Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:These types of threads have become really predictable. They generally start with a praise of BASIS that can be so over the top that one has to wonder if it’s actually a BASIS booster or a troll looking to stir the pot again.

Claims like BASIS is “the best school in DC hands down” and “no other school is worthwhile, just look at the test scores and the rankings report”.

The unqualified praise naturally brings about responses from people who want to qualify the praise: “but BASIS isn’t truly lottery, it is a test-in school after 6th grade”, “BASIS doesn’t have to do any hard work because it kicks people out when they fall behind”, and “BASIS plays to the rankings system,” etc.

These types of statements range from true to half truths to completely untrue but it’s hard to parse it all out because by then people are disrupting the thread with “helpful” comments like “everyone should just move to MD or VA” or better yet “send your kid to private school if you want a niche school because my tax dollars shouldn’t go to for-profit BASIS, especially because my kid doesn’t go there and my family doesn’t benefit from it”.

And among these comments we also hear from people who went to BASIS years ago or have never had any personal experience with the school or, worse, have a complete misunderstanding of how the charter school system works (see clueless comments re: how BASIS can/should create academic qualifications for admission or allow students to test in).

The thread largely becomes one of misinformation but also grievances about equity, academic rigor, and fairness in educational opportunity that ought to be redirected to the educational policy decision makers (hint: BASIS isn’t one of them).

There are usually some very helpful anecdotes from people with recent/relevant experiences but very unfortunately they quickly get buried in the muck of these threads. It’s also a shame that those with legitimate criticisms of the school (for example, dealing with a few inexperienced teachers or teachers leaving midway through the year), are then accused of “washing out” of BASIS or “failing to do their research on the school”, which is neither true nor helpful and invokes another round of comments that are much more spiteful than they are insightful.

Families have legit concerns and also leave for so many different reasons (move, want a different high school experience, etc) And it’s definitely true that some of the best performing students leave, too. It’s okay to acknowledge that the school doesn’t ultimately work out for a lot of people for different reasons. It does work out very well for others all the way through. This is pretty true of DC public schools across the board, it’s just that BASIS doesn’t generally replace any of the students who leave, which leads to smaller class sizes in later grades. For some, this is a positive and for others this is a negative.

Families have different educational preferences and priorities (and financial resources to spend on them) and that’s okay, too. Instead of relentlessly putting down other schools, we all should be grateful that amongst the generally poor public middle school options in DC that some DCPS schools are improving and charter schools like BASIS, Latin, and DCI exist to give students not zoned for any halfway decent DCPS a better chance to get into an acceptable option and be able to remain in the DC public school system.

The middle schools generally compared in these threads are all very different from each other and are only in the same sentence because of the lack of decent options for families who care about academics. These schools are more like apples and oranges and only “better and worse” for particular students and their particular needs and priorities. The differences should be celebrated. For example, be grateful that there is a family that prioritizes Spanish fluency and selects DCI which may have freed up the space for your student to get into BASIS or Latin, etc. The schools also create friendly competition with clubs and sports as well.

Families in DC seem to get very insecure about the educational decision they make for their own student as if putting down the school their kid doesn’t attend helps justify their own school decision. Just be grateful if you had a good option and went for it. No public school is perfect - whether inside or outside of DC.

It should also go without saying that prospective BASIS families should seek out more firsthand experiences from current families to make an informed decision about whether to accept a spot at the school if offered.

Thank you!

Thread ending post.

Anonymous wrote:These types of threads have become really predictable. They generally start with a praise of BASIS that can be so over the top that one has to wonder if it’s actually a BASIS booster or a troll looking to stir the pot again.

Claims like BASIS is “the best school in DC hands down” and “no other school is worthwhile, just look at the test scores and the rankings report”.

The unqualified praise naturally brings about responses from people who want to qualify the praise: “but BASIS isn’t truly lottery, it is a test-in school after 6th grade”, “BASIS doesn’t have to do any hard work because it kicks people out when they fall behind”, and “BASIS plays to the rankings system,” etc.

These types of statements range from true to half truths to completely untrue but it’s hard to parse it all out because by then people are disrupting the thread with “helpful” comments like “everyone should just move to MD or VA” or better yet “send your kid to private school if you want a niche school because my tax dollars shouldn’t go to for-profit BASIS, especially because my kid doesn’t go there and my family doesn’t benefit from it”.

And among these comments we also hear from people who went to BASIS years ago or have never had any personal experience with the school or, worse, have a complete misunderstanding of how the charter school system works (see clueless comments re: how BASIS can/should create academic qualifications for admission or allow students to test in).

The thread largely becomes one of misinformation but also grievances about equity, academic rigor, and fairness in educational opportunity that ought to be redirected to the educational policy decision makers (hint: BASIS isn’t one of them).

There are usually some very helpful anecdotes from people with recent/relevant experiences but very unfortunately they quickly get buried in the muck of these threads. It’s also a shame that those with legitimate criticisms of the school (for example, dealing with a few inexperienced teachers or teachers leaving midway through the year), are then accused of “washing out” of BASIS or “failing to do their research on the school”, which is neither true nor helpful and invokes another round of comments that are much more spiteful than they are insightful.

