Bronx Mom: In search of the “perfect” middle school
A few weeks ago, my 5th-grade son “J” and I attended the first of two middle school fairs. Although we live in District 10 in the Bronx, my children attend elementary school in Manhattan’s District 4, which gives us twice as many middle schools through which to sift.
I entered the lunchroom hosting the District 4 fair with excitement, prepared with a mental list of “must visit” schools. As an admittedly-anxious mom and eyewitness to the things that can go wrong in middle schools, I have been researching schools on this site, and in the book NYC’s Best Public Middle Schools by Clara Hemphill and the Insideschools staff.
J had on his “I’m not talking to anyone” face and refused to ask questions at any of the tables. He asked again why he needed to be present. If it were up to him, he would rather spend the day at his beloved elementary school, Central Park East I.
In my effort to follow Judy Baum’s advice, and that which I know as a psychologist, I have been working very hard to include J in the process of choosing schools that will be a good fit.
A week after the District 4 fair, we attended a combined middle school fair for districts 9 and 10. As the districts share a middle school choice application, there were what seemed to be hundreds of families trying to cram into a packed gymnasium. Logistically, it was a bit of a nightmare with a long line of parents and kids waiting at the door to be allowed in. We missed the workshop for parents as we spent 20 minutes waiting just to get into the fair. Again my son groused about why his presence was important. Honestly, after a short while in the overcrowded room I was beginning to agree with him.
I can’t recall a single school that boasted anything less than an ‘A’ on their 2008-2009 progress report. This was not surprising given the uncertainty of what the grades actually measure (read this eduwonkette post for an analysis). What I found most useful were the tables co-hosted by current students. The students were able to provide a sense of the energy of the school, an honest assessment of homework load, and genuine feedback on how students are treated and respected.
Besides those conversations with students, the fairs felt almost pointless. It’s nearly impossible to get a feel for a school based on poster boards and information shouted above the din of a sea of parents. Hopefully the open houses and tours will prove to be more informative.
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Have you realized that many of the after school programs are being paid by the parents/guardians?
Comment by Aura — November 5, 2009 @ 6:32 am
Ah, the middle school admissions process! I remember it well. We also had a 2-district situation and it was tough–but wait til you get to 8th grade and get the book with 400+ high schools!
One thing I found helpful with my daughter was to say absolutely NOTHING to her during the tours. Sometimes I knew she knew I liked a school and it was better to empower her to come to her own conclusions. I’ve found that to be even more so during the high school process.
If you’ve had the opportunity to talk to students at the fair, I think that alone may have made it worthwhile–sometimes there’s no such opportunity on tour.
Good luck!
Comment by Roberta — November 5, 2009 @ 9:35 am
I was wondering what your thoughts were on D10 Middle schools.
Comment by Bronx Dad — November 5, 2009 @ 4:52 pm
The District 13 middle school fair did very little to change the minds of any parent I spoke with. It was very loud and almost impossible to have a conversation. There were some sweet and well-spoken kids from one of the schools in the district, but this was not a forum through which one could learn anything new. There is no substitute for school tours and conversations with other parents. I did find myself wondering if NYC could be held in violation of Brown vs. Board of Ed. through its insistence on maintaining the districts, which in turn seem to maintain an impressive degree of racial segregation, at least here. Depressing; parents I know want true diversity. Given that NEST and similar schools have 10 applicants for every seat at the middle school level, why are there not more citywide middle schools? They really seem like the only choice if there are no first-rate schools in one’s district.
Comment by district 13 parent — November 6, 2009 @ 11:49 am
i am in district 15 in brooklyn but am interested in finding OTHER middle schools that accept CITYWIDE. inside schools doesn’t seem to have that search capability. is there a list somewhere?? getting no help from daughter’s private elementary. heeelllpp!
Comment by Sonia — November 12, 2009 @ 9:45 pm
Sonia, you can search for citywide schools on this site. Go into the advanced search feature, select, citywide (instead of a specific borough) and limit your search to “unzoned” and middle schools. This should yield a comprehensive list of schools that are open to students from outside their own district. Good luck!
Comment by Laura — November 15, 2009 @ 9:16 pm
Please consider looking into Manhattan East School for Arts and Academics (MS 224); it is a Citywide unzoned G&T program, and has a wonderful instrumental music program (City’s best middle school jazz band) and terrific science classes (with a high school level new science lab), among others.
Comment by Queens Parent — November 16, 2009 @ 8:00 pm
In addition to wonderful instrumental music program at Manhattan East, there is a regularly scheduled after-school beat the geek ambush program implemented by neighborhood kids. The school is located far enough from public transportation that the walk from school to the train provides ample opportunities for the ME students to be jumped on, mugged, punched and otherwise threatened. I couldn’t live with myself knowing that my son is being thrown in physical danger every single day on his walk to and (mostly) from school. No thank you.
Comment by bxju — November 18, 2009 @ 10:33 am