Posts by Carl Bishop2

hiddendriver34 said:hiddendriver34, man, if we actually did that, you’d see. Everything would stay pretty much the same—kids would still be doing their work and taking tests—but the whole point would shift. Instead of just being a grade on a screen, those tests would act more like a GPS for the students, giving them actual feedback to help them find their way.

I mean, sure, that works if we're talking about standardized national exams. But if teachers are the ones drafting their own tests, things get messy—some might be a breeze while others are brutal—so the actual picture of what everyone knows could end up being pretty skewed.

urbantinker8 said:but I don't think people realize that focusing solely on GPA isn't going to solve anything; it’ll just end up adding an incredible amount of stress to those standardized national exams.
personally, I've always been in favor of using entrance exams combined with high grades in specific subjects that actually matter for a particular high school. though, I suppose the entrance exam itself should probably carry more weight in the final calculation.
that way, you at least know you're passing classes that you're actually interested in and that click with how you learn.
as it stands now, they're basically setting you up to struggle with these national tests by forcing you through subjects that aren't interesting, aren't your strengths, and might not even be relevant to the specific high school track you've chosen.

Sure, I’m all for it!
We could even have national standardized testing at the end of every year, so when it comes time for enrollment, we only look at the subjects that actually matter for that path.
I definitely agree that we need to take some of that grading pressure off teachers, but I also feel like there needs to be a way for both students and parents to get a clear picture of where they actually stand academically—and that needs to happen way before the end of middle school.

It’s hard to imagine things getting any more intense than they are right now.

Jeffrey Edwards5 said:Better late than never, I guess. Checking in three days before everything wraps up, once the verdict is basically already in.

The situation is this: my kid is sitting at less than half the required points. They aren't even going to hit the threshold for the school we actually want them in.

I’ve talked to the homeroom teacher and the subject teachers. Honestly? They’re about as flexible as a brick wall.

So, help me out here. To all you educators out there—from someone like me, just a regular guy trying to make sense of things—what is it about being a professor that makes some people think they can just ignore the big picture and refuse to HELP a student? Is it just the power trip? The ego?

I don't get it. I genuinely want to know what makes someone tick like that.

Don't they worry about anything? Not just about God, but about an angry parent waiting in the parking lot after class? It feels like they're asking for trouble.

What kind of people are these? Seriously, explain it to me.

I really have to weigh in on this part.
Honestly, how can you not feel a sense of shame? What kind of person does that make you?
I can't help but wonder what goes through your mind when you write about sabotaging others.
Aren't you afraid of judgment—from above (since you clearly believe in that) or from those around you? You're essentially trying to strip away a child's chance at getting into a good school just so your own kid can get a better grade. Why does your child always have to be the priority?

Jeffrey Edwards5 said:Better late than never, I guess. Checking in three days before everything wraps up, once the verdict is basically already in.

The situation is this: my kid is sitting at less than half the required points. They aren't even going to hit the threshold for the school we actually want them in.

I’ve talked to the homeroom teacher and the subject teachers. Honestly? They’re about as flexible as a brick wall.

So, help me out here. To all you educators out there—from someone like me, just a regular guy trying to make sense of things—what is it about being a professor that makes some people think they can just ignore the big picture and refuse to HELP a student? Is it just the power trip? The ego?

I don't get it. I genuinely want to know what makes someone tick like that.

Don't they worry about anything? Not just about God, but about an angry parent waiting in the parking lot after class? It feels like they're asking for trouble.

What kind of people are these? Seriously, explain it to me.

Maybe you're the one missing the big picture here. You're asking for a grade to be handed out like a gift in a core subject—and if that happens, your child takes a spot in a competitive school that should have gone to another student who actually earned it. For those other kids, that school is their dream too.

redridge13 said:I think you're blowing things out of proportion; there are plenty of kids who transition to high school without any issues, without studying day and night, or ending up in therapy.
I know a kid who came from a pretty rough middle school—bad neighborhood, zero structure—and ended up at one of the most prestigious high schools in Washington, D.C.
On the initial placement exams, this kid was one of the best, even outperforming the "legacy" kids from wealthy families and elite private schools.
In the end, they breezed through high school, finishing as one of the top three students in the class.
Nothing extra was done during middle school, and they didn't even go to private tutors.
So, it really comes down to the individual kid. Based on their background and social status, this student shouldn't have stood a chance.
What that kid actually lacked was confidence during testing compared to the loud, arrogant kids who walked in acting like they owned the place (even though they had zero foundation).

