<p>PEAteacher- I am currently a sophomore and will be applying for 11th grade. Based on your experience, how well do students who come in at this time adapt to the changes? In addition, for boarding, are you allowed to request singles? Thank you.</p>
<p>Yes, you may request a single (but one won’t necessarily be available). Starting as an upper is harder in some ways (it’s a tough year academically, most uppers aren’t new, etc.), but easier in other ways (you’re older and more mature than a prep or lower). Most new uppers do well!</p>
<p>I know of a student who became involved with drugs. Apparently, this student was placed in a “jock dorm” where drug use is prevalent. I know not all jocks do drugs, but this is what I heard through the grapevine. If I do not want my child to be placed in a specific dorm, will Exeter honor that request?</p>
<p>Is your job a struggle in grading all the heavy loads of homework and tests?</p>
<p>How do you write college teacher recs, with so many students to account for?</p>
<p>perrier, you may request a dorm, but it may not always be possible to give you the dorm you want. Generally speaking you will find kids of all kinds in every dorm, so I wouldn’t put much trust into stereotypes about dorms.</p>
<p>classof2015, grading is part of what every teacher does. We have an easier life than teachers at many other schools because we have such small classes. On average we teach about 12 kids per class and four classes per term, so fewer than 50 kids per term. Not too bad.</p>
<p>98beebee, our student/faculty ratio is about 5/1, so it’s not that bad. Students ask us pretty early in the fall, so we have plenty of time to get the letters done.</p>
<p>Just out of curiosity, how much of an influence do art instructors/coaches have on admissions?</p>
<p>Let me say this: Like most other schools, Exeter looks for interesting kids who not only excel academically but also show good character, good citizenship, a variety of interests and skills, etc. Being a good pianist or lacrosse player is one of the attributes that help define you, so we do take it into account. If a coach or instructor can “vouch” for your skills/talents, that’s helpful, as it gives us more information about you. But no one thing and no one person “gets you” into Exeter, and it’s impossible to quantify the weight of any one of your attributes. The whole picture of who you are is what matters.</p>
<p>Dear PEATEACHER,
I am a parent of an 8th grader and he is applying for 9th grade at Exeter. I’d love to hear your input about the importance of maturity for the success in admission and the success at Exeter after the admission. The student in question is quite strong academically, but is not as mature in my opinion. How good is Exeter as to help these type of kids mature, any examples of successful cases to share? </p>
<p>Thank you very much!</p>
<p>Dear PEAteacher, </p>
<p>While you mull over the above question, let me add a related one: In supervising the maturation of our dear children, how does PEA explicitly attend to fostering character development? </p>
<p>We are impressed with the emphasis in PEA’s deed of gift to cultivating knowledge AND goodness. But, in practice, how is that noble goal pursued? </p>
<p>As prospective parents that have very carefully coached our children in matters of social and moral development, we have concerns about how intentionally those areas of development will be monitored throughout this great (and challenging) growth phase of adolescence. </p>
<p>Thanks for all your great input throughout the thread :)</p>
<p>Maturity is very important for success at Exeter. The average 14-year-old finds it very challenging to live away from his/her family, so s/he will find it hard to be happy and successful here is s/he’s not more mature than average. That having been said, kids are resilient and maturation is a process: we always have kids who are less mature than you would hope, but there are a lot of people (teachers, coaches, dorm faculty, dorm proctors, etc.) who help them in the process. But I’d be reluctant to recommend Exeter for a kid who’s less mature than average for his/her age.</p>
<p>As for “social and moral development,” what I can say is that your children will be surrounded by caring adults. On the average day they will interact with about five teachers, a coach or two, one or two faculty members in club meetings, another one or two in the dorm, as well as several senior students (including dorm proctors). All these people will know your kids by name, engage with them in conversation, serve as role models, and generally do many of the things that parents do when they raise a teenager. There’s no grand plan here; we don’t have a class or curriculum in “moral development.” But the interactions kids have with adults and other members of the community go a long way toward helping shape their character.</p>
<p>What do you consider a good grade at Andover? I know it varies, but I’d appreciate a teacher’s perspective on this.</p>
<p>Exeter, you mean?</p>
<p>If you get a B, that’s a solid grade. A B+ is a strong grade, one to be proud of. An A- is a fantastic grade that’s not easy to come by. And an A signals truly superb performance.</p>
<p>Oops, sorry. I meant Exeter. So what would you say is the average end-of-semester grade among your students?</p>
<p>Typically between a B and a B+.</p>
<p>Interesting. Just wanted to comment that the grade outlook at DA is similar, in that a B+ is considered ‘strong’.</p>
<p>I just wanted to comment on PEA teacher’s response regarding the teacher support at Exeter. My D is a prep this year. Her interactions she has had so far with her advisor, teachers in the dorm, classroom teachers and coaches have been phenomenal. They are such an impressive group of people who really, really care about your child, not just with academic support but with great emotional support. She is thriving there with the help of some pretty awesome adults.</p>
<p>Thanks for the additional input, Ranabona. We were very, very impressed by the community when we visited. We’re just struggling a bit with sending kids many hours away in these formative years. We wonder if the “mentoring culture” extends to actively, explicitly addressing these issues of character. </p>
<p>I think our kids have a solid foundation of very well-developed character, but it didn’t come by chance… there was very active coaching. When we see any change in kid behavior/affect/cognition we engage them and discuss what’s going on. [e.g. When one was experimenting with being increasingly sarcastic, we pointed out it didn’t suit or serve her well; When one changed up her diet we probed about reasoning and ruled out any budding eating disorder; When one looks pensive, perhaps sad… we create a private caring space to find out what’s up]. We engage in a LOT of very personal dialogue. </p>
<p>Now while we realize we’ll still be involved, we know we won’t have as many opportunities for direct observation (we’ll be less in touch with the subtle changes in mood & behavior). And we’re wondering if these schools we’re applying to vary in how much the faculty (and fellow students) actively engage in a similar intentional mentoring of character. </p>
<p>This may be a differentiating factor for us, helping us choose a school.</p>
<p>On a separate note for those asking about grades: </p>
<p>A recent article in the Exonian mentioned that the average GPA (at least for a couple survey groups on internet access) was around 9.2, and another noted that the 95th percentile for senior total GPA was just north of 10.3 (earning early cum laude). </p>
<p>Earlier in the thread PEAteacher mentioned “If you do the work you’re supposed to do, you should be able to get at least a B. I feel that most of the C’s I give, I give to kids who didn’t work very hard. Pulling an A can be challenging, but lots of students do it.”</p>
<p>But more importantly: “What I tell kids all the time: don’t focus on grades per se. Focus on doing your best work; grades will follow.”</p>
<p>Follow your bliss :)</p>