Private School Admissions - 2019 (Paris, Reno: rating, deals, required)

[BLDSoon]

Originally Posted by stan4

And that is the part I am directly refuting.

Did I (and other gifted) do fine in PISD? Sure. We did AP and Natl Merit, blah blah.

Were we truly NURTURED and ENCOURAGED and paid attention to in any way? Hell to the no.

Not only that, we were brow-beaten and crapped on numerous times. Bullied by teachers for being different and tossed aside the very second we underperformed.

I think sometimes I did well in my later academics *despite* of my high school education in Plano instead of because of it.

Now I have to wonder how many other kids are not fulfilling their potential bc of this kind of thing.

Is it possible that other gifted students in PISD at the time had the opposite experience?

Is it possible that other gifted students in other public schools not in PISD had the opposite experience?

Lastly; it it possible that other gifted students that attended the elite Dallas private schools had the exact same experience?


I think you’ll find that the answer to all the above questions is absolutely. And therein lies the problem with anecdotes. (And absolutes)

[Waterdragon8212]

Originally Posted by BLDSoon

Oh sorry I forgot to address your last point.

We are of the same mind there- but where we differ is that i think highly intelligent people are naturally curious and think critically naturally and don’t usually need to be taught how. They’ve got that covered. I also believe the primary job of a school is nurturing intellectual curiosity and academics. Motivation, work ethic etc is stuff that a school can instill but should be the primary responsibility of parents.

I agree that highly intelligent people tend to have inborn talents in curiosity and critical thinking, but if those things aren't nurtured educationally, they can decline. When that happens, motivation tanks. Why bother working hard when you can skate through and make perfect grades without trying? Especially if you are discouraged towards attempts at creativity or thinking outside of the box?

In no way am I suggesting that private schools are always better than public schools in this regard, but like I said, I attended 2 of the most highly rated public school districts in the area growing up - ones people on this board tend to rave about - and like Stan4, I found them to be severely lacking in the nurturing intellectual curiosity piece. In fact, it was regularly squashed by the majority of my AP teachers - the ones that are supposed to teach the best and the brightest.

It may be anecdotal, but it is amazing that there are 5 people from my public high school alone that are parents to kids in our youngest child's grade. If it served all of them so well, it seems hard to believe they would all go the private route - especially when some of them really struggle to pay tuition and live in our old school district's boundaries...

[stan4]

Originally Posted by BLDSoon

Is it possible that other gifted students in PISD at the time had the opposite experience?

Is it possible that other gifted students in other public schools not in PISD had the opposite experience?

Lastly; it it possible that other gifted students that attended the elite Dallas private schools had the exact same experience?


I think you’ll find that the answer to all the above questions is absolutely. And therein lies the problem with anecdotes. (And absolutes)

I was in the honors/AP group of friends and peers at PSHS, and this was our CONSENSUS. Not just my experience. It's something we talk about even 20+ years later. Even the val/sal thought the same.
Looking back, it is truly bizarre how many much our class HATED high school. Strangely, I didn't hate it, but looking back, I didn't know better.

I can't imagine what happened to the non honors/AP kids.

Choosing an elite private that knows and fosters the growth of each *individual*, that fosters growth mindset over beating performance performance performance perfection perfection perfection out of everyone, and that commits to an environment that knows and tracks how your kids fare from a socio-emotional point of view is important to me bc I lived both worlds.

It's not about anecdotes. It's about glaring trends. And it's about more than great academics (which PISD has in abundance). A person is more than a GPA.

You can't argue that a place full of other smart kids that pushes you academically, athletically, and artistically while still supporting your individual interests and strengths is not superior to the factory style conveyor belt.

You can argue whether it's worth paying for. I also agree with that. I'd also pull my kids out of the private if it did not serve their needs.

[debtex]

Originally Posted by stan4

I was in the honors/AP group of friends and peers at PSHS, and this was our CONSENSUS. Not just my experience. It's something we talk about even 20+ years later. Even the val/sal thought the same.
Looking back, it is truly bizarre how many much our class HATED high school. Strangely, I didn't hate it, but looking back, I didn't know better.

I can't imagine what happened to the non honors/AP kids.

Choosing an elite private that knows and fosters the growth of each *individual*, that fosters growth mindset over beating performance performance performance perfection perfection perfection out of everyone, and that commits to an environment that knows and tracks how your kids fare from a socio-emotional point of view is important to me bc I lived both worlds.

It's not about anecdotes. It's about glaring trends. And it's about more than great academics (which PISD has in abundance). A person is more than a GPA.

You can't argue that a place full of other smart kids that pushes you academically, athletically, and artistically while still supporting your individual interests and strengths is not superior to the factory style conveyor belt.

You can argue whether it's worth paying for. I also agree with that.

This is a really interesting perspective. I went to publics all the way through as well, but it's all changed so much since my time...we were never taught to the test in our day, except for AP classes.

I am a bit confused about the AP thing tbh. Parents at public schools talk about it a lot, and it's discussed here on this board a lot. But our school doesn't even offer them until Junior year although they use the AP "rubric" starting Freshman year. In addition we were told that the kids wouldn't necessarily be taught all the information on the SAT Subject tests because they don't "teach to the test." The school seems to take an arms-length approach to all these standardized tests, which I suspect is because they don't want to be constrained that way.

At the college counseling sessions I hear the same from admissions officers...we look at grades in core subjects, we look for strength of course selection, we look for curious students, these tests are only directionally helpful.

That difference in curriculum independence is meaningful. It allows for flexibility that you can't have otherwise.

[palciparum]

Originally Posted by TexasTeacher3

Just got the admisssions decision “test” email. I must say, I nearly had a stroke when I saw the subject line: “Admission Decision”. Geez, I may be ill before 4:00 on Friday.

Which school is sending test email?

[TexasTeacher3]

St. Mark’s.

[Stringzs]

Ok-- nervousness/anticipation starting to set it. We applied to 5 schools in PK. May be overkill .


Did any one have any thoughts on schools that excels at social-emotional growth in the early years? That is pretty important to us, and I thought we could benefit from the combined knowledge here on this board. A couple of you have already kindly helped me.

[stan4]

Originally Posted by Stringzs

Ok-- nervousness/anticipation starting to set it. We applied to 5 schools in PK. May be overkill .


Did any one have any thoughts on schools that excels at social-emotional growth in the early years? That is pretty important to us, and I thought we could benefit from the combined knowledge here on this board. A couple of you have already kindly helped me.

At GH, they have academic progress reports and SEL progress reports at the conferences.

[Stringzs]

Originally Posted by stan4

At GH, they have academic progress reports and SEL progress reports at the conferences.

That's really cool to know- I didn't know it was that formalized but another check mark for GH.

Anyone have any insights into Parish, Good Shepherd and Hockaday (regarding social emotional development). Thanks everyone.

[eastdallasmom]

Originally Posted by Stringzs

That's really cool to know- I didn't know it was that formalized but another check mark for GH.

Anyone have any insights into Parish, Good Shepherd and Hockaday (regarding social emotional development). Thanks everyone.

Our son didn't start there at the Pre-K level, but Parish has a program called "CenterED" focused on social and emotional well-being. For the kids at the Hillcrest campus, the focus is on things like teaching the kids calming techniques and how to talk about their feelings and emotions. The school counselor visits the classroom to talk to the kids about various topics and the school hosts various parent education sessions throughout the year, such as how to help build on your child's strengths. Our son's teachers have also kept us very well updated throughout the year on how he is relating to his peers and any social/emotional issues he has had.