Families have legit concerns and also leave for so many different reasons (move, want a different high school experience, etc) And it’s definitely true that some of the best performing students leave, too. It’s okay to acknowledge that the school doesn’t ultimately work out for a lot of people for different reasons. It does work out very well for others all the way through. This is pretty true of DC public schools across the board, it’s just that BASIS doesn’t generally replace any of the students who leave, which leads to smaller class sizes in later grades. For some, this is a positive and for others this is a negative.

Families have different educational preferences and priorities (and financial resources to spend on them) and that’s okay, too. Instead of relentlessly putting down other schools, we all should be grateful that amongst the generally poor public middle school options in DC that some DCPS schools are improving and charter schools like BASIS, Latin, and DCI exist to give students not zoned for any halfway decent DCPS a better chance to get into an acceptable option and be able to remain in the DC public school system.

The middle schools generally compared in these threads are all very different from each other and are only in the same sentence because of the lack of decent options for families who care about academics. These schools are more like apples and oranges and only “better and worse” for particular students and their particular needs and priorities. The differences should be celebrated. For example, be grateful that there is a family that prioritizes Spanish fluency and selects DCI which may have freed up the space for your student to get into BASIS or Latin, etc. The schools also create friendly competition with clubs and sports as well.

Families in DC seem to get very insecure about the educational decision they make for their own student as if putting down the school their kid doesn’t attend helps justify their own school decision. Just be grateful if you had a good option and went for it. No public school is perfect - whether inside or outside of DC.

It should also go without saying that prospective BASIS families should seek out more firsthand experiences from current families to make an informed decision about whether to accept a spot at the school if offered.

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Anonymous wrote:The problem with BASIS is that it's not "really simple" as somebody claimed on the last page, not at all. Many 5th graders seem like a good fit for BASIS, so they are sent by their well-meaning parents. From what I've observed, few of these kids "wash out;" no mistake was made in sending them.

What happens is that the teaching proves to be so uneven, the leadership so prone to gaslighting families who encounter difficulties, the facility so lousy, the curriculum so rigid and narrowly focused on test taking, that most BASIS families get turned off the experience over time and leave.

Sure, you can always pull out, but it might be better to face the reality that BASIS is risky business compared to most DMV schools offering consistent rigor from the get-go. BASIS just not a very welcoming program offering a rich or happy educational experience to young people. There are a lot of sharp elbows at BASIS and not much of a community feel. When we left for a private, we were glad to feel included but dismayed to discover that our BASIS MS grad wasn't as well prepared as we'd hoped, other than for chemistry and biology.

Heading to BASIS is to roll the dice in a somewhat risky game of chance. Best to see it that way to hedge your bets, to avoid getting hurt. If you can afford a stronger program/school pyramid that's a better bet for both MS & HS or are willing to move for one, do it.

We are dealing with people that stayed the course in DC until late elementary whereas a good deal of truly risk averse types would have never even consider it or decamped to the burbs or private early on. They’ve already rolled the dice so to speak.

If Basis bought a few free years before going private, any minor adjustment/catch-up seems immaterial, or at least a bet that paid off.

And I sort of trust private school admissions committees to assess whether a kid (coming from Basis or wherever) will be a good fit for their school.

This is precisely how we are using Basis - a way station before private — admittedly a bit easier for us because a sibling is already in that pipeline and we are quite confident that our Basis student will be more than fine upon the eventual transition — and we’ll be about $80K less out of pocket.

Assuming 2 kids at a Big 3 you are still paying around $400,000 more than the parents whose kids stay the course at Basis.

Given that Basis HS is definitely better than MS (better teachers, better classes, fewer students), someone might question that financial decision.

If the HS was so great,Basis would not lose 1/2 the kids after 8th. The retention rate is not very good.

To clarify, I think the HS class is a little more than 1/2 the size of the 5th grade class. A large majority of 8th graders return to 9th. I think maybe about 10-15 out of 80 or 90 have been leaving. That's a mix of moving to private and application schools, and moving out of DC.

You're trying to whitewash the attrition. What happens is that more than half of the intake class of 135-140 is gone by the first day of 9th grade. Moreover, by the start of 12th grade, the classes is down to 45-55 students, not more. We were surprised by how many students left after every high school grade, half a dozen each time. There's high and unrelenting attrition at BASIS DC, however you slice it. Claiming otherwise won't change that.

Other schools have attrition but also socially promote and backfill.

BASIS DC does not.

You are comparing apples to oranges.

Why doesn’t BASIS backfill? It’s a public school. How do they avoid taking new students when there are so many who are initially shut out and would do just fine entering in late MS and for HS.

Other BASIS schools backfill -- the incoming kids take a placement exam and are then placed in an appropriate grade level (which might be lower than they were before, if they were coming from an easy school).

The DC Charter Board does not allow BASIS to do that. So, that's why BASIS DC doesn't backfill. It's not a huge conspiracy.

Can’t they use other standardized test results? Surely there are the rare superspecial unicorn children who could join without dragging down the whole school and ruining the experience for everyone.

BASIS would absolutely do it if they were allowed to (as evidenced by the fact that other schools in the network do.) of course there are kids who are capable of fitting in.

Again, the DC Charter Board is who is stopping this. They don't want placement exams, and they don't want kids placed below their year bc DC is very pro social promotion.

Take it up with the charter board if you want this changed.

But there are schools that do track?

