As a Basis parent, I can attest to the fact that it is *not* "asian style drill and kill" and with regard to "european style" that to me speaks to their approach which provides a strong traditional/liberal arts foundation including such things as classics and latin, which are typically not in the regular American curricula but which are still more typical to have in many European classrooms. That's the foundation, and then they accelerate and concentrate in areas like math and science. Our son is incredibly creative and imaginative, and he's found plenty of outlet for that in areas like his writing and art assignments at Basis, I don't anticipate he will be stifled in that area at all.

This thread has gone in 20,000 directions and maybe past its expiration date... but if anything it just goes to show that if there is one thing that BASIS boosters and bashers have in common, it is deep concern about the state of education and lack of options available.

What interests me most in this thread are the references to "European Model" "Finnish Model" and the "East Asian Model" in discussing BASIS and I wonder whether there is any common agreement as to what these terms mean. The East Asian model I think is the most understood reference, meaning basically drill and kill, lots of memorization, standardized testing, lecture-based classes, accelerated curriculum. From what I can see, the BASIS model (focus on AP tests, calculus by 9th grade, etc) is pretty East Asian at its core. As an English person I think "European Model" is simply meaningless, and I'd be interested in any attempts to explain what that means. Finland is sometimes mentioned in connection with BASIS but I am not seeing any similarities. From what I can see the Finns emphasize small class sizes, few standardized tests, better paid teachers, etc. but are absolutely opposed to the Asian model. For some web reading on these distinctions, see, e.g., http://nycpublicschoolparents.blogspot.com/2011/01/what-finland-and-asia-really-tell-us.html; and http://www.tnr.com/article/politics/82329/education-reform-Finland-US

Anyhoo, I have a few years before I have to make this decision, but as a scientist inundated with Chinese & Indian grad students who are whip smart on directed assignments but can't form an independent creative thought if their life depended on it, I am not inclined from what I have seen so far to send my kids to a BASIS school.

Parent to BASIS 5th grader here, and no, not concerned in the least. Looking forward to BASIS launching it's upper school.

See how pointless it is to call other posters names? Wow. Please can we raise the bar a bit here? I'm starting another Basis thread just for folks who want to sling epithets. Who knows, maybe that's what people want to wallow in.

It's also pointless to try and police an anonymous forum.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the pp talking about self-selection being a poor modus operandi for charter schools like Latin: I can understand if your criticism lies with poor teaching that leads to poor test scores. But to say that these public charters shouldn't accept kids who want to attend (and who win lottery seats) but are behind or just not academically gifted seems awful to me! Bass-ackwards! Sure the aggregate test scores will reflect lagging students, but is that really a reason to not send your academically average or above-average kid? The experience of attending these good schools is, and should be, open to all comers. And if you disagree, I'd like to know what you, yes you, plan to do to improve the neighborhood schools of the "unacceptable" children. This strikes me as the height of entitled, ignorant, and cold-hearted of attitudes. Love thy neighbor as thyself.

I think this post is naive and backward. It's magical thinking to think that kids who are behind or not academically gifted will somehow by osmosis just catch up and perform as well as more academically gifted students if only they just sit in the same room. To catch up, they would need intensive tutoring and remediation - but chances are, a combination of factors will keep that from happening - child doesn't want to go with that program, parents not willing to make the investment, and so on - and I say this because those factors probably already are contributing to the student being behind in the first place. And, how is it suddenly the responsibility of the charters to fix failing DCPS schools? Instead of being angry with charters, your anger should be directed at DCPS for failing.

+1. Non-BASIS, 7th grade parent here. I've heard from three BASIS parents just after the grading period that their boys were all receiving bad grades C's - F's. They are in 6 & 7th grades, and did okay in their previous DCPS/charter schools but weren't prepared for the rigor at BASIS. Not every child is going to do well just because a school says they will, and the child really has to be self-motivated and self-directed in middle school. It's no joke. If you come unprepared without your "floaties," you could very well drown. Two parents are already talking about taking their kids out before the next semester and the other hasn't decided but is taking away "fun" time until grades go up. I think parents need to be VERY careful when choosing a school for their kids. Not every school is going to be a good fit. At a recent Walls open house, I loved what one student speaker said, "Walls may not be a perfect school, but it's the perfect school for me." Really, really do your homework and research all the schools that are out there. There are a number of options, and sometimes you have to be flexible to get into the best fit. I graduated from Banneker not long after it became a high school and the lack of diversity then didn't bother me, and in fact, many of my peers left for ivy leagues schools which they later graduated from and they went on to have very successful careers - take Angela Alsobrooks, the states attorney for PG County. But, I don't want that same experience for my son who is a different student than I was. He's loves diversity amongst his peers and teachers and he loves having a variety of activities to participate in in and outside the school building. I'm learning more and more of what he'd like in a high school and we're comparing and researching now. It takes time and patience, but I'm sure we'll find the perfect fit.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Yup, I sure am. So read on and don't worry about what I post then. Those who know....know and those who don't....don't! Have any of you even checked the stats from the previous Arizona schools. Even the gifted kids opt to leave and the schools litterly have a graduating class of about 15. That's not to indicate that the other kids aren't capable but they just end up dropping out for different reasons. So statistically, many of the private school, FARMS, and kids coming from "good" charter schools won't be graduating from Basis DC anyway. I sometimes even wonder if you parents even did any extensive research about the school or did you just send your kids to the school because you saw the curriculum? You guys talk about wrong or garbage statistics but have the nerve to quote your own damn statistics about FARMS and everything else....dumb ass

This is what concerns me about trying BASIS from next year, if there's a lottery and we get in. So it's going OK, mainly for 5th and 6th graders. But I'm not IB for Deal (can't afford a decent house in Upper NW), or privates, so if I don't move to Fairfax or MoCo for middle school, will I have an acceptable high school? The best suburban HS programs appear to be test-in and probably wouldn't want my kid coming out of a DC public school, although we do JH CTY in the summer and Stanford EPGY during the school year. A ridiculously small graduating class doesn't sound promising. Even the smallest DC privates have at least 50 in a graduating class.

Anybody else concerned?

Since it is a new school in DC I would expect people to be a little concerned about what the BASIS DC high school will end up being like. However, the quote about 15 kids graduating is a little misleading. A more careful examination of the Arizona schools and the Basis curriculum will show that the 12th grade is seen as optional for many kids due to the advanced curriculum. This is part of the reason for small graduating classes, aside from the effect of the leading classes only now showing up in the stats.