Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 14:48     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

I live in a cluster in Loudoun that is overwhelmingly Asian, my kids are not asian. I think the teachers do next to nothing because they don't have to--rich, Asian kids and their parents aren't looking to learn a bunch in public school, they are looking for high gpas and high level coursework to pad their applications to college.
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 14:42     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:The W schools are predominantly White schools except for Wootton. W schools’ average test scores are higher compared to other schools due to the higher concentration of affluent students (or lower number of underprivileged/FARM students).

RM, with it’s IB program, has smarter students, but their entire school average test scores are lower than W schools since they have much less concentration to affluent (higher underprivileged/FARM students).

Keep in mind that affluent parents spend a lot more money hiring tutors, SAT prep courses, C2 Education, etc.


Such a tired old argument.

--parent of hs student with great grades and test score WHO SPEND $0 (or time) on tutors, prep course, OR ANYTHING.


You're saying that it's not true that affluent parents spend a lot more money hiring tutors, SAT prep courses, C2 Education, etc.?


^^^not to mention high-quality child care, extracurriculars (music, sports, arts), travel, etc. Not to mention stable housing, stable access to food, and stable access to health care.

There's a reason that standardized test scores are higher for affluent kids, and it's not that affluent kids are just somehow naturally smarter.
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 14:38     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:The W schools are predominantly White schools except for Wootton. W schools’ average test scores are higher compared to other schools due to the higher concentration of affluent students (or lower number of underprivileged/FARM students).

RM, with it’s IB program, has smarter students, but their entire school average test scores are lower than W schools since they have much less concentration to affluent (higher underprivileged/FARM students).

Keep in mind that affluent parents spend a lot more money hiring tutors, SAT prep courses, C2 Education, etc.


Such a tired old argument.

--parent of hs student with great grades and test score WHO SPEND $0 (or time) on tutors, prep course, OR ANYTHING.


You're saying that it's not true that affluent parents spend a lot more money hiring tutors, SAT prep courses, C2 Education, etc.?
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 14:33     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:The W schools are predominantly White schools except for Wootton. W schools’ average test scores are higher compared to other schools due to the higher concentration of affluent students (or lower number of underprivileged/FARM students).

RM, with it’s IB program, has smarter students, but their entire school average test scores are lower than W schools since they have much less concentration to affluent (higher underprivileged/FARM students).

Keep in mind that affluent parents spend a lot more money hiring tutors, SAT prep courses, C2 Education, etc.


Such a tired old argument.

--parent of hs student with great grades and test score WHO SPEND $0 (or time) on tutors, prep course, OR ANYTHING.
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 14:32     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Look at that brand new Potomac Elementary school it is surrounded by two million dollar homes, got 2-3 miles away you get 1 million dollar homes, 5-10 miles 500k homes. How far are you willing to bus.

As far as it is needed to balance out the demographic. I don't care if the resulting boundary will be gerrymandering!!!


Feel free to justify the current boundary, based on - well, whatever you want to base it on.
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 14:31     Subject: Re:Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:All the Ws


Speak for yourselves! We love WJ!! :
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 14:30     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:Look at that brand new Potomac Elementary school it is surrounded by two million dollar homes, got 2-3 miles away you get 1 million dollar homes, 5-10 miles 500k homes. How far are you willing to bus.


Here's the Potomac ES boundaries: http://gis.mcpsmd.org/ServiceAreaMaps/PotomacES.pdf

If you're ok with that, then you're ok with putting elementary-school kids on buses for 5.3 miles on a direct route.

For comparison - Julius West MS is 5.7 miles from Potomac ES on a direct route.
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 14:30     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:Look at that brand new Potomac Elementary school it is surrounded by two million dollar homes, got 2-3 miles away you get 1 million dollar homes, 5-10 miles 500k homes. How far are you willing to bus.