Yes, there are schools that track. There are also schools that have put kids in the right grade. This is just false information that keeps getting repeated. The charter board has no such rule. There are schools that do it (though it counts against some of the report card measures the charter board does have - like 9th grade on track or on time graduation). There's no charter board rule against it.

1. Define tracking.

2. Name the schools that track.

3. Name the schools that track that have social promotion.

4. Post the links to the charters for the above schools.

Not sure why you’re taking this tone but dci middle tracks math, language; and science based on test scores. Dci offers remedial tracking as well for those who struggle.

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Anonymous wrote:The problem with BASIS is that it's not "really simple" as somebody claimed on the last page, not at all. Many 5th graders seem like a good fit for BASIS, so they are sent by their well-meaning parents. From what I've observed, few of these kids "wash out;" no mistake was made in sending them.

What happens is that the teaching proves to be so uneven, the leadership so prone to gaslighting families who encounter difficulties, the facility so lousy, the curriculum so rigid and narrowly focused on test taking, that most BASIS families get turned off the experience over time and leave.

Sure, you can always pull out, but it might be better to face the reality that BASIS is risky business compared to most DMV schools offering consistent rigor from the get-go. BASIS just not a very welcoming program offering a rich or happy educational experience to young people. There are a lot of sharp elbows at BASIS and not much of a community feel. When we left for a private, we were glad to feel included but dismayed to discover that our BASIS MS grad wasn't as well prepared as we'd hoped, other than for chemistry and biology.

Heading to BASIS is to roll the dice in a somewhat risky game of chance. Best to see it that way to hedge your bets, to avoid getting hurt. If you can afford a stronger program/school pyramid that's a better bet for both MS & HS or are willing to move for one, do it.

We are dealing with people that stayed the course in DC until late elementary whereas a good deal of truly risk averse types would have never even consider it or decamped to the burbs or private early on. They’ve already rolled the dice so to speak.

If Basis bought a few free years before going private, any minor adjustment/catch-up seems immaterial, or at least a bet that paid off.

And I sort of trust private school admissions committees to assess whether a kid (coming from Basis or wherever) will be a good fit for their school.

This is precisely how we are using Basis - a way station before private — admittedly a bit easier for us because a sibling is already in that pipeline and we are quite confident that our Basis student will be more than fine upon the eventual transition — and we’ll be about $80K less out of pocket.

Assuming 2 kids at a Big 3 you are still paying around $400,000 more than the parents whose kids stay the course at Basis.

Given that Basis HS is definitely better than MS (better teachers, better classes, fewer students), someone might question that financial decision.

If the HS was so great,Basis would not lose 1/2 the kids after 8th. The retention rate is not very good.

To clarify, I think the HS class is a little more than 1/2 the size of the 5th grade class. A large majority of 8th graders return to 9th. I think maybe about 10-15 out of 80 or 90 have been leaving. That's a mix of moving to private and application schools, and moving out of DC.

You're trying to whitewash the attrition. What happens is that more than half of the intake class of 135-140 is gone by the first day of 9th grade. Moreover, by the start of 12th grade, the classes is down to 45-55 students, not more. We were surprised by how many students left after every high school grade, half a dozen each time. There's high and unrelenting attrition at BASIS DC, however you slice it. Claiming otherwise won't change that.

Other schools have attrition but also socially promote and backfill.

BASIS DC does not.

You are comparing apples to oranges.

Why doesn’t BASIS backfill? It’s a public school. How do they avoid taking new students when there are so many who are initially shut out and would do just fine entering in late MS and for HS.

Other BASIS schools backfill -- the incoming kids take a placement exam and are then placed in an appropriate grade level (which might be lower than they were before, if they were coming from an easy school).

The DC Charter Board does not allow BASIS to do that. So, that's why BASIS DC doesn't backfill. It's not a huge conspiracy.

Can’t they use other standardized test results? Surely there are the rare superspecial unicorn children who could join without dragging down the whole school and ruining the experience for everyone.

BASIS would absolutely do it if they were allowed to (as evidenced by the fact that other schools in the network do.) of course there are kids who are capable of fitting in.

Again, the DC Charter Board is who is stopping this. They don't want placement exams, and they don't want kids placed below their year bc DC is very pro social promotion.

Take it up with the charter board if you want this changed.

But there are schools that do track?

Yes, there are schools that track. There are also schools that have put kids in the right grade. This is just false information that keeps getting repeated. The charter board has no such rule. There are schools that do it (though it counts against some of the report card measures the charter board does have - like 9th grade on track or on time graduation). There's no charter board rule against it.

1. Define tracking.

2. Name the schools that track.

3. Name the schools that track that have social promotion.

4. Post the links to the charters for the above schools.

Not sure why you’re taking this tone but dci middle tracks math, language; and science based on test scores. Dci offers remedial tracking as well for those who struggle.

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Anonymous wrote:The problem with BASIS is that it's not "really simple" as somebody claimed on the last page, not at all. Many 5th graders seem like a good fit for BASIS, so they are sent by their well-meaning parents. From what I've observed, few of these kids "wash out;" no mistake was made in sending them.

What happens is that the teaching proves to be so uneven, the leadership so prone to gaslighting families who encounter difficulties, the facility so lousy, the curriculum so rigid and narrowly focused on test taking, that most BASIS families get turned off the experience over time and leave.

