<p>Grins - Colonel - I am just back from sending my son to college, and hearing the list of ‘interesting qualities’ in freshman. Now, I am imagining the same opening day speech at RL …" and one boy who was once a girl…" </p>
<p>My advice to all - visit the schools - there are very different vibes and it can be hard to sense them from the webpage/written material.</p>
<p>For readers who are contemplating relocating to the area, Boston Magazine just published their list of the “50 Best Public Schools:” [Best</a> Schools 2011: The Rankings - Boston Magazine](<a href=“http://www.bostonmagazine.com/articles/best_schools_2011/]Best”>http://www.bostonmagazine.com/articles/best_schools_2011/). </p>
<p>I don’t have an opinion about the accuracy of the rankings. The tables provided do list data about spending, test scores, # of high school teams, # of AP classes, etc.</p>
<p>Not too surprisingly, there is a high correlation between average family income and performance in these rankings. This makes me wonder if it’s the schools themselves that are good and bad or if the expectations, enrichment opportunities, outside supports such as paid tutoring and parental IQ/achievement are what drive success in these rankings.</p>
<p>An average family might want to attend school at Dover-Sherborn, but unless they had a million to burn on housing (the approximate average cost for a home in these two communities) they’d be out of luck.</p>
<p>By the end of Obama’s first term, an average family may be able to attend Dover-Sherborn schools.</p>
<p>Sweet, my town did pretty well on there. I think we did better last year.</p>
<p>I think, in terms of rankings, income,performance, it’s not an either/or question. Families with money can provide more. Also, there tends to be more money for schools on a per-pupil basis.</p>
<p>I have a son at Commonwealth and another who graduated a few years back. The place is filled with extremely bright and curious kids and amazing teachers. However, the type of student who chooses Commonwealth or BUA could not be more different than the type who chooses Roxbury Latin. One is certainly not “better” than the other. They are both great places.</p>
<p>Also beware of judging schools by their college matriculations. Many of the students with acceptances to top schools are either recruited athletes or legacies.</p>