72 isn't terrible, but unfortunately, it's not enough for most of the major high schools in Washington, D.C.
I don't think high schools in any other American city have entry thresholds like this.

Back in my hometown, there’s one high school with four different tracks, and back in 2021, you wouldn't have even gotten into the language track—which usually has the lowest cutoff—with a 75. So, with a 72, you'd probably be looking at a high school in a different county or maybe a Technical High School if the kid is more interested in STEM.

Susan Martin4 said:I just finished showing this all to my husband—he’s a software engineer.
He agreed. I didn't. I’m looking at this through the eyes of a kid who actually wants to code—someone hungry for hands-on exercises and real practical experience. Telling a kid like that, "Actually, you should spend four years in high school studying Latin, music theory, and art instead of computer networks, algorithms, or databases, and then just wait until college to finally do what you love," feels counterproductive to me. It's just a waste of time.

And what happens if those kids just hit a wall? If they struggle through even the best prep schools and end up missing out on their dream colleges? There’s an insane amount of pressure at places like MIT. It's relentless.

So, after we finished talking, we headed over to the digital mine to scope things out. Turns out, the MIT programs saw the highest enrollment numbers, specifically pulling from schools like Lincoln High and Westside Prep. As for the vocational kids, most were coming out of the local technical colleges and the big trade school over in Chicago.

My kid is still just an elementary schooler, but he’s already convinced himself he wants to be a programmer. Honestly, I’d much rather see him skip the prep school route entirely. If he doesn't make it through a top-tier university, at least he'll have a trade to fall back on. 🕺

Mine also wants to be a programmer. Of course, there's plenty of time to change his mind a hundred times over, and circumstances can always shift... But you don't necessarily need an MIT degree to be a coder. His current programming teacher graduated from a community college, and honestly, in this field, the most important thing is just knowing how to write code. I really should ask some people I know working in IT for their take on it.
High school enrollment is still a long way off for us, so we aren't stressing about specific schools yet, but he's already asking me what kind of grades he needs to pull to become a programmer.

I feel like there’s this really fine line—though maybe it isn't actually that thin—between stepping up to support a child when they truly need it, which is what Michelle Nelson4 did, and treating the child like they're just another project to be managed, which seems to be the vibe from that one user on Reddit who's always saying "there's always room for improvement."

We were originally planning to enroll our kid in one local elementary school in the neighborhood, but then we ran into a retired teacher from that school who gave us some pretty blunt advice—basically told us not to be foolish and to look at a different school nearby instead.
As it turns out, even this second option isn't quite the powerhouse it used to be, though it still seems to hold its own compared to the first one we considered. We honestly lucked out—both with the teacher and with the group of kids in our child's class. Meanwhile, the situation in the classroom right next door is an absolute disaster; if we had accidentally ended up in that room, I think we would have been kicking ourselves for not just sticking with the first school we looked at.

urbantinker8 said:I suppose it might be easier if I just recount everything right here for you.🤣
it should probably be enough.

I honestly have no clue what the workload actually looks like for the admissions committee. I always assumed things were mostly automated by now—you know, not much to do unless they're grading specific portfolios, like for something over at SPUD or Graphics.

What kind of red flags do you usually spot when dealing with college admissions committees?

urbantinker8 said:I think you might be forgetting that some of them are constantly surrounded by hundreds of high schoolers in their everyday lives.
they don't really give a second thought to things like enrollment numbers, calculating GPA, or meeting certain academic thresholds.
they just kind of assume the parents will handle all that heavy lifting.😁
it seems to me they only get worked up if they notice the adults around them starting to stress out, and then they just end up caught in that same loop.