As far as it is needed to balance out the demographic. I don't care if the resulting boundary will be gerrymandering!!!
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 14:19     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

Look at that brand new Potomac Elementary school it is surrounded by two million dollar homes, got 2-3 miles away you get 1 million dollar homes, 5-10 miles 500k homes. How far are you willing to bus.
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 14:15     Subject: Re:Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:

You can't draw the boudries large enough to pick up measurable poor kids for schools like Churchill, Westland and the like. The Elementary schools are even tighter clusters. The schools that can pick up more poor kids are the schools around poor kids. Careful what you wish for on the east side of the county.



What does "careful what you wish for on the east side of the county" mean? Please explain.
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 14:07     Subject: Re:Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I agreed with you, Neighborhood schools don't reflect the county, they reflect the neighborhood. Almost none to none of the schools county wide match the aggregated county statistics. That doesn't mean they are bad it just means that people cluster for a host of reasons with only a few of them being bad. Yes the real money is on the west half of the county and yes most of those people want very little to do with unwashed masses (tongue in cheek). I am not sure how you expect the school system to fix that. My point is while a feel good win for some would be to force poor kids into these schools via long bus rides and what not and it might seem like a win. I am not sure it is a sustainable solution that wont correct it's self in short order or have secondary effects like gentrifying currently affordable close in areas that get designated W aligned. When middle class parents flock to them as the consortium have their FARM and ESOL rates continue to rise in the eastern county, it isn't the rich people pushing the poor people to the side, it is the middle class hogging the life boats.



I don't have much patience with the idea that there are only two options

(1) continue the current boundaries that maintain segregated schools, OR
(2) "force poor kids via long bus rides and whatnot"

The current boundaries were not handed down from Mt. Sinai engraved on stone tablets. In some cases, boundary changes would increase geographic proximity AND decrease segregation.


You can't draw the boudries large enough to pick up measurable poor kids for schools like Churchill, Westland and the like. The Elementary schools are even tighter clusters. The schools that can pick up more poor kids are the schools around poor kids. Careful what you wish for on the east side of the county.

Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 12:45     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:
What you should want is BLM signs at mostly black schools that utterly fail their students, where ~5% of students are proficient in math/language arts, and where parents are desperate for OPTIONS! Anathema, I know, to you hypocrites, but school choice and parental empowerment would be true signs that B.L.M.


So here's Burtonsville ES. 59% Black/African-American in 2019-2020. 48% of the Black/African-American students were proficient in math, 47% were proficient in ELA.

https://reportcard.msde.maryland.gov/Graphs/#/ReportCards/ReportCardSchool/1/E/1/15/0302/0

Now, what were you saying?
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 12:35     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:The W schools are predominantly White schools except for Wootton. W schools’ average test scores are higher compared to other schools due to the higher concentration of affluent students (or lower number of underprivileged/FARM students).

RM, with it’s IB program, has smarter students, but their entire school average test scores are lower than W schools since they have much less concentration to affluent (higher underprivileged/FARM students).

Keep in mind that affluent parents spend a lot more money hiring tutors, SAT prep courses, C2 Education, etc.


Not true. Churchill is 47% white.
https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/regulatoryaccountability/glance/currentyear/schools/04602.pdf

For comparison's sake, Wootton is 42% white. https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/regulatoryaccountability/glance/currentyear/schools/04234.pdf

Just a reminder to do your own research and not trust what people say on this board.


+1 There's not one school in MoCo that would not be considered diverse. If you want to see "white" schools, check out some schools in the Midwest or New England.


You have to look at the demographics of the entire state or county. Midwest states are mostly whites to begin with so how can its schools be diverse. Any school in our area that is 45% or above White is not really diverse

?? lol omg you people


What’s wrong with the PP’s comment? If an area (County) is all White, then it’s schools are all White. MoCo is a demographically diverse county, but the demographic ratio at the W schools does not reflect the demographic ratio of the county. So the PP has a good point. The reason why MCPS is doing the boundary study is to address these mostly White W schools (ie segregation).


Open neighborhood schools are not segregation. While there are racist origins to some of the alignments they are now open to all if they can afford them. The wealth gap is the current primary reason and MCPS aren't going to fix that over night. Pragmatically there isn't many good options without breaking down the neighborhood concept which most people in the county disprove doing.

