Boston Magazine Top Ranked Public High Schools 2022 (Somerville, Waltham: house prices, buy)

[brk330]

Originally Posted by P Larsen

Roughly along and within I-495

Thanks.
I would like to see them include commuter rail communities. Oh well.

[massnative71]

Originally Posted by brk330

Thanks.
I would like to see them include commuter rail communities. Oh well.

Eh, I just can't see bougie Boston Magazine accepting the Attleboros and Leominsters of the world.

[mwj119]

Always kills me when I see districts move up and down 10s of spots YoY.

Who knew places like Maynard or Billerica has a superior district compared to Duxbury, Lynnfield, and Reading!!! Or that Foxborough High School offers a better education than Belmont High School!

In all seriousness, though, test scores mirror income. It's that simple on a macro level.

The more important measurement of a school districts "excellence" should be: How well are lower income/disadvantaged kids progressing through the district, and whether or not their growth is on pace vs. other students inside and outside the district.

This breaks down both test scores and equitability: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/...-compares.html

[pennyone]

Originally Posted by Urban Peasant

Wealthy districts with resources often get top billing. It can show what sacrifices people make to live in those communities so their kids can get a top notch public education.

And so Quincy High beats Milton High by several spots?

[bricka]

lol some of these rankings are making people BIG mad

people stretched to live in milton/reading/lynnfield/chelmsford/duxbury for their kids to go to "good schools" when they could be living comfortably in billerica/north reading/foxborough

they fell for it

[matrix5k]

Originally Posted by bricka

lol some of these rankings are making people BIG mad

people stretched to live in milton/reading/lynnfield/chelmsford/duxbury for their kids to go to "good schools" when they could be living comfortably in billerica/north reading/foxborough

they fell for it

Is Billerica cheaper than Chelmsford? The prices look similar to me. I wonder if the new high school helped their ranking.

[bricka]

Originally Posted by matrix5k

Is Billerica cheaper than Chelmsford? The prices look similar to me. I wonder if the new high school helped their ranking.

ya i suppose chelmsford and billerica are pretty similar in price at this point. i don't think it used to be that way (?). chelmsford is further out tho, so all else equal, many folks are paying with a terrible commute for what they thought was a better school.

i'm sure the new high school helped a little, it looks like a private school, but it was only opened in 2019. if anything the effects are yet to be felt. seems to me like younger families with kids who are not yet high school aged would be drawn by the new high school, and so the improvement in test scores etc would take place later.

[Shizim]

Originally Posted by bricka

lol some of these rankings are making people BIG mad

people stretched to live in milton/reading/lynnfield/chelmsford/duxbury for their kids to go to "good schools" when they could be living comfortably in billerica/north reading/foxborough

they fell for it

When was the last time you looked at North Reading prices? big boom in the last 18 months. With mega high taxes ($15 per $1000).

[MtPleasantDream]

Originally Posted by robr2

Why is Lexington 16? They are perennially a top 3 school district.

If you look at the column "SAT scores math", Lexington high is by far the best, and that matters the most to Asian parents whose kids take half the seats.

[mwj119]

Originally Posted by matrix5k

Is Billerica cheaper than Chelmsford? The prices look similar to me. I wonder if the new high school helped their ranking.

Chelmsford was always considered a premium town over Rica, and was kind of a mainstay middle/middle upper class suburb during the 60s/70s boom. At that point, as I've been told, many suburbanites who couldn't afford places like Winchester, or Concord, or Lexington, looked at towns like Andover and Chelmsford for new homes and good schools.

But post recession, prices are nearly identical. Billerica has the commuter, and saves 15-20 minutes on commute time to Burlington/Woburn/Waltham where many of the jobs fall.

Chelmsford's most apt comparison in 2022 would be Franklin.. Chelmsford being slightly more expensive due to location.

Funny, as both Franklin and Chelmsford high school ranks well below many of its peer towns. Not sure why that is, especially considering Franklin's new High School... If it gives Billerica a bump, the same would apply.