis is for your conclusion?

Yes. Current student.

Hmm. What do you mean by student ownership? And why did you leave Burke? Our SAES student seems to be getting plenty of critical thinking training at SAES. Can you explain how it is different than Burke?

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Anonymous wrote:Burke is not a school for kids with LDs. It can accommodate kids with some minor LDs, but no more than any other independent. I've had kids at both SAES and Burke and they are night and day academically and socially.
- Current Burke parent

Was your experience at St Andrews not good academically or socially? - Curious bcse I too am looking for HS.

Just really different, that's all. My DD who graduated SAES loved it, and my current HS kid at Burke loves Burke. Different approaches to learning, different social scene, etc. Burke is a very progressive school and follows that model whereas SAES is much more traditional. It's about fit. (And btw - Burke and Field are not equivalent.) So definitely do the tours and figure out what feels right for you and your child. Good luck.

Agree it is all about fit. For my DC, St Andrews felt like the more academically challenging school but I want to emphasize the word “felt” because he preferred a somewhat more traditional approach. I haven’t looked at Burke for about 5 years, but my sense is that St Andrews is not nearly as traditional as some posters believe and that Burke isn’t quite as progressive in upper grades as in middle school. Calling teachers bybtheir first or last name is a distinction that takes on less significance as students get older, and when you want to cover a subject like calculus or bio, there can be variation but there are limitations as to how much.

Pedagogically, Burke is absolutely more progressive than SAES. Being a progressive school goes far beyond what name you call your teachers. And I would say academically Burke is more difficult as there is more emphasis on critical thinking and the school emphasizes student ownership, rather than a top down, teacher-directed approach.

You seem very certain that you know what the SAES curriculum and teaching style are like. Do you have a child who attends SAES? Do you teach there? I'm just wondering what the basis is for your conclusion?

Yes. Current student.

Responding to 21:13, my kids attended a progressive independent for primary school and ended up at SAES in high school. There are some differences — and that varies by subject and teacher — but I take strong issue with your assertion that SAES does not promote crtical thinking as well as a Butke or any other “progressive” school. My kids and all their friends who graduated SAES in recent years consistently came back from their colleges surprised at how much better they were at analysis, argument and writing — three proxies for crtitical thinking — than most of their college classmates. It is true that St Andrew’s offers some direct teaching of study techniques and tips — some kids find them very helpful and others ignore them — but I am sure that isn’t what the other poster was referring to. I would not dare to compare how another school teaches critical thinking skills compared to SAES, but I just don’t see any basis on which to suggest Another school is doing a better job other than pure ideological bias — something that seems both common and very outdated in some progressive schools these days.