Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This is ludicrous. I’m not sending my child to public school to help some neighborhood kids whose parents aren’t involved or don’t have the means to be. That is not my problem. My focus is MY child.

If everyone had this view, all public schools would be mediocre

PP again. Most are. And I don’t support public schools. I support school choice. We made our choice and again, public schools being fixed is not my focus.

Agreed.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This is ludicrous. I’m not sending my child to public school to help some neighborhood kids whose parents aren’t involved or don’t have the means to be. That is not my problem. My focus is MY child.

If everyone had this view, all public schools would be mediocre

True but where is the lie? I’m not the PP but the focus is definitely my kids.

Is it not possible to focus on your kids and also care about the well-being of society?

After all, it’s important to remember that PG County schools are “bad” relative to other Maryland schools. At least half of them would put schools in most other states to shame. Studies have shown that parental income is the largest factor in determining academic achievement. So, sending your child to a PG school would hardly make a difference in their future.


The public schools in these other areas didn’t just automatically become good out of nowhere. They were also mediocre when they first started out. They achieved excellence after the families their invested in their community.

Someone should start an effort to improve the issues in PGCPS. Just start a Facebook group or something and add people with similar concerns to it. It’s your community, these are your schools, your taxes are paying for them. The best thing you can do for your children is to invest in the community they grow up in, as well as all the kids who are part of that community. That involves advocating for people less privileged than you.

This “f you, I got mine” mentality is the reason that people from disadvantaged backgrounds remain in the positions they’re in. It’s so easy to shrug it off as not being your issue, but remember, those kids want to go to school and learn to. Their parents want the same thing for their kids that you want for yours as well, and their families value education. Nobody should assume otherwise. There’s always the assumption that Black families don’t care value education and that Black kids don’t value it, when it’s actually that there are systematic barriers that prevent disadvantaged students from learning. Think about all those poor Black and Hispanic kids who had to sit in parking lots for WiFi to do their homework during the pandemic back when it first hit. Rich people dodging their publics only exacerbates these inequities even more.

Your kids need you, but other kids need you as well. You can focus on your kids first while also still showing concern for other kids, especially those who come from environments where they aren’t able to receive sufficient parental support.

PP here. Sorry not sorry. My parents came from disadvantaged backgrounds and made the eat for us, by focusing on us and our education. I have no idea what this parents want and they aren’t my concern. I’m fine with contributing via taxes to the schools but that’s where it stops for me. I advocate for this less fortunate, but not at the expense of my child. If that’s selfish, I’m ok with that. I’m not rich, but I have options. And fixing pgps is not my focus.

And this is a fair response as far as I'm concerned. +100

Anonymous wrote:PP here. Sorry not sorry. My parents came from disadvantaged backgrounds and made the eat for us, by focusing on us and our education. I have no idea what this parents want and they aren’t my concern. I’m fine with contributing via taxes to the schools but that’s where it stops for me. I advocate for this less fortunate, but not at the expense of my child. If that’s selfish, I’m ok with that. I’m not rich, but I have options. And fixing pgps is not my focus.

And what exactly are you sacrificing by sending your daughter to PGCPS? Lmao. You’re acting like you’re sending her to school in a third world country. Listen to yourself, you sound ridiculous. You can focus on your daughter and her education while also sending her to public schools. Rich kids who go to PGCPS don’t suffer, they still do fine. Studies have shown that parental wealth is the single most important factor in how well a child succeeds academically, not where there kids go to school. You can’t claim that you advocate for the less fortunate and then say you are anti-public school and support “school choice,” things that hinder the opportunities for the less fortunate. Do you realize that you were lucky to have parents that focused on you? Do you realize that some people’s parents are literally working 3 jobs so their kids can be able to eat? Most parents are doing as much as they can. You could have easily been stuck poor and struggling had you been born to different parents, or had their situation been a little worse. A child’s future shouldn’t be determined by what parents they’re born to. A child’s access to a quality education shouldn’t be determined by what family they were born into. A child’s access to education should not be determined by their skin color or income. But unfortunately it is, and it’s because of people like you and everyone else in this thread who echos the same sentiments.

I honestly don’t think that most people are bothered by the public schools because of the quality. There is no difference between how kids in Crofton kids and Bowie kids perform in schools, when you compare kids by their demographics. Crofton schools have their fair share of behavioral issues as well. A 14-year old kid from there was beaten to death on his bike by other teens from Crofton who claimed they were in gangs back in 2009, and they were bringing gang issues to both of the high schools that served them around that time period. Even though the gang issues have been cleared up, Crofton Middle still reported some of the highest citations of any middle school in Anne Arundel County. Crofton still gets all the white flight from Bowie, because Crofton is majority-white and UMC. Meanwhile, Bowie kids are ridiculed simply because they are Black and occasionally lower income. Nobody is safer at Crofton schools compared to Bowie schools. The grass is not always greener on the other side of the hill.

