MtbbikeVanlife

Help....

I have been offered the opportunity to work in Virginia for 2 years from November 2011.

The main stumbling block is my eldest daughter is doing very well at high school here in the UK and in September 2011 will go into Year 10. She is expected to do a number of GCSE's a year early and then have the opportunity to concentrate on some advanced science qualifications for the last year of High School. Whilst it is hard to think so far ahead, after High School she is considering an International Baccalaureate at college before going to University.

I have got as far as looking through Virginia's Department of Education Website, but I cannot find any decent information on schools, standard of education, comparing High School qualifications etc...

Can any of you point me in the right direction, please ? !

Thanks.

Carl.

Bob

Have a search on the forums, quite a few threads will have general info on where to find the info.

Basically what the school teaches and what they teach will depend on the school and location you live in exactly.

One thing to consider, kid needs 3 years residence in the EU if they go to uni in the UK to not be classed as a international student, which can be a little pricey.

penguinsix

US schools are hyper-geographically dependent, so it will depend on exactly where you are living (i.e. what street). Many schools in Northern Virginia are top notch. In fact one of the best in the country is in Fairfax, VA (a math and science academy that is filled with sons and daughters of engineers). It's a magnet school (i.e. pulls the best kids from various local schools) so admission is difficult to say the least.

http://www.tjhsst.edu/

We have a wiki with general bits on education and some links to some sites that you might use for more information:

http://britishexpats.com/wiki/What_d...s_in_school%3F

As Bob mentioned, the bigger issue may be the university schooling and the issue of her being classed an international student. Unless she is interested in schooling here in the US for Uni.

As for your general question--it's not answerable until we have more details--where you are living, long term college plans, field of interest, and even social and emotional maturity (at the higher ages this gets to be a factor in the kids adjustment process). She's also of age to get a drivers license which will make your life a bit scary, especially if living in Northern Virginia traffic.

In short, schools here can be better than the best you've ever seen and worse than the worst the UK has to offer (I know, not really that helpful). If you have some more details we can try to narrow it down a bit.

So where exactly will you be living? City or county if you haven't found a house yet.

kins

Just to throw this into the mix, many US High Schools now offer the International Baccalaureate.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/03/ed...alaureate.html

There's also the Advanced Placement program, which I don't understand all that much about but I believe it involves taking college level courses while at high school...

penguinsix

Here is a bit more on Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_...and_Technology

One of their classes is actually building a small satellite that will be launched by NASA / Orbital Sciences next year. This will be the first CUBESAT launched by high school students.

Kaffy Mintcake

Correct. You also have a pass an exam to qualify for college credit. Think of Advanced Placement classes as one step above an Honors class.

In my school they went like this (note - these classifications were not offered for all subjects):

*Remedial
*Regular (standard)
*Honors
*Advanced Placement

So in my case I took Advanced Placement (AP) English and French, did well on the exams and started University with credit for two classes.

Englishtart

We were hoping to get our Son into an IB school here, didn't realise they had to have at least two years of high school to complete to get into that program. (good idea to keep that in mind)

We did get him into a good school though, they have him doing three college courses in his senior year, (AP) basically this means that if he passes all three, he could start college as a sophomore and skip the junior year altogether.

katybluewater

Hi CeeJay - we live in Northern Virginia -not far from Tysons Corner, and the schools here are really good. The school that they go to depends on where you live - you dont get a choice - so bear it in mind when you are looking at areas to rent. A good site is also Greatschools - which gives school ratings, and you can check if your postcode allows you to go to that school. On the IB front - I know that George Mason HS also does the IB programme. Good Luck with the move

MtbbikeVanlife

Just in from work..... Thanks for all the replies !

It looks as though work will take me to Richmond / Norfolk / Virginia Beach - so schools in those area would be of most interest.

Whilst my daughter is looking to do the IB, this will be when we are back in the UK and it is the preliminary schooling that is important. I'm not sure if my comment that next year she will be in year 10 has confused things... I meant UK year 10 - She will be 14 !

What was said about the area you live in dictates the school the kids can go to explains the differences in house rental prices !!! Some things are just the same as in the UK !

I'm off now to follow up on all the links recommended in the above posts.

Thanks.

Carl.

lisa67

you might get some more info/help from

www.city-data.com too

jumping doris

I live in SW PA. Our schools do IB from 1st grade. All that means is that they follow a slightly different curriculum with a more global approach.
They can opt in and out each year.
It continues like that until middle school...age 10 to 14 when it becomes more of a preparation course for the IB diploma. They start the diploma course in their junior year of high school...age 16.
Even if they don't want to do the full diploma course they can cherry pick a few subjects and receive college credits.
My eldest did IB art and french at high school and got some credits when she went to uni.
My youngest has done IB since she was 10 and plans to do the full diploma course when she is 16.

I don't know if this is the same type of IB course you are thinking of.

MtbbikeVanlife

So - thanks to all, especially the city-data.com link.... Very useful not just for the schools but also for the business as well !

One more question..... I assume kids in America finish school at 18 and not 16 as in the UK ?

Do they take any exams at 16 ?

The reason is that it would be highly likely that we would return to the UK when my daughter is 16 - how would she get on getting a place at a UK college ? (perhaps this is a question to ask a likely college in the UK !).

Thanks.

CArl.

PS - yes, thats "3" more questions !!!

Bob

Kids finish school at 18. They essentially do a set of exams and graduate, or if they didn't finish school, they could do an equivalent set of tests called the GED.

At 16, no idea, depends on the school and subjects I guess.

AmerLisa

I've never heard of a "set of exams" and then graduate, Bob. If you're thinking of finals, they have those every semester through high school. Some kids now have to pass their state competency tests to graduate, however I don't know if that's everywhere yet.

Kids finish school typically after they've completed their senior year in high school. Our daughter will be 17 when she graduates. Some kids can finish school earlier, depends on certain programs.

AmerLisa

She probably wouldn't be finished with school here at 16, well not enough to go on to University. However, in saying that, there are no rules written in stone and you will definitely have to talk to the high school your children attend. That really is the best way to get any kind of valid answers to your questions.