Even if they did make it break down the neighborhood alignment concept like San Fran did, Rich people will redefine what is desirable and push poor people out what ever floats to the top of the pile. The problem is the power dynamic that people with money have options and poor people have to take what they are given. And when something is desirable poor people don't have anyway to hold on to it except complain to the people who are in charge...who are often rich themselves.

Notice how the former poor part of Silver Spring that was attached to BCC is now the most expensive part of silver spring and almost none of the historical black community is left. The board knows this and while there will be some teeth added by the boundary study, I would bet large sums of money that the Ws wont turn into the DCC after it.


You’re not answering my question. You are just focusing on segregation.

Either way, W schools are predominantly White which does not reflect the demographic ratio of MoCo. Would love to see a BLM sign at these W schools.

What you should want is BLM signs at mostly black schools that utterly fail their students, where ~5% of students are proficient in math/language arts, and where parents are desperate for OPTIONS! Anathema, I know, to you hypocrites, but school choice and parental empowerment would be true signs that B.L.M.


The PP baited you to determine if you were a racist? Hook, line and sinker.
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 12:28     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:
What you should want is BLM signs at mostly black schools that utterly fail their students, where ~5% of students are proficient in math/language arts, and where parents are desperate for OPTIONS! Anathema, I know, to you hypocrites, but school choice and parental empowerment would be true signs that B.L.M.


It's always something when Person A tells Person B that Person A knows better than Person B about what Person C truly wants.
Anonymous
Post 07/30/2020 12:19     Subject: Most Overrated High School Cluster

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:The W schools are predominantly White schools except for Wootton. W schools’ average test scores are higher compared to other schools due to the higher concentration of affluent students (or lower number of underprivileged/FARM students).

RM, with it’s IB program, has smarter students, but their entire school average test scores are lower than W schools since they have much less concentration to affluent (higher underprivileged/FARM students).

Keep in mind that affluent parents spend a lot more money hiring tutors, SAT prep courses, C2 Education, etc.


Not true. Churchill is 47% white.
https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/regulatoryaccountability/glance/currentyear/schools/04602.pdf

For comparison's sake, Wootton is 42% white. https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/regulatoryaccountability/glance/currentyear/schools/04234.pdf

Just a reminder to do your own research and not trust what people say on this board.


+1 There's not one school in MoCo that would not be considered diverse. If you want to see "white" schools, check out some schools in the Midwest or New England.


You have to look at the demographics of the entire state or county. Midwest states are mostly whites to begin with so how can its schools be diverse. Any school in our area that is 45% or above White is not really diverse

?? lol omg you people


What’s wrong with the PP’s comment? If an area (County) is all White, then it’s schools are all White. MoCo is a demographically diverse county, but the demographic ratio at the W schools does not reflect the demographic ratio of the county. So the PP has a good point. The reason why MCPS is doing the boundary study is to address these mostly White W schools (ie segregation).


Open neighborhood schools are not segregation. While there are racist origins to some of the alignments they are now open to all if they can afford them. The wealth gap is the current primary reason and MCPS aren't going to fix that over night. Pragmatically there isn't many good options without breaking down the neighborhood concept which most people in the county disprove doing.

Even if they did make it break down the neighborhood alignment concept like San Fran did, Rich people will redefine what is desirable and push poor people out what ever floats to the top of the pile. The problem is the power dynamic that people with money have options and poor people have to take what they are given. And when something is desirable poor people don't have anyway to hold on to it except complain to the people who are in charge...who are often rich themselves.

Notice how the former poor part of Silver Spring that was attached to BCC is now the most expensive part of silver spring and almost none of the historical black community is left. The board knows this and while there will be some teeth added by the boundary study, I would bet large sums of money that the Ws wont turn into the DCC after it.


You’re not answering my question. You are just focusing on segregation.

Either way, W schools are predominantly White which does not reflect the demographic ratio of MoCo. Would love to see a BLM sign at these W schools.

What you should want is BLM signs at mostly black schools that utterly fail their students, where ~5% of students are proficient in math/language arts, and where parents are desperate for OPTIONS! Anathema, I know, to you hypocrites, but school choice and parental empowerment would be true signs that B.L.M.