Sure, you can always pull out, but it might be better to face the reality that BASIS is risky business compared to most DMV schools offering consistent rigor from the get-go. BASIS just not a very welcoming program offering a rich or happy educational experience to young people. There are a lot of sharp elbows at BASIS and not much of a community feel. When we left for a private, we were glad to feel included but dismayed to discover that our BASIS MS grad wasn't as well prepared as we'd hoped, other than for chemistry and biology.

Heading to BASIS is to roll the dice in a somewhat risky game of chance. Best to see it that way to hedge your bets, to avoid getting hurt. If you can afford a stronger program/school pyramid that's a better bet for both MS & HS or are willing to move for one, do it.

We are dealing with people that stayed the course in DC until late elementary whereas a good deal of truly risk averse types would have never even consider it or decamped to the burbs or private early on. They’ve already rolled the dice so to speak.

If Basis bought a few free years before going private, any minor adjustment/catch-up seems immaterial, or at least a bet that paid off.

And I sort of trust private school admissions committees to assess whether a kid (coming from Basis or wherever) will be a good fit for their school.

This is precisely how we are using Basis - a way station before private — admittedly a bit easier for us because a sibling is already in that pipeline and we are quite confident that our Basis student will be more than fine upon the eventual transition — and we’ll be about $80K less out of pocket.

Assuming 2 kids at a Big 3 you are still paying around $400,000 more than the parents whose kids stay the course at Basis.

Given that Basis HS is definitely better than MS (better teachers, better classes, fewer students), someone might question that financial decision.

If the HS was so great,Basis would not lose 1/2 the kids after 8th. The retention rate is not very good.

To clarify, I think the HS class is a little more than 1/2 the size of the 5th grade class. A large majority of 8th graders return to 9th. I think maybe about 10-15 out of 80 or 90 have been leaving. That's a mix of moving to private and application schools, and moving out of DC.

You're trying to whitewash the attrition. What happens is that more than half of the intake class of 135-140 is gone by the first day of 9th grade. Moreover, by the start of 12th grade, the classes is down to 45-55 students, not more. We were surprised by how many students left after every high school grade, half a dozen each time. There's high and unrelenting attrition at BASIS DC, however you slice it. Claiming otherwise won't change that.

Other schools have attrition but also socially promote and backfill.

BASIS DC does not.

You are comparing apples to oranges.

Why doesn’t BASIS backfill? It’s a public school. How do they avoid taking new students when there are so many who are initially shut out and would do just fine entering in late MS and for HS.

Other BASIS schools backfill -- the incoming kids take a placement exam and are then placed in an appropriate grade level (which might be lower than they were before, if they were coming from an easy school).

The DC Charter Board does not allow BASIS to do that. So, that's why BASIS DC doesn't backfill. It's not a huge conspiracy.

Can’t they use other standardized test results? Surely there are the rare superspecial unicorn children who could join without dragging down the whole school and ruining the experience for everyone.

BASIS would absolutely do it if they were allowed to (as evidenced by the fact that other schools in the network do.) of course there are kids who are capable of fitting in.

Again, the DC Charter Board is who is stopping this. They don't want placement exams, and they don't want kids placed below their year bc DC is very pro social promotion.

Take it up with the charter board if you want this changed.

But there are schools that do track?

Yes, there are schools that track. There are also schools that have put kids in the right grade. This is just false information that keeps getting repeated. The charter board has no such rule. There are schools that do it (though it counts against some of the report card measures the charter board does have - like 9th grade on track or on time graduation). There's no charter board rule against it.

1. Define tracking.

2. Name the schools that track.

3. Name the schools that track that have social promotion.

4. Post the links to the charters for the above schools.

*crickets*

Lol

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Anonymous wrote:The problem with BASIS is that it's not "really simple" as somebody claimed on the last page, not at all. Many 5th graders seem like a good fit for BASIS, so they are sent by their well-meaning parents. From what I've observed, few of these kids "wash out;" no mistake was made in sending them.

What happens is that the teaching proves to be so uneven, the leadership so prone to gaslighting families who encounter difficulties, the facility so lousy, the curriculum so rigid and narrowly focused on test taking, that most BASIS families get turned off the experience over time and leave.

Sure, you can always pull out, but it might be better to face the reality that BASIS is risky business compared to most DMV schools offering consistent rigor from the get-go. BASIS just not a very welcoming program offering a rich or happy educational experience to young people. There are a lot of sharp elbows at BASIS and not much of a community feel. When we left for a private, we were glad to feel included but dismayed to discover that our BASIS MS grad wasn't as well prepared as we'd hoped, other than for chemistry and biology.

Heading to BASIS is to roll the dice in a somewhat risky game of chance. Best to see it that way to hedge your bets, to avoid getting hurt. If you can afford a stronger program/school pyramid that's a better bet for both MS & HS or are willing to move for one, do it.

We are dealing with people that stayed the course in DC until late elementary whereas a good deal of truly risk averse types would have never even consider it or decamped to the burbs or private early on. They’ve already rolled the dice so to speak.

If Basis bought a few free years before going private, any minor adjustment/catch-up seems immaterial, or at least a bet that paid off.

And I sort of trust private school admissions committees to assess whether a kid (coming from Basis or wherever) will be a good fit for their school.

This is precisely how we are using Basis - a way station before private — admittedly a bit easier for us because a sibling is already in that pipeline and we are quite confident that our Basis student will be more than fine upon the eventual transition — and we’ll be about $80K less out of pocket.

