Tell us more! Also, I can see with the email you used that you’re likely a student, I would love to hear more from you!

It seems like this is really an area where public schools struggle. It’s not just MoCo which has issues with special needs/learning. I see comments about this from multiple sources about other districts as well.

Hi Mat,
Different schools have different demographics. I specifically did not cover demographics as it wasn’t relevant to my review. If white families are abandoning public school because of demographics that are unappealing to them then that is very unfortunate. School administrations across multiple jurisdictions set the tone and precedent for the education which is where my focus was. Education quality is determined from the top, down – not set by the students.

I can’t believe there is no mention in the analysis that the population of the school system is now 70 percent minority, with a Hispanic majority. Caucasian’s are less than 23 percent. A stampede have abandoned the “schools”. How can a school system be called “public” when it has become a minority benefit program?

Hi Katherine,
Thanks for you reading and for your comment.

First, I’m not an investigative journalist. I’m a mom who is compiling information gleaned from various sources. Many of those sources can be anonymous and I will still use the info if it’s showing a pattern. What’s happening with MoCo schools is no different than other school districts in both the DMV and the country as a whole.

Your main comment regarding the teachers and the work they put in – no one is discounting that aside from some individual experiences people have when their students are special needs or didn’t get the attention they required in specific instances. I never criticized any teacher at all anywhere – either in DCPS where we live or in MD or VA where I’ve outlined the schools.

I’m creating a high flying overview of what’s challenging for the schools as well as what they do well, to advise people when considering where to move. I don’t have a point of view, and I didn’t cherry pick details to prove anything. I don’t have a dog in the fight, I just sourced a handful of places to compile information.

If you would like someone to do an investigative piece, perhaps consult Johns Hopkins which performed the in depth audit in 2018 and found the deficiencies and see if it has improved. Their report was ultra important in my write up.

MCPS is huge – it is traditionally managed and some of what is stated in this article can be taken at face value. I will say up front that I’m hugely disappointed to hear of the mom with boys who have special needs that are not being met, and clearly this family is very frustrated with these schools, and understandably so.

All of this said – did the author of this article or editor of the source consider taking to the individual schools or teachers, or did they bother to visit and observe? Did they see the teachers planning together, strategically looking for ways to improve student learning? Did they read teacher emails back and forth as we seek ways to better serve specific students? Did they know we are constantly looking for ways to improve, through professional development, PLCs and reflection from our interactions? Do they have any idea how often teachers stay late to grade, track down student data to learn more about a student, email and call parents, and give extensions to accommodate for student needs? I see nothing in this article that indicates a legitimate effort to investigate the schools, beyond some broad commentary about curriculum woes.

As a parent, when I email my kids’ teachers or counselor or administrator – I hear back – usually within a couple of hours. I get info I seek. I get answers – as does my husband. Our kids are learning – which we know because we talk to them about school during dinner; some nights sports and activities keep these conversations at bay, but we do find out enough often enough (several times a week).

We moved here mid-pandemic and chose MCPS because of the schools. I’m so glad we did. Please – before you do another write-up about MCPS – diversify your research and make sure you are fair and accurate. This article shows neither fairness nor accuracy – it’s a point of view with Cherry-picked facts to support the point of view.

How disappointing.

Oh Rebecca. Thank you for this comment. I had a feeling from what I found online that things really took a dive in MoCo, but hearing from people about their direct experience is super helpful. MoCo has always been a highly regarded school system but the handling of things during covid put many school systems on the hotseat and MoCo was definitely one of those school systems. I can’t believe they are telling you that they cannot assist with your son, but it sounds like they want to push him to the next school to move him (and probably you) along. Not fair at all. I’m really sorry. But I appreciate this honesty, people need to see what’s happening and hear it from parents.