Please identify (student, parent, etc)yourself when posting

Prep School Admissions
21

<p>Again, my wish for this is more along the lines of giving the user an opportunity -- not required -- to express how s/he wishes to be treated. I hold people to different standards here based on what I know about them. If they wish to be treated like an educational consultant when they are 13 years old, that's not my problem. When people come down hard on that faux educational consultant for a lack of maturity and being inarticulate, it's different than it should be if someone enters the fray because they are an eager 13 year-old and are trying to be helpful but tossing around mindless blather.</p>

<p>I don't think it really matters who they are as much as it matters what standard they wish to be held to. And, again, they need not disclose a status at all if they don't want to.</p>

<p>Roger's right that some readers will assume that the label is verified or that people will always accurately self-report this information. Then again, who's to say that Burb Parent isn't really Burb Inmate 56-844492 at Murfreesboro Correctional Center? Or that baseballmom isn't littleleaguebaseballdaughter? Or that yan19454 isn't lurkingbsadmissionofficer477? Or that edconsultant22 is really named Ed? For all we know, drnancie isn't a doctor at all.</p>

<p>Why not add a line that says, "This poster claims to be a: __________"? That makes it clear that it's a claim, not a fact.</p>

<p>People already have a vehicle to "defraud" others here if they want. I just think that this community is better served if we know a little more about how each user wishes to be treated by others and if each user has an opportunity to say so. I don't want to have to venture over to the Parents' Cafe and spend a week posting there until people figure out who I am based on a collection of works. Nor do I want to post a "signature" or disclaimer in each post. So I think this makes it easy to venture out to other areas of this site.</p>

<p>The alternative to the universal approach proposed here, I think, is to expand the forums for the Prep School Admissions area. First, it's not just for admissions. Second, we've got a kids cafe and chances forum intermingling with a parents forum. And some of these collisions aren't health -- and made worse by the fact that it's not adults and young adults, but adults and early teens.</p>

<p>drnancie is exactly right that people need to make these disclosures in their posts. Perhaps that's a need that exists only in this corner of CC. (I don't think so, but I'm not well-traveled on this site.) I think expecting everyone to make the disclosure manually in each post is cumbersome and will quickly be forgotten. A systemic solution is needed. And, in the end, that system will depend on self-selection -- just as it already occurs here on CC with the implicit representations users currently make in their choice of names and their decisions to participate in certain forums (e.g., Parents Cafe).</p>

<p>Maybe providing an option to the profiles isn't the best idea. I don't know. What I do know is that something should be done.</p>

22

<p>I think the only distinction that would be useful here in terms of categorization is (1) whether someone does admissions professionally (i.e., works at a school or is a consultant with an actual business practice and tax ID number) or (2) whether someone is merely shooting from the hip of his/her own anecdotal experience using his/her sample of one - himself/her kid (i.e., about the rest of us).</p>

<p>It took me about, oh, a week of reading posts to get enough of an idea of who I wanted to keep reading, whose information I found helpful, erudite, or amusing, and whose posts I would either just pass right on by....or sometimes linger over them only to be irritated by them (i.e., one more post with bias, puffery, self-aggrandizement -- the initial query being used as another opportunity for an admitted student to tout once again her/his exceptional academic record, essay, etc...sigh.) </p>

<p>I'm kinda in a cranky mood because child and I are leaving tomorrow to travel to school and I am REALLY sad.</p>

23

<p>yes, for those of us who are adults it is much easier to sort out. It is the kids that I am worried about--- I just received a PM from someone on another board stating that all the parents are PMing each other because there is one on there who is trashing anyone who doesn't agree with her. That makes me sad too.</p>

24

<p>By the way, I indicated to Roger that he should feel free to "verify" my credentials!</p>

25

<p>I'm leaving tomorrow as well, MomtoanUndecided! Does your daughter's school start on Wed. (not classes)? Mine does.</p>

26

<p>D'yer--ok, I'll fessup. </p>

<p>I'm mom of former 4 year boarding school student, now college sophomore and mom of middle school baseball playing son applicant to boarding school not this year but next, and dart/flame-thrower at arrogant posters. </p>