Assuming 2 kids at a Big 3 you are still paying around $400,000 more than the parents whose kids stay the course at Basis.

Given that Basis HS is definitely better than MS (better teachers, better classes, fewer students), someone might question that financial decision.

If the HS was so great,Basis would not lose 1/2 the kids after 8th. The retention rate is not very good.

To clarify, I think the HS class is a little more than 1/2 the size of the 5th grade class. A large majority of 8th graders return to 9th. I think maybe about 10-15 out of 80 or 90 have been leaving. That's a mix of moving to private and application schools, and moving out of DC.

You're trying to whitewash the attrition. What happens is that more than half of the intake class of 135-140 is gone by the first day of 9th grade. Moreover, by the start of 12th grade, the classes is down to 45-55 students, not more. We were surprised by how many students left after every high school grade, half a dozen each time. There's high and unrelenting attrition at BASIS DC, however you slice it. Claiming otherwise won't change that.

Other schools have attrition but also socially promote and backfill.

BASIS DC does not.

You are comparing apples to oranges.

Why doesn’t BASIS backfill? It’s a public school. How do they avoid taking new students when there are so many who are initially shut out and would do just fine entering in late MS and for HS.

Other BASIS schools backfill -- the incoming kids take a placement exam and are then placed in an appropriate grade level (which might be lower than they were before, if they were coming from an easy school).

The DC Charter Board does not allow BASIS to do that. So, that's why BASIS DC doesn't backfill. It's not a huge conspiracy.

Can’t they use other standardized test results? Surely there are the rare superspecial unicorn children who could join without dragging down the whole school and ruining the experience for everyone.

BASIS would absolutely do it if they were allowed to (as evidenced by the fact that other schools in the network do.) of course there are kids who are capable of fitting in.

Again, the DC Charter Board is who is stopping this. They don't want placement exams, and they don't want kids placed below their year bc DC is very pro social promotion.

Take it up with the charter board if you want this changed.

But there are schools that do track?

Yes, there are schools that track. There are also schools that have put kids in the right grade. This is just false information that keeps getting repeated. The charter board has no such rule. There are schools that do it (though it counts against some of the report card measures the charter board does have - like 9th grade on track or on time graduation). There's no charter board rule against it.

1. Define tracking.

2. Name the schools that track.

3. Name the schools that track that have social promotion.

4. Post the links to the charters for the above schools.

Anonymous wrote:My guess is that BASIS could change this if they actually wanted to. But this way they get to avoid all the challenges of being a public school and still trumpet their success. They just shrug and say it’s not their responsibility to serve all comers. Nice.

Anonymous wrote:So the school can’t limit enrollment on the basis of a student’s measures of achievement or aptitude? So BASIS can’t just say they won’t take new students via lottery because they wouldn’t be academically prepared? They have to backfill with kids via the lottery regardless of test scores/grades, like all other charters?

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Anonymous wrote:[b]AZ Basis mom here. Just to clarify a few things: my oldest kid entered Basis in 7th grade. They were tested in the summer before 7th using the 6th grade math and language arts comprehensive exams. They passed with no issues, and it was assumed that they’d be able to jump in and handle all of the other subjects. If they had not passed, they would have entered in 6th grade. Basis is not placing kids multiple grade levels below their proper grade. It’s really common out here for kids to enter Basis after 5th. [/b]

Also, it’s hardly a fringe educational program. If anything, most public school programs are fringe with their educational fad of the week and excessive screen time. My kids’ school feels much more like a 1980s-ish traditional education, with textbooks, note taking by hand, exams, homework, minimal grade inflation, and minimal tech. It’s the opposite of being fringe.

This is not allowed in DC.

I know it's not allowed. Basis DC would happily backfill if they were allowed to test the kids and make sure that the kids were academically ready, just like all of the AZ Basis schools. It's not even like the test is a very high bar. Kids entering just have to pass the exact same math and english comp tests that all of the Basis kids had to pass.

It's a high bar in that kids in DCPS grade level math won't have had that material before, and that Basis teaches distinct sciences starting in 5th, so I'm sure there's a lot of material DCPS kids wouldn't have covered.

It really depends on the grade the kid is seeking to enter. For 6th grade entry, I would expect any bright kid to be able to reach the 60% threshold for passing, especially if they know ahead of time that they will be tested and work through the material using something like Khan academy. For 7th grade entry, a lot of kids in any metro area are on the "algebra in 7th grade track." So, any of them should be able to get a 60% on the Basis pre-algebra final from 6th grade.

Yes, it's true that kids trying to enter in 7th, like mine did, would start out behind in the sciences and might need some extra support. Sciences weren't included in any placement tests. The school just assumed that they might need to support kids entering at later grades, and the material cycles quite a bit. My kid didn't not have any issues with getting decent grades in 7th grade science after missing all of the 5th and 6th grade science content.

The sad reality in DC is that only a small fraction of school offer Algebra in 7th/geometry by 8th. Like, a handful, out of a couple dozen public middle schools.

Yeah. I'd like to think that with a little bit of self-instruction, a bright and motivated incoming 7th grader on the "algebra in 8th track" would have some chance of scoring 60% or higher on the prealgebra test. A lot of the mathematical concepts spiral before reaching algebra, so a bright DCPS kid might still have a sufficient foundation. I would hope that the parents who really want Basis and were shut out of the 5th grade lottery would take whatever steps they needed for 6th or 7th grade admissions, providing that higher grade level admissions were allowed at all.