People send their kids to these mediocre private schools in PG County and in the Annapolis area with piss poor SAT scores and an underwhelming list of colleges that their kids go to. They don’t even release standardized test scores and many of the public schools have better SAT scores and college outcomes.

Most people don’t send their kids to Bowie schools because they listen to snap judgements and don’t do their own research, or they are just racist. It’s not anything else. None of the other arguments that people try to bring up hold true with the facts. PGCPS isn’t inherently anymore poorly managed than any other school system around here is, and most of the issues (crowded schools, fights, etc) exist in other school systems as well. It’s impressive that PG schools are as good as they are relative to how little parental involvement they get. Many of PG’s superintendents were previously superintendents of counties that people on here rave about.

And btw, I’m not affiliated with PGCPS. I’m a graduate of a well-respected school in DCUM, but my nephew goes to Bowie schools and he’s doing absolutely fine because he has involved parents.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This is ludicrous. I’m not sending my child to public school to help some neighborhood kids whose parents aren’t involved or don’t have the means to be. That is not my problem. My focus is MY child.

If everyone had this view, all public schools would be mediocre

PP again. Most are. And I don’t support public schools. I support school choice. We made our choice and again, public schools being fixed is not my focus.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This is ludicrous. I’m not sending my child to public school to help some neighborhood kids whose parents aren’t involved or don’t have the means to be. That is not my problem. My focus is MY child.

If everyone had this view, all public schools would be mediocre

True but where is the lie? I’m not the PP but the focus is definitely my kids.

Is it not possible to focus on your kids and also care about the well-being of society?

After all, it’s important to remember that PG County schools are “bad” relative to other Maryland schools. At least half of them would put schools in most other states to shame. Studies have shown that parental income is the largest factor in determining academic achievement. So, sending your child to a PG school would hardly make a difference in their future.


The public schools in these other areas didn’t just automatically become good out of nowhere. They were also mediocre when they first started out. They achieved excellence after the families their invested in their community.

Someone should start an effort to improve the issues in PGCPS. Just start a Facebook group or something and add people with similar concerns to it. It’s your community, these are your schools, your taxes are paying for them. The best thing you can do for your children is to invest in the community they grow up in, as well as all the kids who are part of that community. That involves advocating for people less privileged than you.

This “f you, I got mine” mentality is the reason that people from disadvantaged backgrounds remain in the positions they’re in. It’s so easy to shrug it off as not being your issue, but remember, those kids want to go to school and learn to. Their parents want the same thing for their kids that you want for yours as well, and their families value education. Nobody should assume otherwise. There’s always the assumption that Black families don’t care value education and that Black kids don’t value it, when it’s actually that there are systematic barriers that prevent disadvantaged students from learning. Think about all those poor Black and Hispanic kids who had to sit in parking lots for WiFi to do their homework during the pandemic back when it first hit. Rich people dodging their publics only exacerbates these inequities even more.

Your kids need you, but other kids need you as well. You can focus on your kids first while also still showing concern for other kids, especially those who come from environments where they aren’t able to receive sufficient parental support.

PP here. Sorry not sorry. My parents came from disadvantaged backgrounds and made the eat for us, by focusing on us and our education. I have no idea what this parents want and they aren’t my concern. I’m fine with contributing via taxes to the schools but that’s where it stops for me. I advocate for this less fortunate, but not at the expense of my child. If that’s selfish, I’m ok with that. I’m not rich, but I have options. And fixing pgps is not my focus.

I'm not reading all that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This is ludicrous. I’m not sending my child to public school to help some neighborhood kids whose parents aren’t involved or don’t have the means to be. That is not my problem. My focus is MY child.

If everyone had this view, all public schools would be mediocre

True but where is the lie? I’m not the PP but the focus is definitely my kids.

Is it not possible to focus on your kids and also care about the well-being of society?

After all, it’s important to remember that PG County schools are “bad” relative to other Maryland schools. At least half of them would put schools in most other states to shame. Studies have shown that parental income is the largest factor in determining academic achievement. So, sending your child to a PG school would hardly make a difference in their future.


The public schools in these other areas didn’t just automatically become good out of nowhere. They were also mediocre when they first started out. They achieved excellence after the families their invested in their community.

Someone should start an effort to improve the issues in PGCPS. Just start a Facebook group or something and add people with similar concerns to it. It’s your community, these are your schools, your taxes are paying for them. The best thing you can do for your children is to invest in the community they grow up in, as well as all the kids who are part of that community. That involves advocating for people less privileged than you.