<p>Or, just baseballmom. You pick! :)</p>

27

<p>Drnancie and everyone else,</p>

<p>I guess your idea of identifying everyone isn't such a good one. Roger has told me that I can't identify myself as a consultant, since they don't want any advertising of any kind on here. I can understand that, that sounds fair.</p>

<p>So I will be changing my user name and not refering to clients or anything profressional. I probably won't post as much, it's hard to post without mentioning your background or why you believe something to be true. I hope I have given you all some good and fair advice and comments over the last few months. Good luck! I'm signing off....</p>

28

<p>Oh No! You have been so helpful in lending a little reality to all our speculation. Change your name and read the rules. There should be a way for you to comply but still provide insight.</p>

29

<p>I have learned a lot from Edconsultant22's posts over the last few months, especially the anecdotes that support her views. She has given far more than she could have gained from participating in these discussions and feel sad that she feels she has to limit her posts. I hope you come back soon with a different name. (Maybe you could you keep the Edconsultant 22 name so that we can continue to pm...?)</p>

<p>By the way, I am a mother of a 9th grade applicant living abroad.</p>

30

<p>I called attention to edconsultant22 in my post, not realizing the backlash that would ensue. I feel terrible about this and I apologize to edconsultant22 and to everyone who has -- or might have -- relied upon her wisdom. </p>

<p>Considering this boarding school corner of CC is largely an exercise in the blind leading the blind, the presence of edconsultant22 has provided light where there has been darkness, reason in the face of insanity, and order that undermines the prevailing chaos.</p>

<p>So, it seems that not only will there not be a solution for this outpost, the overall value and appeal of this space has decremented several notches.</p>

<p>My bad.</p>

31

<p>is the issue advertising? I don't understand the problem- is it that people could hire her?</p>

32

<p>aw, edconsultant, we'll miss you. :( thank you for all of your advice...it's been so helpful to have a professional on here. as burb parent said, try changing your name and still let us PM you :)</p>

33

<p>No! We promise not to hire edconsultant, Roger!</p>

34

<p>I'm a student that will start 9th grade at Choate tmr!</p>

35

<p>Edconsultant, can you PM me your new user name?? :) </p>

<p>To the admins: I never felt she was soliciting her services, and she answered my posts and PM'd me several times. I even asked her for FREE information, which she willingly gave and I'm sure she charges her clients for what I asked. </p>

<p>I think it is helpful to have people like Ed Consul22 on this board to put some of "us" in our places at times and give us real life examples of things. She has vastly more experience than any of us do in this area.</p>

<p>I am, by the way, a parent of a perspective student.</p>

36

<p>Roger -- She was one of the most helpful people on this board! It is a big loss. Would you advise her on how she can comply with your rules but still help?</p>

37

<p>I agree with Linda that she is definitely not soliciting her services. She's one of the most helpful people in CC since she has a lot of experiences, thus, being able to give accurate information and probably unbiased opinions. It is really helpful to have a professional here (and she doesn't charge a cent!)</p>

<p>I'm a prospective student, living in the Philippines.</p>

38

<p>edconsultant also pm'd me with advice in response to my questions on CC, with the sole intention of aiding me! She did not attempt to sell any service to me!</p>

<p>PLEASE don't make her leave CC! She has shared in the true spirit of this online community and has served to provide a non-child/non-parent voice of reason to many threads!</p>

39

<p>I also pm'd edconsultant22 with questions and she took the time to send me thoughtful and objective responses based on her professional knowledge, again with no attempt whatsoever to sell her services. Please come back, edconsultant22! I hope Roger Dooley sees this thread.
--- a Tokyo-based mom---</p>

40

<p>I don't understand why this thread was started in the first place. The Prep School Admissions forum is one of the friendlies sites in the entire internet with people who try very hard to provide honest support and answers. Anyone who reads the site for any length of time can tell who are the students, prospective students, etc. </p>

<p>Nothing is ever exact on the internet. People post their "chances" threads all of the time. And who are we to tell them if they have a chance? We are all a bunch of amateurs but we try to provide information as we know it from our experience.</p>

<p>Now one of the most helpful posters (edconsultant22) has to go into hiding
after helping a lot of people. It's a shame.</p>