There are plenty of kids in DC who could handle BASIS in 6th, 7th and on up. But they don’t get the chance. The school is basically closed to new students even though they lose so many and graduate so few of the original fifth graders.

My guess is the issue is that BASIS isn't allowed to have placement tests to get in, and if it can't do that, then why would it accept kids midstream who may not anywhere near where the rest of the class is?

Precisely. I think the existing model works best for the students already enrolled at the school, whose interests trump those of prospective later grade entrants.

Why do their interests trump those of other public school students? On what basis are they more deserving? Why would BASIS wish to hoard resources that could benefit more DC kids?

Reading comprehension is not your strong suit. If they can't give admissions tests to them (and they can't), then how can they assimilate kids who come in years behind the kids who are already there? They can't and so they don't.

Use a GPA.

BASIS people are supposed to be smart. They can’t figure this out?

They would be breaking the law. Take it up with the city council.

And they have never challenged that rule on behalf of the bright, underserved kids in DC? That works out well for them. So much easier.

On what basis, exactly, would BASIS challenge this law? The left wing ideologues who run the DC government came up with this rule, not BASIS. Blame them.

Why would BASIS challenge it? It works for them. Not for the kids of DC, of course.

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Anonymous wrote:[b]AZ Basis mom here. Just to clarify a few things: my oldest kid entered Basis in 7th grade. They were tested in the summer before 7th using the 6th grade math and language arts comprehensive exams. They passed with no issues, and it was assumed that they’d be able to jump in and handle all of the other subjects. If they had not passed, they would have entered in 6th grade. Basis is not placing kids multiple grade levels below their proper grade. It’s really common out here for kids to enter Basis after 5th. [/b]

Also, it’s hardly a fringe educational program. If anything, most public school programs are fringe with their educational fad of the week and excessive screen time. My kids’ school feels much more like a 1980s-ish traditional education, with textbooks, note taking by hand, exams, homework, minimal grade inflation, and minimal tech. It’s the opposite of being fringe.

This is not allowed in DC.

I know it's not allowed. Basis DC would happily backfill if they were allowed to test the kids and make sure that the kids were academically ready, just like all of the AZ Basis schools. It's not even like the test is a very high bar. Kids entering just have to pass the exact same math and english comp tests that all of the Basis kids had to pass.

It's a high bar in that kids in DCPS grade level math won't have had that material before, and that Basis teaches distinct sciences starting in 5th, so I'm sure there's a lot of material DCPS kids wouldn't have covered.

It really depends on the grade the kid is seeking to enter. For 6th grade entry, I would expect any bright kid to be able to reach the 60% threshold for passing, especially if they know ahead of time that they will be tested and work through the material using something like Khan academy. For 7th grade entry, a lot of kids in any metro area are on the "algebra in 7th grade track." So, any of them should be able to get a 60% on the Basis pre-algebra final from 6th grade.

Yes, it's true that kids trying to enter in 7th, like mine did, would start out behind in the sciences and might need some extra support. Sciences weren't included in any placement tests. The school just assumed that they might need to support kids entering at later grades, and the material cycles quite a bit. My kid didn't not have any issues with getting decent grades in 7th grade science after missing all of the 5th and 6th grade science content.

The sad reality in DC is that only a small fraction of school offer Algebra in 7th/geometry by 8th. Like, a handful, out of a couple dozen public middle schools.

Yeah. I'd like to think that with a little bit of self-instruction, a bright and motivated incoming 7th grader on the "algebra in 8th track" would have some chance of scoring 60% or higher on the prealgebra test. A lot of the mathematical concepts spiral before reaching algebra, so a bright DCPS kid might still have a sufficient foundation. I would hope that the parents who really want Basis and were shut out of the 5th grade lottery would take whatever steps they needed for 6th or 7th grade admissions, providing that higher grade level admissions were allowed at all.

There are plenty of kids in DC who could handle BASIS in 6th, 7th and on up. But they don’t get the chance. The school is basically closed to new students even though they lose so many and graduate so few of the original fifth graders.

My guess is the issue is that BASIS isn't allowed to have placement tests to get in, and if it can't do that, then why would it accept kids midstream who may not anywhere near where the rest of the class is?

Precisely. I think the existing model works best for the students already enrolled at the school, whose interests trump those of prospective later grade entrants.

Why do their interests trump those of other public school students? On what basis are they more deserving? Why would BASIS wish to hoard resources that could benefit more DC kids?

Reading comprehension is not your strong suit. If they can't give admissions tests to them (and they can't), then how can they assimilate kids who come in years behind the kids who are already there? They can't and so they don't.

Use a GPA.

BASIS people are supposed to be smart. They can’t figure this out?

They would be breaking the law. Take it up with the city council.