This “f you, I got mine” mentality is the reason that people from disadvantaged backgrounds remain in the positions they’re in. It’s so easy to shrug it off as not being your issue, but remember, those kids want to go to school and learn to. Their parents want the same thing for their kids that you want for yours as well, and their families value education. Nobody should assume otherwise. There’s always the assumption that Black families don’t care value education and that Black kids don’t value it, when it’s actually that there are systematic barriers that prevent disadvantaged students from learning. Think about all those poor Black and Hispanic kids who had to sit in parking lots for WiFi to do their homework during the pandemic back when it first hit. Rich people dodging their publics only exacerbates these inequities even more.

Your kids need you, but other kids need you as well. You can focus on your kids first while also still showing concern for other kids, especially those who come from environments where they aren’t able to receive sufficient parental support.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

This is ludicrous. I’m not sending my child to public school to help some neighborhood kids whose parents aren’t involved or don’t have the means to be. That is not my problem. My focus is MY child.

If everyone had this view, all public schools would be mediocre

True but where is the lie? I’m not the PP but the focus is definitely my kids.

Anonymous wrote:

This is ludicrous. I’m not sending my child to public school to help some neighborhood kids whose parents aren’t involved or don’t have the means to be. That is not my problem. My focus is MY child.

If everyone had this view, all public schools would be mediocre

Go look at all the threads on DCUM from Bowie parents looking for private schools, there’s your answer as to why. Bowie schools have a higher percentage of low-income families than the neighborhoods themselves do. Then you have the middle-class white families who move to Crofton and gain a superiority complex that quickly fades after they realize they’ve become the new underdogs because they have to compete with Severna Park and Arnold schools, which take a dump on all of their schools.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The entire PGCPS system has struggled with middle class flight from the schools. I think a lot of this is due to negative perception of the county schools that isn't always grounded in reality. The perception issue is improving many areas, but lots of middle class families go private. I would guess that is part of what is at play here.

Also, for the record, Capital Heights ES is a great school - TAG center and dual immersion Spanish program. They just put on an excellent black history month school-wide program. And its predominantly black and has a sizable low income population. But it really shines - strong principal and PTA, dedicated teachers and a small inclusive environment. I think we'd all be wise to check our preconceived ideas about our schools.

ITA with this response. Northview elementary only has such low scores because of the middle class families surrounding that area pulling their kids out and sending them to private schools (which btw, don't publish any testing scores for parents to disapprove of and run away from!). Its ridiculous because those same resources as in thousands of dollars they could put half of that into their neighborhood school and turn it around a complete 180 to a top performing school in a matter of a couple years, AND increase their housing prices and neighborhood value at the same time.

Its a shame the disadvantages they are doing to the other children within their own neighborhoods out of selfishness, snobbery and exclusive concern over their own kid rising to the top above everyone else. What happened to our sense of community and neighborly love? Why must the rat race begin this young?

This is ludicrous. I’m not sending my child to public school to help some neighborhood kids whose parents aren’t involved or don’t have the means to be. That is not my problem. My focus is MY child.

Anonymous wrote:Explain Northview, Kingsford, Perrywood, and the like. How can they be surrounded by middle class suburbs with educated people but still be so low performing for their test scores? Even if people are pulling i out their kids for privates, what explains it? These schools can't be as bad ase the schools in Capital Heights or Temple Hills, so what gives?

This is true for most of the schools outside of the beltway in PG.

Oh gosh, what can I say. PGCS have been struggling since the early eighties. I went to them PG schools all around the area mitcheville, temple hills, upper Marlboro...

First of All , money is not dumped into the schools in large amounts like the white areas of the DMV such as FCPS, I didn’t see a lot of parent engagement in PG schools either

What happened to the money from the casinos? I vaguely remembered some of the monies was going to go to the schools.

It’s a excuse to blaMe SES for the performance of the schools.
Why can’t the teachers/school board step up with offering a more rigorous education and provide in-schools tutoring to get up to speed.

The bottom line is that they don’t want to make education or a higher level of education priority because they are African American. The teachers, staff, schoolboard are not motivated to give BLACK KIDS a good education. I know this because I left PG schools and transferred to an affluent white county and found out I didn’t learn anything from PG schools, the curriculum especially math was Subpar

Anonymous wrote:I’d be curious to hear from teachers. I’ve heard that teachers prefer to commute to MCPS or other counties rather than teach in PGCS. I don’t know if that’s true—my sense is that MCPS pays a bit higher. Obviously if the best teachers are attracted elsewhere, that’s going to be a big part of it. It’s so easy around here for people to just commute to a higher paying County for work but live in the County with the lower COL.

We live in PG and I teach in DC. I would take a $40k pay cut to teach here.

How do you know what takes place in all households?