Why is BPS so bad and what should be done to improve it? (Boston: suburbs, education)

[WestieWhitie]

Originally Posted by BostonBornMassMade

Lawrence was absolutely dysfunctional in 2012. It gets badmouthed for good reason but its schools and the city has improved on every metric dramatically since 2012. Boston today is not nearly as bad as Lawrence circa 2012. In 2012 Lawrence had a 54% 4-year graduation rate up from 37.9% in 2008.

Its now 83.8%.

Succes was being measured by MCAS scores, Graduation rate and ELL student success. Other factors too im sure.

Graduation rate is completely meaningless when everyone gets their participation trophy A+ and an average grad can't read or do basic math.

[Urban Peasant]

Originally Posted by Boston Shudra

Paul English is one successful BLS alum who graduated in 1982. Pre 1970, I think BLA was still Girls’ Latin.

Pre-1972. That was the year Boston Latin, Boston English, Boston Technical (now the O'Bryant), Boston Trade, Girl's Latin, and the Jeremiah Burke all went co-ed. Strangely enough, the school name did not change to Boston Latin Academy until 1975 or 77.

[SRP710]

as a newly BPS mom ( my child started K1) I have the opportunity to send my child to the burbs thru the METCO program. I am conflicted as to if we should take the opportunity and everyone around me stresses how it would be ”stupid” not to take advantage. Im so disappointed that as Boston home owners ( we purchased our home in Boston because this is where we are from and want to stay, didnt even think of the future and schooling options) but now we have to ”ship” our child out of Boston for better education and opportunities... I agree that it starts at home.. even with my child only being in K1 I am constantly challenging him, asking about his day, keeping in touch with his teacher and trying to get involved as much as I can with the school by attending their school committee meetings etc.. keeping him on schedule, making sure he's well rested etc.. hes in K1 and already their has been multiple issues with classmates where the child is out of the teachers control just shifting the whole dynamic in the classroom.. very unfortunate .. my child had to witness things he shouldn't have to.

[WestieWhitie]

Originally Posted by SRP710

as a newly BPS mom ( my child started K1) I have the opportunity to send my child to the burbs thru the METCO program. I am conflicted as to if we should take the opportunity and everyone around me stresses how it would be ”stupid” not to take advantage. Im so disappointed that as Boston home owners ( we purchased our home in Boston because this is where we are from and want to stay, didnt even think of the future and schooling options) but now we have to ”ship” our child out of Boston for better education and opportunities... I agree that it starts at home.. even with my child only being in K1 I am constantly challenging him, asking about his day, keeping in touch with his teacher and trying to get involved as much as I can with the school by attending their school committee meetings etc.. keeping him on schedule, making sure he's well rested etc.. hes in K1 and already their has been multiple issues with classmates where the child is out of the teachers control just shifting the whole dynamic in the classroom.. very unfortunate .. my child had to witness things he shouldn't have to.

Definitely do it if you can, others would kill for that opportunity!

[dazzleman]

Originally Posted by SRP710

as a newly BPS mom ( my child started K1) I have the opportunity to send my child to the burbs thru the METCO program. I am conflicted as to if we should take the opportunity and everyone around me stresses how it would be ”stupid” not to take advantage. Im so disappointed that as Boston home owners ( we purchased our home in Boston because this is where we are from and want to stay, didnt even think of the future and schooling options) but now we have to ”ship” our child out of Boston for better education and opportunities... I agree that it starts at home.. even with my child only being in K1 I am constantly challenging him, asking about his day, keeping in touch with his teacher and trying to get involved as much as I can with the school by attending their school committee meetings etc.. keeping him on schedule, making sure he's well rested etc.. hes in K1 and already their has been multiple issues with classmates where the child is out of the teachers control just shifting the whole dynamic in the classroom.. very unfortunate .. my child had to witness things he shouldn't have to.

Boston Public Schools are awful and that isn't going to change during the time your child is in school, no matter how much you try to be involved. Take advantage of METCO. You only get one chance to give your child a decent education, and that will not happen in Boston Public Schools. There is no reason to be conflicted. The failure of Boston Public Schools is pretty common knowledge.

[BostonBornMassMade]

Originally Posted by SRP710

as a newly BPS mom ( my child started K1) I have the opportunity to send my child to the burbs thru the METCO program. I am conflicted as to if we should take the opportunity and everyone around me stresses how it would be ”stupid” not to take advantage. Im so disappointed that as Boston home owners ( we purchased our home in Boston because this is where we are from and want to stay, didnt even think of the future and schooling options) but now we have to ”ship” our child out of Boston for better education and opportunities... I agree that it starts at home.. even with my child only being in K1 I am constantly challenging him, asking about his day, keeping in touch with his teacher and trying to get involved as much as I can with the school by attending their school committee meetings etc.. keeping him on schedule, making sure he's well rested etc.. hes in K1 and already their has been multiple issues with classmates where the child is out of the teachers control just shifting the whole dynamic in the classroom.. very unfortunate .. my child had to witness things he shouldn't have to.

as others have said, keeping your kid in BPS just to avoid the commute is basically to prioritize a social experiment over an education that will make your child competitive in the workplace during the coming decades.