And they have never challenged that rule on behalf of the bright, underserved kids in DC? That works out well for them. So much easier.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:[b]AZ Basis mom here. Just to clarify a few things: my oldest kid entered Basis in 7th grade. They were tested in the summer before 7th using the 6th grade math and language arts comprehensive exams. They passed with no issues, and it was assumed that they’d be able to jump in and handle all of the other subjects. If they had not passed, they would have entered in 6th grade. Basis is not placing kids multiple grade levels below their proper grade. It’s really common out here for kids to enter Basis after 5th. [/b]

Also, it’s hardly a fringe educational program. If anything, most public school programs are fringe with their educational fad of the week and excessive screen time. My kids’ school feels much more like a 1980s-ish traditional education, with textbooks, note taking by hand, exams, homework, minimal grade inflation, and minimal tech. It’s the opposite of being fringe.

This is not allowed in DC.

I know it's not allowed. Basis DC would happily backfill if they were allowed to test the kids and make sure that the kids were academically ready, just like all of the AZ Basis schools. It's not even like the test is a very high bar. Kids entering just have to pass the exact same math and english comp tests that all of the Basis kids had to pass.

It's a high bar in that kids in DCPS grade level math won't have had that material before, and that Basis teaches distinct sciences starting in 5th, so I'm sure there's a lot of material DCPS kids wouldn't have covered.

It really depends on the grade the kid is seeking to enter. For 6th grade entry, I would expect any bright kid to be able to reach the 60% threshold for passing, especially if they know ahead of time that they will be tested and work through the material using something like Khan academy. For 7th grade entry, a lot of kids in any metro area are on the "algebra in 7th grade track." So, any of them should be able to get a 60% on the Basis pre-algebra final from 6th grade.

Yes, it's true that kids trying to enter in 7th, like mine did, would start out behind in the sciences and might need some extra support. Sciences weren't included in any placement tests. The school just assumed that they might need to support kids entering at later grades, and the material cycles quite a bit. My kid didn't not have any issues with getting decent grades in 7th grade science after missing all of the 5th and 6th grade science content.

The sad reality in DC is that only a small fraction of school offer Algebra in 7th/geometry by 8th. Like, a handful, out of a couple dozen public middle schools.

Yeah. I'd like to think that with a little bit of self-instruction, a bright and motivated incoming 7th grader on the "algebra in 8th track" would have some chance of scoring 60% or higher on the prealgebra test. A lot of the mathematical concepts spiral before reaching algebra, so a bright DCPS kid might still have a sufficient foundation. I would hope that the parents who really want Basis and were shut out of the 5th grade lottery would take whatever steps they needed for 6th or 7th grade admissions, providing that higher grade level admissions were allowed at all.

There are plenty of kids in DC who could handle BASIS in 6th, 7th and on up. But they don’t get the chance. The school is basically closed to new students even though they lose so many and graduate so few of the original fifth graders.

My guess is the issue is that BASIS isn't allowed to have placement tests to get in, and if it can't do that, then why would it accept kids midstream who may not anywhere near where the rest of the class is?

Precisely. I think the existing model works best for the students already enrolled at the school, whose interests trump those of prospective later grade entrants.

Why do their interests trump those of other public school students? On what basis are they more deserving? Why would BASIS wish to hoard resources that could benefit more DC kids?

Reading comprehension is not your strong suit. If they can't give admissions tests to them (and they can't), then how can they assimilate kids who come in years behind the kids who are already there? They can't and so they don't.

Use a GPA.

BASIS people are supposed to be smart. They can’t figure this out?

They would be breaking the law. Take it up with the city council.

And they have never challenged that rule on behalf of the bright, underserved kids in DC? That works out well for them. So much easier.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:[b]AZ Basis mom here. Just to clarify a few things: my oldest kid entered Basis in 7th grade. They were tested in the summer before 7th using the 6th grade math and language arts comprehensive exams. They passed with no issues, and it was assumed that they’d be able to jump in and handle all of the other subjects. If they had not passed, they would have entered in 6th grade. Basis is not placing kids multiple grade levels below their proper grade. It’s really common out here for kids to enter Basis after 5th. [/b]

Also, it’s hardly a fringe educational program. If anything, most public school programs are fringe with their educational fad of the week and excessive screen time. My kids’ school feels much more like a 1980s-ish traditional education, with textbooks, note taking by hand, exams, homework, minimal grade inflation, and minimal tech. It’s the opposite of being fringe.

This is not allowed in DC.

I know it's not allowed. Basis DC would happily backfill if they were allowed to test the kids and make sure that the kids were academically ready, just like all of the AZ Basis schools. It's not even like the test is a very high bar. Kids entering just have to pass the exact same math and english comp tests that all of the Basis kids had to pass.

It's a high bar in that kids in DCPS grade level math won't have had that material before, and that Basis teaches distinct sciences starting in 5th, so I'm sure there's a lot of material DCPS kids wouldn't have covered.

It really depends on the grade the kid is seeking to enter. For 6th grade entry, I would expect any bright kid to be able to reach the 60% threshold for passing, especially if they know ahead of time that they will be tested and work through the material using something like Khan academy. For 7th grade entry, a lot of kids in any metro area are on the "algebra in 7th grade track." So, any of them should be able to get a 60% on the Basis pre-algebra final from 6th grade.

Yes, it's true that kids trying to enter in 7th, like mine did, would start out behind in the sciences and might need some extra support. Sciences weren't included in any placement tests. The school just assumed that they might need to support kids entering at later grades, and the material cycles quite a bit. My kid didn't not have any issues with getting decent grades in 7th grade science after missing all of the 5th and 6th grade science content.