Well, maybe that's because they've already cleared those hurdles?

Honestly, I can't think of a more half-baked idea I've heard lately than this whole mess regarding residency requirements. 🤣

Yeah, I’ve gotta agree with you there—that just doesn't seem like nearly enough.

I mean, who actually gets by with just "enough"?
Back in the day—like, twenty-five years ago—having solid grades was practically a golden ticket to getting into those specialized vocational schools.

I was wondering, how many points does the entrance exam usually count for at a top-tier High School, for example?

jadetinker85 said:https://www.nytimes.com/how-they-did-it-in-podolia/

I mean, how did the folks over in Podolia come up with this plan? They’re only including first and fifth grades in the project this year, then switching to second and sixth next year. Just makes sense, I guess. 😁

From what I can gather, the schedule for next year looks like it'll cover the 1st, 2nd, 5th, and 6th grades—and after that, it seems like everyone will be included except for the 4th and 8th graders.

Quick question—what’s the highest possible grade point average here? I'm not quite sure which specific classes are being factored into the calculation or how many there actually are total.

Sarah Hall53 said:Sure, they go to schools in the city, but they still live back home in the country—unless, of course, they need to go to a school that's way too far away, in which case they end up staying in a dorm.

Yeah, and your point is?
Monster was arguing that kids living in the countryside need full-day schooling because "what happens after elementary school? They'll just rush into the city—into which schools?" Well, sure, they already migrate to the city for high school, and honestly, that’s been the standard for decades now, and it works just fine.

Susan James said:The population in cities has grown significantly, which naturally means more kids with great academic potential. You can't ignore the fact that most of them end up with four-year degrees after graduation, so they naturally expect the same for their own children.

As for trades, there is a massive demand for them right now.
We absolutely cannot function without them—electricians, plumbers, carpenters, masons... you name it. What good is sitting in a classroom all day, memorizing facts and staying stuck in a desk until they're exhausted? These kids need hands-on work, especially if they have family members already working in those fields.

There's this idea that we need to bridge the gap between rural areas and big cities by making everything identical, but that's total nonsense. They should have equal starting points in terms of literacy—things like speech therapy, preschool, and reading programs—but forcing rural kids to spend all day in school just because it's their only chance for socialization is pointless and could actually be detrimental.
What happens to these kids once they finish middle school? Is everyone supposed to rush to the city? To which urban schools would they even go?
Who is going to work the land or manage agriculture? When will kids learn how to plant a garden, care for animals, or make artisanal cheese? Is everyone really going to become an IT Expert with a huge salary while expecting food to just fall from the sky?

It breaks my heart that nobody talks about this publicly. So many families live happy, fulfilling lives working with their hands. There is no shame in that, and it isn't "lesser"—in fact, it’s incredibly vital for everyone.
Plus, so many kids learn directly from their parents and grandparents in those close-knit households.

I’m not quite sure how you're picturing rural life, but farming and agriculture aren't just left to people who stopped learning after middle school. In the US, about 95% of people under 25 have completed high school—so the vast majority end up heading toward the cities to attend urban high schools or colleges simply because most rural areas don't even offer those specialized secondary options.

jadetinker85 said:Given recent events and the fact that more students might face bullying in schools, I came across a solid proposal being discussed for legislation in Mexico.

The suggestion is to mandate that any child exhibiting problematic behavior be referred for observation at a medical facility. This could solve a lot of issues. A retired doctor points out that working with kids who are overtly aggressive, hostile, or socially withdrawn requires a coordinated team effort to assess their health and provide continuous monitoring.

https://www.chicago.info/aktualno/psi...e-ubio/514285/

It’s not okay to have a student spitting in other kids' food, screaming like an animal during class, stealing from parents to buy a motorcycle, or sending explicit photos to the class group chat without a single doctor stepping in to evaluate them.

In theory, it's a great idea, but in practice, if you take these kids to a healthcare facility in Mexico, they'll likely run into doctors like this: