[jjbp]

My husband and I are considering Stamford because we like the city and it seems like a fine midpoint between NYC and New Haven, but the schools seem horrible on paper. We found an independent school we like in Westchester and, at this point, are considering just commuting there daily for school.

The alternative would be just living in Westchester and possibly sending our kid to public schools there, with my husband having an absolutely ridiculous daily commute to New Haven.

As we make this consideration, are there any strong independent schools in either Fairfield County or New Haven County with tuition at or below the $25,000/year mark? They seem universally at or above the $35,000 mark with the exception of Trinity Middle School, and that one seems to get mixed reviews.

Also, are there any school options I may be overlooking for a kid entering middle school?

Where do middle class people send their kids to school here? They cannot be sending them to these public schools.

[Robert137]

Originally Posted by jjbp

My husband and I are considering Stamford because we like the city and it seems like a fine midpoint between NYC and New Haven, but the schools seem horrible on paper. We found an independent school we like in Westchester and, at this point, are considering just commuting there daily for school.

The alternative would be just living in Westchester and possibly sending our kid to public schools there, with my husband having an absolutely ridiculous daily commute to New Haven.

As we make this consideration, are there any strong independent schools in either Fairfield County or New Haven County with tuition at or below the $25,000/year mark? They seem universally at or above the $35,000 mark with the exception of Trinity Middle School, and that one seems to get mixed reviews.

Also, are there any school options I may be overlooking for a kid entering middle school?

Where do middle class people send their kids to school here? They cannot be sending them to these public schools.

They most certainly are, myself and my neighbors kids for example. And all the kids are fine, in good colleges or doing other things. You should not let your impressions or preconceived notions cloud your judgement.

Stamford has the Scofield Magnet Middle School, and I was extremely impressed with it when my children attended. One has to apply for it, but chances of getting in are good I believe. There is also AITE, the Academy of Information Technology and Engineering, which is open to students throughout the area. I had a tour there at one time, also a very impressive operation with enthusiastic students.

You can refer to the websites of these schools to learn about them, and perhaps visit them if you're in the area.

[jjbp]

What is going on with the schools' statistics, then? Why are the test scores so low? The magnet school you mentioned seems to be, by far, the best public school option, but would be among the poorest options in most of Westchester, for example. I read a thread yesterday about "bussing," but I cannot imagine that this alone accounts for the statistical differences between schools in this district and those in others.

Also, is there ability grouping in Stamford public schools? This seems to be less popular on the East coast than in other parts of the country, but I cannot imagine that high achieving children do not suffer without it.

[hvexpatinct]

Originally Posted by jjbp

What is going on with the schools' statistics, then? Why are the test scores so low? The magnet school you mentioned seems to be, by far, the best public school option, but would be among the poorest options in most of Westchester, for example. I read a thread yesterday about "bussing," but I cannot imagine that this alone accounts for the statistical differences between schools in this district and those in others.

Also, is there ability grouping in Stamford public schools? This seems to be less popular on the East coast than in other parts of the country, but I cannot imagine that high achieving children do not suffer without it.

The key difference between Stamford and Westchester is economic and ethnic diversity. I would be hesitant to make a judgment call based on test scores alone, anywhere, but the price of entry into even the middle of the road districts in Westchester is really high, so the towns essentially self select their success. My family is zoned for a school that ranks similarly to Scofield - no class has more than 18 kids or fewer than 2 educators, the school has well paid, experienced teachers, the kids have access to a robust stem and nature based curriculum, and there is an active PTO. The town has a huge range of available housing prices, a migrant worker population due to some local industry, and some ESL kids in the mix. I'm not concerned about the quality of education there vs in the more homogeneous higher ranked local districts. So I guess the better question is whether you want your kids to be someplace where everyone has a similar profile to them or if you'd rather them have some exposure to different experiences.

[jjbp]

So a large presence of English language learners is skewing stats for the schools? And is this a recent development (as in something that has emerged within the past decade or so)? How has the District responded to this population? Are these kids in ESL classrooms or are they mainstreamed? How are they handling remediation of these kids? And have the schools developed an over-emphasis on test preparation, generally (as many NYCDOE schools have) in response to this population?

I know districts have drastically differing views in terms of best practices for English language learners. IMO, if they are mainstreamed too quickly in environments where they make up a substantial population of the student body, a huge detraction to the learning environment is presented. And if they are restricted to "dual language" or ESL classrooms where English is not truly the dominant language in use in the classroom, a lasting achievement gap is created.

[hvexpatinct]

Originally Posted by jjbp

So a large presence of English language learners is skewing stats for the schools? And is this a recent development (as in something that has emerged within the past decade or so)? How has the District responded to this population? Are these kids in ESL classrooms or are they mainstreamed? How are they handling remediation of these kids? And have the schools developed an over-emphasis on test preparation, generally (as many NYCDOE schools have) in response to this population?

I know districts have drastically differing views in terms of best practices for English language learners. IMO, if they are mainstreamed too quickly in environments where they make up a substantial population of the student body, a huge detraction to the learning environment is presented. And if they are restricted to "dual language" or ESL classrooms where English is not truly the dominant language in use in the classroom, a lasting achievement gap is created.

I'm not sending my kids to Stamford schools, but Google tells me that there are a variety of environments available to ESL students within the city ranging from self contained to subject matter to resource support, with proficiency grouping throughout. The DOJ completed an investigation about 5 years ago related to the achievement gaps and measures have been undertaken to address them. Stamford benchmarks well as far as housing costs relative to convenience to NYC, and as such it will appeal to a broad economic range of people. I think you would have to visit the schools and make your own judgment call, but don't write them off based on niche or greatschools ratings.

[Robert137]

Here is an article in today's Connecticut Mirror that may answer some of your questions. The link to the "Your Schools" database has demographic information (and changes over recent years) for each public school in the state, as well as district-wide data. It shows that Stamford has fewer ELL students per teacher than comparable districts and the state as a whole. Hispanic students make up a plurality (not a majority) of the populations in most of the Stamford schools. My children, who graduated recently, felt that their learning was not affected by these ELL students. We found that Stamford provided lots of services.

https://ctmirror.org/2017/05/28/new-...tant-measures/

[jax12479]

if you husband's working in New Haven, have you considered smaller towns with better public schools farther up the line? (Darien, Fairfield, Wilton, etc)? Stamford is a small city, so comparing it to small towns in Westchester isn't apples to apples. Compare them to New Rochelle or White Plains for a more fair assessment.

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by jax12479

if you husband's working in New Haven, have you considered smaller towns with better public schools farther up the line? (Darien, Fairfield, Wilton, etc)? Stamford is a small city, so comparing it to small towns in Westchester isn't apples to apples. Compare them to New Rochelle or White Plains for a more fair assessment.

You are correct. Stamford is a small diverse city so you just can't compare it to Westchester towns. The better comparison would be White Plains and New Rochelle which are larger and more diverse.

Your question about considering other towns is a good one. I assume the reason the OP has not considered Darien or Wilton is likely price. Those towns are pricey. Fairfield may work but it is kind of far from Manhattan though if they will be commuting daily but if it is just to visit or commuting a couple days a week, it could be a good suggestion. The OP needs to give us a little more information including where their work is, their budget, the type of community they like and what they require/expect for their budget. Jay

[allanny13]

If you are considering $25k / yr for school tuition and can afford Stamford, than you could probably just increase your budget to get into a better school district instead. I would think a commuting midpoint between the city and New Haven would be slightly farther East from Stamford anyway rather than Westchester, which should open you up to some cheaper towns with good school districts.