The sad reality in DC is that only a small fraction of school offer Algebra in 7th/geometry by 8th. Like, a handful, out of a couple dozen public middle schools.

Yeah. I'd like to think that with a little bit of self-instruction, a bright and motivated incoming 7th grader on the "algebra in 8th track" would have some chance of scoring 60% or higher on the prealgebra test. A lot of the mathematical concepts spiral before reaching algebra, so a bright DCPS kid might still have a sufficient foundation. I would hope that the parents who really want Basis and were shut out of the 5th grade lottery would take whatever steps they needed for 6th or 7th grade admissions, providing that higher grade level admissions were allowed at all.

There are plenty of kids in DC who could handle BASIS in 6th, 7th and on up. But they don’t get the chance. The school is basically closed to new students even though they lose so many and graduate so few of the original fifth graders.

My guess is the issue is that BASIS isn't allowed to have placement tests to get in, and if it can't do that, then why would it accept kids midstream who may not anywhere near where the rest of the class is?

Precisely. I think the existing model works best for the students already enrolled at the school, whose interests trump those of prospective later grade entrants.

Why do their interests trump those of other public school students? On what basis are they more deserving? Why would BASIS wish to hoard resources that could benefit more DC kids?

Reading comprehension is not your strong suit. If they can't give admissions tests to them (and they can't), then how can they assimilate kids who come in years behind the kids who are already there? They can't and so they don't.

Use a GPA.

BASIS people are supposed to be smart. They can’t figure this out?

They would be breaking the law. Take it up with the city council.

And they have never challenged that rule on behalf of the bright, underserved kids in DC? That works out well for them. So much easier.

On what basis, exactly, would BASIS challenge this law? The left wing ideologues who run the DC government came up with this rule, not BASIS. Blame them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:[b]AZ Basis mom here. Just to clarify a few things: my oldest kid entered Basis in 7th grade. They were tested in the summer before 7th using the 6th grade math and language arts comprehensive exams. They passed with no issues, and it was assumed that they’d be able to jump in and handle all of the other subjects. If they had not passed, they would have entered in 6th grade. Basis is not placing kids multiple grade levels below their proper grade. It’s really common out here for kids to enter Basis after 5th. [/b]

Also, it’s hardly a fringe educational program. If anything, most public school programs are fringe with their educational fad of the week and excessive screen time. My kids’ school feels much more like a 1980s-ish traditional education, with textbooks, note taking by hand, exams, homework, minimal grade inflation, and minimal tech. It’s the opposite of being fringe.

This is not allowed in DC.

I know it's not allowed. Basis DC would happily backfill if they were allowed to test the kids and make sure that the kids were academically ready, just like all of the AZ Basis schools. It's not even like the test is a very high bar. Kids entering just have to pass the exact same math and english comp tests that all of the Basis kids had to pass.

It's a high bar in that kids in DCPS grade level math won't have had that material before, and that Basis teaches distinct sciences starting in 5th, so I'm sure there's a lot of material DCPS kids wouldn't have covered.

It really depends on the grade the kid is seeking to enter. For 6th grade entry, I would expect any bright kid to be able to reach the 60% threshold for passing, especially if they know ahead of time that they will be tested and work through the material using something like Khan academy. For 7th grade entry, a lot of kids in any metro area are on the "algebra in 7th grade track." So, any of them should be able to get a 60% on the Basis pre-algebra final from 6th grade.

Yes, it's true that kids trying to enter in 7th, like mine did, would start out behind in the sciences and might need some extra support. Sciences weren't included in any placement tests. The school just assumed that they might need to support kids entering at later grades, and the material cycles quite a bit. My kid didn't not have any issues with getting decent grades in 7th grade science after missing all of the 5th and 6th grade science content.

The sad reality in DC is that only a small fraction of school offer Algebra in 7th/geometry by 8th. Like, a handful, out of a couple dozen public middle schools.

Yeah. I'd like to think that with a little bit of self-instruction, a bright and motivated incoming 7th grader on the "algebra in 8th track" would have some chance of scoring 60% or higher on the prealgebra test. A lot of the mathematical concepts spiral before reaching algebra, so a bright DCPS kid might still have a sufficient foundation. I would hope that the parents who really want Basis and were shut out of the 5th grade lottery would take whatever steps they needed for 6th or 7th grade admissions, providing that higher grade level admissions were allowed at all.

There are plenty of kids in DC who could handle BASIS in 6th, 7th and on up. But they don’t get the chance. The school is basically closed to new students even though they lose so many and graduate so few of the original fifth graders.

My guess is the issue is that BASIS isn't allowed to have placement tests to get in, and if it can't do that, then why would it accept kids midstream who may not anywhere near where the rest of the class is?

Precisely. I think the existing model works best for the students already enrolled at the school, whose interests trump those of prospective later grade entrants.

Why do their interests trump those of other public school students? On what basis are they more deserving? Why would BASIS wish to hoard resources that could benefit more DC kids?

Reading comprehension is not your strong suit. If they can't give admissions tests to them (and they can't), then how can they assimilate kids who come in years behind the kids who are already there? They can't and so they don't.

Use a GPA.

BASIS people are supposed to be smart. They can’t figure this out?

They would be breaking the law. Take it up with the city council.

And they have never challenged that rule on behalf of the bright, underserved kids in DC? That works out well for them. So much easier.