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Meant to mention Glen Ridge @5, Maplewood @89, and Bloomfield @181 for localities in Essex Co. with a lot of recent NYC transplants. Does SO send HS students to Columbia HS (Maplewood)?
That all being said I think most of the schools in Northern New Jersey can turn out great collage ready students, if the students and parents are willing to make the effort.
That list is ok, I dare say that there is likely not 2 cents worth of difference between the quality of #1 and #20 though.
Being a REALTOR I deal with all types of people and parents. Many are extremely concerned with the quality of schools and will exclude many towns because the schools in them did not score top 50 on lists like that, and gravitate to towns that place high on that list. These parents to me also seem to be very involved in their children's lives and unwilling to accept good enough from their children or their children's teachers.
That all being said I think most of the schools in Northern New Jersey can turn out great collage ready students, if the students and parents are willing to make the effort.
Great post!
I would rep you but the system is saying I gave out too much in the past 24 hrs!
I would rep you but the system is saying I gave out too much in the past 24 hrs!
I kind of agree with the poster in that there probably not a lot of difference between #1 and 20. However- there is a difference, albeit it small, no matter how you slice it. While the means of creating any list is going to have its methodology scrutinized I think that the factors that CAN be measured are represented well. There will always be people out there who want the best school district their money can buy, so, even though some places kay have 'moxy' or might be 'close enough' you can explain it away, but the difference is there.
I kind of agree with the poster in that there probably not a lot of difference between #1 and 20. However- there is a difference, albeit it small, no matter how you slice it. While the means of creating any list is going to have its methodology scrutinized I think that the factors that CAN be measured are represented well. There will always be people out there who want the best school district their money can buy, so, even though some places kay have 'moxy' or might be 'close enough' you can explain it away, but the difference is there.
True... very true. And let's not forget another thing, you could graduate from #1 and wind up going no where or you could end up graduating from #300 and be a huge successs. A lot is what you put into it.
That said, you are definately going to have a better chance if you go to a better school... the odds are with you on that.
Great point, totally correct. In Moorestown, the kids are under trememdous pressure to succeed academically and they often do. That's why it has among the highest % of students in AP classes in the state. And also why Moorestown Friends with combined SATs of 1,900 (new scale) is one of the highest in the state - private or public.
I think there's a third point- the people in those towns actually give a **** about the education their kids receive, and push them to succeed, while in the poorer areas, the kids don't have that type of support.
BoBKovacs,
I have to disagree with the statement that the parents in the poorer area's do not push their children when it comes to their education. I recently moved to Bloomfield from Paterson because of the lack of support and funds the teachers receive from the City as well as State to effectively do their job.
Education is the first funding to be cut, the class rooms are seriously over crowded, add to that the extremely old school buildings. Last year, there were only 2 - 8th grade classes for 85 students in my daughters grammer school, thankfully there are programs like Sylvan learning center where many of the parents in that school district are willing to pay to ensure their children are not left behind.
We push, unfortunately, we have to push differently than those parents in the suburbs.
I also think that the methodology used in a ranking like this is a bit gray. If they can post some exact formula, then everyone would be satisfied because the numbers would not lie.
I hate to say it, but I almost feel a North Jersey bias going on there..
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