[NLVgal]

Originally Posted by lvoc

Understand how good Meadows is. They compete with Coronado and Clark with perhaps 25% of the student body. On a percentage basis Meadows blows everyone away. And they pay their teachers well. Used to have one teacher who drove a Rolls.

A couple of years ago in one of the periodic education wars we discovered that Meadows on a percentage basis was up there with the upper schools in San Jose and Palo Alto. I do not think they are doing that well at the moment but they get their in good years. Small size leads to volatility in performance...but in a good year they are US class.

Not to mention the guard gated security at the driveway and the gorgeous grounds. It's a really nice place if you can afford it.

[08grad]

Originally Posted by lvoc

Understand how good Meadows is. They compete with Coronado and Clark with perhaps 25% of the student body. On a percentage basis Meadows blows everyone away.

How do they blow everyone away on a percentage basis? Because you're calculating NMSF/entire student body? I guess you're right in that. But it's foolish to compare an advanced school to anything other than an advanced program at a regular school. Meadows' 62 students don't compare favorably to the top 60 at Coronado/Clark enrolled in the advanced programs.

For example, look at Clark's students in their Academy of Mathematics, Science and Applied Technology. These students have an incredibly rigorous curriculum including Calc 3. If enrollment in all of Clark's Magnet Programs is 200 students, then roughly 60 of the students enrolled are in the AOMSAT program. That's the program producing the NSMF, not the teacher education program or the finance program. And of the roughly 60 students in there, 15 of them are NMSF. That's a far better rate than Meadows.

Or take a look at Coronado's Academy of Advanced Placement, which requires students to take (6) AP classes before they graduate. It's basically the "Honors College" at the school. Coronado only has one section of Calc 2, which would typically have 20-30 students, likely where their NMSF are. So they're producing 5/30 NMSF in their advanced program, a far better rate than Meadows.

[lvoc]

Originally Posted by 08grad

How do they blow everyone away on a percentage basis? Because you're calculating NMSF/entire student body? I guess you're right in that. But it's foolish to compare an advanced school to anything other than an advanced program at a regular school. Meadows' 62 students don't compare favorably to the top 60 at Coronado/Clark enrolled in the advanced programs.

For example, look at Clark's students in their Academy of Mathematics, Science and Applied Technology. These students have an incredibly rigorous curriculum including Calc 3. If enrollment in all of Clark's Magnet Programs is 200 students, then roughly 60 of the students enrolled are in the AOMSAT program. That's the program producing the NSMF, not the teacher education program or the finance program. And of the roughly 60 students in there, 15 of them are NMSF. That's a far better rate than Meadows.

Or take a look at Coronado's Academy of Advanced Placement, which requires students to take (6) AP classes before they graduate. It's basically the "Honors College" at the school. Coronado only has one section of Calc 2, which would typically have 20-30 students, likely where their NMSF are. So they're producing 5/30 NMSF in their advanced program, a far better rate than Meadows.

Clarks advanced program has about 200 students per year. All selected. Meadows has 62 students not selected. Ad Tech has more. Coronado has a normal high school intake of what 500? Of course in all these schools you will find the NMSF in the calc 2 or 3. Where else?

In a good year Meadows has gotten to 25% of the graduating class being NMSF.

Again of course all these schools are actually selective if simply by demographics. It is reasonably obvious that Clark's program has a very high Asian population. And Coronado and Meadows run off the demographics of the socioeconomic strata providing their students.

And if I were a parent I would think it would be an interesting question as to whether I would rather have the Valedictorian at Sierra Vista or Centennial or a top 10% at Clark.

I am still of the opinion that virtually all of that top 1% will come out well pretty much in spite of the school. The real battle lies at the bottom...it is the lower third that washes out and fails.

[08grad]

Originally Posted by lvoc

Clarks advanced program has about 200 students per year. All selected. Meadows has 62 students not selected.

Meadows students aren't selected? It's a private school! By definition there's selectivity.

The Clark program is 200 students per year, but it's split between three programs - the Teacher Education program (not producing the NMSF students), the Finance program (not producing the NMSF students), and the STEM program (probably the one producing the NMSF students).

I have to believe that of the 200 in these 3 programs combined, that there aren't more than 100 in this STEM program. If so, the teachers of those programs are producing NMSF students at a higher rate than Meadows, and really it's not comparable to Gorman/Lutheran.

I don't think NMSF is a perfect comparison of advanced program. I wish that AP passing rates were available for private schools, that would really help determine teacher quality at advanced programs in public schools vs private schools.