TJ or base high school

Parents Forum
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<p>Hello all,</p>

<p>My DS is a rising sophomore at TJ. During freshman year he had straight A’s in all subjects, except in Math (Pre-Calculus) and Biology. He got a B+ in Math (Pre-Calculus) and an A- in Biology. He is not a very math person, but loves science. It took him sometime to transition into HS from MS, so lost grades during the initial quarters which pulled down his overall grade in Biology. But otherwise he loves Biology.</p>

<p>This summer he is doing Chemistry, but is struggling. He is very stressed out that even after studying the textbook and the lecture material, he is not getting good grades. I think it was a mistake to join this course, as it is a very fast paced course (just 5 weeks for a year long course). He wanted to do this so that he could take AP Chemistry during the school year. Unfortunately, it turned out to be completely contrary to his expectation. This is affecting his self confidence. He keeps thinking why am I dumb and not as smart as the other kids who seem to be getting good grades without much effort. What is it that they’re doing which I am not? So I must be dumb. </p>

<p>He is a very straight forward and honest child with a lot of principles in life. Someone who always tries to help others by sharing knowledge. Unfortunately, some of the kids in his class who seem to be doing well are not willing to share their knowledge as to what resources they are using. He does not have the luxury of getting tutored either, because he is so hard pressed for time.</p>

<p>He is very concerned that this grade (best case it is probably going to be a B by the end of the course - only 2 more weeks to go) will affect his chances of getting into good colleges. He is thinking with 3 AP courses during the school year (AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP Calculus AB), he is probably going to end up struggling the whole of next year to make up for this bad grade and get bad grades next year.</p>

<p>He being our first child we do not have prior experience with the courses at TJ. His counselor is not very helpful either. As parents, we feel like we have not done enough to support him. We are wondering if it is even a good idea for him to continue at TJ, because being so stressed out at this age is not good for him in the long run. If we were to move him to the base high school, we are not sure if he would lose interest in academics as he may not be appropriately challenged. Our concern is that he might fall a prey for the typical teenage peer pressures and end up with wrong priorities. Not that we do not trust our son, but he is too innocent to not realize what he is getting into - not wordly wise.</p>

<p>Our main concern is if this is how stressful the remaining 3 years at TJ are going to be, it is not a good idea to have him go through this stress.</p>

<p>Could you please let us know your thoughts?</p>

<p>Thank you.</p>

<p>Best Regards</p>

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<p>TJ??
What is TJ?</p>

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<p>Probably refers to an academically elite high school.</p>

<p>Why is “not a very math person” three grade levels ahead in math (precalculus as a high school frosh)? Also, a B grade is a “bad grade”?</p>

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<p>

This mindset is not going to help. You guys should be aware and optimistic. </p>

<p>A 5 week course on a subject where, generally, student have a year to learn the material is not a good indication on whether he is truly struggling with the material. It could be due to the time constraint. I would not freak out just yet. Assure him that AP Chemistry is still chemistry. He will see the material again and have a chance to master it in the year to come. Students may struggle in the beginning, but as the year goes on they master the key concepts and are able to tackle the problems.</p>

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<p>TJ is Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST) in Northern Virginia in the Washington DC metro area. It is a Governor’s school</p>

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<p>TJ is surely Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, one of the nation’s best public STEM prep schools.</p>

<p>I would worry less about his grades and more about his education. If this is the best education he can get – which it seems to be – and he is absorbing the material well – which seems to be true given all As and Bs – then I don’t see the problem. Why can’t he stay at TJ and take fewer APs next year? Surely he doesn’t have to take AP Chem as a sophomore.</p>

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<p>Summer Chem at TJHSST is difficult for many students. I know kids who have excelled in all of their classes at TJ but struggled with summer Chem, dropping it and taking it as part of their regular sophomore schedule. One of those students scored a perfect 2400 on his first try at the SATs, took Calc BC as a sophomore (got an A), got an A in AP Physics, etc. etc. My point is that your son should not let his grade in summer chem affect his self confidence but to realize that it is a difficult class for even the very brightest students. A B in that class is nothing to be ashamed of (I thought you were going to say that he was going to get a C or lower).</p>

<p>I am sorry to hear that his classmates are not willing to share their resources. That is contrary to my child’s experience throughout his entire time at TJ (he is a rising senior). </p>

<p>Most parents and students have to readjust their definition of a bad grade when they get to TJHSST. According to the most recent profile, the GPA range for class of 2013 was 3.181 to 4.526. Given his freshman grades, he is carrying approximately a 4.2 GPA in his TJ classes which I would guess puts him in the top quarter of his class. His GPA is likely even higher, given that he must have taken Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II in middle school and presumably received As in those classes, as well as any foreign language he took in middle school. A B in summer chem will still leave him with at least a 4.1 because of the honors weighting. </p>

<p>The bottom line is what does your son want to do? Almost every freshman and sophomore probably has thoughts of transferring back to their base school at some point. My son decided to stay at TJHSST even though he is not getting straight As. He loves the school atmosphere and the close relationships he’s built. He loves playing sports there, and all the crazy school traditions. He loves the fact that students are given so much freedom, that quirkiness is accepted, and that he is surrounded by so many smart and talented kids. </p>

