TEA Ratings Released: 153 schools statewide earn all seven stars, 12 DISD schools including Woodrow Wilson HS!

[EDS_]

Originally Posted by BusinessHorn

Where can I find the SAT/ACT scores for HS in the Metroplex?

There should be new list out there somewhere.

Dallas, Texas Area School Information: 2013-2014 SAT Scores for Dallas-Fort Worth Schools

[synchronicity]

Originally Posted by BusinessHorn

Being "economically stressed" has little to no bearing on whether a child can or can't achieve academically. It all comes down to whether their parent(s) make education & academic achievement a priority in their household. Poor people are a self-fulfilling prophesy. They're poor b/c they don't have a good education, along with limited marketable skills. But, when they have kids, they blow off their kid's education, ensuring they too will grow up with a poor education & limited marketable skills. And, I say this as a former homeless person who grew up in one of the poorest, blue collar counties in Texas. My parents both worked, and for parts of the year, each logged 60 hrs/wk. But, they made education a priority. And, I knew I'd get in trouble if I didn't achieve in school.

Congrats to both you and to your parents. That said, "economically stressed" has a HUGE bearing on a child's achievement. Although there are many poor people who don't prioritize education and make bad decisions and all (which is often a large part of why they are poor), the other part of that is, even among "poor", less-educated families that *do* put an emphasis on education, they don't have the same resources to devote to it in most situations as more affluent families (and I'm not just talking "dollars").

I've said this a zillion times - my wife's mother had a 3rd grade education (barely). Her father had a 5th grade education. Neither of them spoke English when they arrived in this country. Her mom definitely emphasized education, but with that background, how much could she help her children succeed in school? Also, the working - my wife's mother did that, and it took away from time she could have been helping (or increasing her own education). Also, my wife's parents were pretty much unable to help her with college expenses.

As it happens, my wife finished college, earned her BA (pretty darn impressive given her background). I have advanced degrees. So, we have a daughter. In about ten thousand little ways every day, we're able to help her more with learning than my wife's parents ever could. It's not just that we've been setting aside money for college or that, if necessary, we could pay for Dillard's or Khan Academy or whatever. It's answering questions about why there are seasons or where lightning comes from, or exposing her to Tom Lehrer's "The Elements Song" (she's memorized the whole thing, which she's very proud of) or stuff like that. One job as parents is that we are effectively "tutors", for 5 minutes at a time, multiple times every day. Those little bits add up over the years.

There's lots of other things, of course, many of which hit poorer families far more than affluent families. I'm sure we could think of a dozen of those quickly, and they are items that occur even when a poorer family is "doing everything 'right'" or whatever. Affluent families and their children generally have more margin for error, so a screw up (and we all make suboptimal decisions at some point in our lives) won't have as large an impact. All of that.

So yes, making education a priority and demanding success is very important. But it's usually easier for more educated, affluent parents (and there's a strong correlation between "more educated" and "more affluent) to improve their kids' academic achievement. And my wife's family? She has two siblings. One didn't finish high school but did get a GED, the other didn't even do that. Neither of them has set foot on a college campus. They both have various other issues. Same parents, same household, much different outcomes.

[Emc62]

I've seen families with little education and money, making children's education a priority while I have seen families with advance degrees and money, taking education for granted. Just yesterday, a friend of ours visited us, guy drove Range Rover and had a Rolex on, wife had LV bag, JC shoes and huge diamonds, instead of sending their kid to a university, they forced him to enroll in community college because it saves money. I was surprised. They also opted to buy a huge home Dallas and sending kids to DISD schools instead of sending them to private schools or picking a better district.

We all know struggling families who live in smaller and older homes, drive cheap cars and spend frugally so they can send their kids to better schools and colleges. It's all about priorities. However, we can't deny advantages of having educated and affluent parents on education. One advantage that kids of less educated and poor families have is easy access to programs and financial aid reserved for underprivileged students. If a kid from poor or less educated family is determined then he has way more options than middle class kids. Even if you look at BS/MD programs all over Texas, these kids have so many opportunities that can change their lives.

[theloneranger]

Originally Posted by synchronicity

Congrats to both you and to your parents. That said, "economically stressed" has a HUGE bearing on a child's achievement. Although there are many poor people who don't prioritize education and make bad decisions and all (which is often a large part of why they are poor), the other part of that is, even among "poor", less-educated families that *do* put an emphasis on education, they don't have the same resources to devote to it in most situations as more affluent families (and I'm not just talking "dollars").

I've said this a zillion times - my wife's mother had a 3rd grade education (barely). Her father had a 5th grade education. Neither of them spoke English when they arrived in this country. Her mom definitely emphasized education, but with that background, how much could she help her children succeed in school? Also, the working - my wife's mother did that, and it took away from time she could have been helping (or increasing her own education). Also, my wife's parents were pretty much unable to help her with college expenses.

As it happens, my wife finished college, earned her BA (pretty darn impressive given her background). I have advanced degrees. So, we have a daughter. In about ten thousand little ways every day, we're able to help her more with learning than my wife's parents ever could. It's not just that we've been setting aside money for college or that, if necessary, we could pay for Dillard's or Khan Academy or whatever. It's answering questions about why there are seasons or where lightning comes from, or exposing her to Tom Lehrer's "The Elements Song" (she's memorized the whole thing, which she's very proud of) or stuff like that. One job as parents is that we are effectively "tutors", for 5 minutes at a time, multiple times every day. Those little bits add up over the years.

There's lots of other things, of course, many of which hit poorer families far more than affluent families. I'm sure we could think of a dozen of those quickly, and they are items that occur even when a poorer family is "doing everything 'right'" or whatever. Affluent families and their children generally have more margin for error, so a screw up (and we all make suboptimal decisions at some point in our lives) won't have as large an impact. All of that.

So yes, making education a priority and demanding success is very important. But it's usually easier for more educated, affluent parents (and there's a strong correlation between "more educated" and "more affluent) to improve their kids' academic achievement. And my wife's family? She has two siblings. One didn't finish high school but did get a GED, the other didn't even do that. Neither of them has set foot on a college campus. They both have various other issues. Same parents, same household, much different outcomes.

I can't rep you without spreading some around, but would give this post 100 rep points if I could. There is a HUGE difference between economically stressed families and middle class families. Aside from living in print-poor environments which cause them to enter school already behind, many poor children find college to be only an abstract concept and have trouble conceptualizing why they should try to go to college. They rarely interact with college-educated professionals outside of school and really just don't understand why they should care. This is a generalization and not an absolute fact, of course, but it's a typical experience for a low-income child.