[JacksonPanther]

So what are we saying? No one from BPS ever accomplishes anything? No one's from BPS goes to college? Gets scholarships? Ends up in white collar employment?

We writing off an entire city worth of children? In perpetuity?

[BostonBornMassMade]

Originally Posted by JacksonPanther

So what are we saying? No one from BPS ever accomplishes anything? No one's from BPS goes to college? Gets scholarships? Ends up in white collar employment?

We writing off an entire city worth of children? In perpetuity?

We’re not just saying it that’s really what it is basically. Aside from a veryyyy veryyyy small number. They go to college- but I remember in 2006 they said only 14% of BPS graduates graduated from college in 6 years. Granted this was a long time ago now.

You haven’t read the article on where BPS valedictorians were at age 30, 31, 32. Most of them struggled in college and have pretty low-paying jobs now. In Boston in particular because of the education and credential standards for the city Boston Public School graduates achieve basically nothing.

1 in 4 BPS valedictorians don't even finish college within 6 years.

A quarter of the 93 valedictorians tracked said they wanted to be doctors. Not one of them was a doctor circa 2019.

The majority still had student loan debt

40% make less than $50,000 at age 30/31/32 (2019) only 11 of the 93 make over $100k.

Even in the black business and political community virtually every single person went to an exam school (Andrea Campbell), METCO (Kim Janey, Tito Jackon), or more likely aren’t native to Boston itself (Ayanna Pressley). The Boston Globe doesn’t even have a single black reporter native to the City of Boston- all of them are from other cities. It’s a very dire situation for BPS graduates.

I've noticed BPS graduates especially those who are Black or Hispanic are much rarer and have much less pride/tradition continuity than places like Chicago DC or Philly despite the fact that the schools are better on paper. I think that's because it's a very little used system, an unbelievably fragmented system, a system that isn't based on neighborhoods, and it's in a highly competitive educational marketplace with many alternatives.

I don’t think BPS needs a takeover but it’s just not working as a school system for the kids of Boston- never has. It's basically where you gotta leave your kids if you quite literally have no other options. There are about 46,000 kids in BPS in 2022- the other 31,000 school-age kids go to school elsewhere.

[maclel]

Originally Posted by BostonBornMassMade

We’re not just saying it that’s really what it is basically. Aside from a veryyyy veryyyy small number. They go to college- but I remember in 2006 they said only 14% of BPS graduates graduated from college in 6 years. Granted this was a long time ago now.

You haven’t read the article on where BPS valedictorians were at age 30, 31, 32. Most of them struggled in college and have pretty low-paying jobs now. In Boston in particular because of the education and credential standards for the city Boston Public School graduates achieve basically nothing.

1 in 4 BPS valedictorians don't even finish college within 6 years.

A quarter of the 93 valedictorians tracked said they wanted to be doctors. Not one of them was a doctor circa 2019.

The majority still had student loan debt

40% make less than $50,000 at age 30/31/32 (2019) only 11 of the 93 make over $100k.

Even in the black business and political community virtually every single person went to an exam school (Andrea Campbell), METCO (Kim Janey, Tito Jackon), or more likely aren’t native to Boston itself (Ayanna Pressley). The Boston Globe doesn’t even have a single black reporter native to the City of Boston- all of them are from other cities. It’s a very dire situation for BPS graduates.

I've noticed BPS graduates especially those who are Black or Hispanic are much rarer and have much less pride/tradition continuity than places like Chicago DC or Philly despite the fact that the schools are better on paper. I think that's because it's a very little used system, an unbelievably fragmented system, a system that isn't based on neighborhoods, and it's in a highly competitive educational marketplace with many alternatives.

I don’t think BPS needs a takeover but it’s just not working as a school system for the kids of Boston- never has. It's basically where you gotta leave your kids if you quite literally have no other options. There are about 46,000 kids in BPS in 2022- the other 31,000 school-age kids go to school elsewhere.

I don’t think there is anything exceptional about BPS and it is certainly an unsolvable issue unless you basically switch the families, which of courses accomplishes nothing. Just look at DC. First in spending among all states, last in outcomes:

https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/...sp?current=yes
https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/re...ement/?grade=8

And by the way, Metco also accomplishes nothing for students being bused out there other than increase racial hostility. Progressives love to brush aside the classic study by Harvard scholar David Armor. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED070782

[BostonBornMassMade]

Originally Posted by maclel

I don’t think there is anything exceptional about BPS and it is certainly an unsolvable issue unless you basically switch the families, which of courses accomplishes nothing. Just look at DC. First in spending among all states, last in outcomes:

https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/...sp?current=yes
https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/re...ement/?grade=8

Its not. Im just saying to JP's point there is very little success or success stories coming out of BPS in any realm unless they went to an exam school.