SeltzerConnoisseur t1_jacuxg4 wrote on February 28, 2023 at 3:02 PM

Reply to comment by l1vefrom215 in Is germantown friends school as good as they say? by snooloosey

Couldn’t it also be that the parents most likely to send their kids there are legacies at Ivies? I’d be interested in that data. It might not be that the students are smarter or harder working.

Series_G t1_jacye5h wrote on February 28, 2023 at 3:26 PM

Yes... parent education attainment and SES are huge drivers of kids' educational outcomes. Many of those kids, with those parents, would've done pretty well, no matter what.

mailchucker t1_jad101j wrote on February 28, 2023 at 3:43 PM

But, that is also part of the community experience. The parents are highly successful and your child is friends with those types of children.

l1vefrom215 t1_jad6aen wrote on February 28, 2023 at 4:18 PM

There are a multitude of factors which aren’t mutually exclusive. Legacy status, tutoring, money, role models, expectations, schooling, parental support and involvement all are at play.

GFS is not an affluenza school for dumb rich kids though. Being smart and hard working are necessary for success there. What I’m trying to allude to though is it’s not the type of high school where it’s cool to have low expectations, good off, and be “dumb”. That’s just not the culture there.

They will absolutely kick you out if you don’t maintain your grades (after giving you an opportunity to improve).

oliver_babish t1_jadiwc0 wrote on February 28, 2023 at 5:38 PM

And, look, this is a key thing which distinguishes the private schools: they don't have to educate each kid. They are free to expel (or not invite back) anyone who isn't meeting standards academically or behaviorally.

l1vefrom215 t1_jadjoew wrote on February 28, 2023 at 5:43 PM

Yeah, there is definitely a selection bias in private schools. They get to admit and remove who they want.