<p>Most of all, he loves all of the neat classes they have that are unavailable at his base school. His best grades were in those classes, like Robotics, Prototyping, etc. and he is very excited for his Senior Research Lab. Whenever he thought about going back to his base school, he tried to think about what a typical day there would be like for him and whether that would be better than a typical day at TJHSST. The answer was pretty clear for him.</p>

<p>My son may not graduate with straight As or at the top of his class, but he has nevertheless been happy at school. He was feeling some stress at first, but then he decided that he was going to just do his very best and enjoy all the things the school had to offer without worrying too much about grades. He may not get into Harvard and MIT, but he is still very competitive at top schools and he will be very well prepared for the rigors of college.</p>

1 Like
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<p>Have you joined FCAG · Fairfax County Assoc. for the Gifted (yahoo group)? This may be best answered there. There are TJ parents there.</p>

<p>I will echo that not everyone is straight As but they definitely get a good education at TJ. I am pretty sure my niece graduated with several Bs (and maybe a C) but she was very happy there.</p>

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<p>TJ - Thomas Jefferson in VA. It’s a Math & Science magnet school - school with full of tiger moms and tiger cubs. </p>

<p>OP - Fairfax county has a lot of good public schools. If you feel the stress is getting to him - mentally and physically - then I’d seriously consider pulling him out of the program. As much as we as parents want to see our kids succeed, sometimes it’s not worth the risk.</p>

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<p>The reason why I would not recommend going back to base school is that this “non math” son will not have any math classes to take after his sophomore year whereas at TJ, there are several advanced math classes. I suspect the same is true for the other science classes.</p>

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<p>Keep him at TJ.</p>

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<p>Re my question above–
It’s always ummmm…interesting to see East coast elites assume that everyone everywhere in the US is familiar with the elements of their elite little world…</p>

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<p>Thank you all for your valuable input.</p>

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<p>Other than the stress of the courses at TJ, has he found a sense of community there? Just curious - one of D2’s best friends from Kindergarten on to eighth grade started TJ some years back, and it was like starting over for this girl socially.</p>

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<p>Hi 2014novamom,</p>

<p>Thank you so much for the information.</p>

<p>I believe the last date to drop out without a penalty was Jul 12. If he drops out now I think he would have a “WP” (Withdrawn Passing) on his transcript. Do you know of anyone who dropped out with a “WP” on their transcript? If so, what effect does it have on college admissions?</p>

<p>Also, do you know if TJ would allow him to repeat the course during his regular sophomore schedule? If so, how are the grades for the 2 courses shown on the transcript?</p>

<p>To answer your question, he has taken Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II in middle school and received As in those classes, as well as foreign language he took in middle school. We were concerned because some schools do not look at weighted GPA, just the unweighted GPA. For instance, when I looked at VCU’s web site it was stated that they need atleast 3.5 unweighted GPA on a 4.0 scale.</p>

<p>My son does like the school very much. He does not want to go back to the base school, but he is in a dilemma because of the grades. But now that you all have helped us get some perspective on how the grades should be looked at, we will explain this to him.</p>

<p>On another note, we heard UVA needs atleast 4.3 (or something like that) of weighted GPA. Is that true?</p>

<p>Thanks again.</p>

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<p>^^Thank you, MomCat2!</p>

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<p>You’re welcome, football mom.</p>

<p>(You must live in “flyover country” (or insert other derogatory term here) like me, or in some other way not be part of the “in crowd”. Aren’t we pitiful?)</p>

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<p>To get specific info on what GPA a TJ kid needs to get into UVA, have your son sign into his Blackboard account. The go to Family Connections, then colleges. There will be a box over to the left where you can type University of Virginia and you will get a grid that will show you the GPA and SAT of the TJ kids who applied and who got in, got deferred, got denied.</p>

<p>Also, I sent you a private message- hope it was helpful</p>

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<p>Son graduated from TJ and I am surprised the kids are not helping each other. During his time at TJ, he and his friends helped each other out especially when they didn’t get a good teacher. He got a pretty bad chemistry teacher but still pulled an A due to the help from other students.</p>

<p>Have you called student services? The guidance counselor/secretary could answer your questions about repeating the course and what appears on the transcript. </p>

<p>His GPA should be fine since Math and Bio are weighted. Did you get a copy of the transcript with the GPA? Or you can check Family Connection and the GPA should be on there. They updated the GPA’s already. If you have an account, you can log in and check Family Connection otherwise, your child can log into Blackboard to get to the Family Connection site.</p>

<p>I second joining FCAG. They had the most recent stats on the 2013 admissions to UVA. I believe 4.3 sounds right.</p>

<p>Son enjoyed his time at TJ. After the first year, he said the only way he would leave is if they kicked him out. He took advantage of classes not available at our local base school. It is rigorous but will prepare you for college plus all graduates say college is way easier after TJ.</p>

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<p>[Virginia</a> Commonwealth University Admissions Information - CollegeData College Profile](<a href=“http://www.collegedata.com/cs/data/college/college_pg02_tmpl.jhtml?schoolId=1565]Virginia”>Virginia Commonwealth University Acceptance Rate | CollegeData) indicates that 45% of frosh at VCU had HS GPA < 3.5.</p>

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<p>[University</a> of Virginia Admissions Information - CollegeData College Profile](<a href=“http://www.collegedata.com/cs/data/college/college_pg02_tmpl.jhtml?schoolId=1571]University”>University of Virginia Acceptance Rate | CollegeData) indicates that average (presumably weighted) HS GPA of UVA frosh is 4.21.</p>