Muirlands Middle School

Beeing new to the SDUSD and to the country and having 4 kids in 3 different schools I must say the school does not makes you feel welcome. The regulations are strict and Administartion(vice principal)is more concerned about the regulations beeing followed than about the students. They are kind of unfreindly and towards kids which don t understand the rules (because they don t know the language ) and also towards parents . I was never been treated so rude ina school administration before ... They argued at me before they even give me their name or I could figure out who they are- kind of strange.The result is that my kid does not want to attend that school any longer- it will be a hard job to get him motivated again.

I would give the 6th grade staff a grade of "B" the 7th grade staff a grade of "C" and the 8th grade staff a grade of "D". From a bit of nurturing in the 6th grade to none in the 8th grade it becomes a cold place to attend school. All warmth and caring seemed to be devalued this must come from the top. The school's office is very intimidating and not a nice place to visit. It's strictly business the 8th grade history teachers for example are like dictators and if you complain the administration about anything you become labeled "unreasonable". The school is good due to the community it is located in and the enrichment we provide our children outside of the school year. This school is stagnating.

The parent below me who rated 6th grade staff "B" and 8th grade staff a "D" had better realize that not only are there nurturing teachers at the 8th grade but these teachers also must prepare their students for high school. At high school there is very little nurturing if any. As a parent of a former Muirlands student who is now attending high school my daughter had a great experience in all 3 grades. She loved all her teachers at Muirlands especially those of the 8th grade. She felt cared for yet ready for independence. Muirlands is awesome. These teachers bring so much to their students. Some 8th grade students hung out in one teacher's room until 6 almost every day including my daughter. Is this not nurturing and caring? A very progressive school catering to a community that can be difficult at times.

Having had two children attend this school - one presently in 12th grade and one in 8th my experience with all of the grades at Muirlands is that it is a school of extremely strong teachers who provide an excellent learning experience. I can't think of one teacher all these years who hasn't challenged and inspired. The principal is an excellent leader who cares about the children. In this community it is academically one of the most challenging schools even among the private schools.

In my previous review I forgot to add (for the parent who is not enamored with the Muirlands math teacher) that my child is currently in that teacher s math class and struggles with algebra. Anytime my child has asked for help that teacher has given up her lunch for him. Her after school tutoring program is great. Kids can stay for as long as they want and my son has taken advantage of that to get his homework done. She stays until 6 on most days. Too bad your daughter did not take advantage of that! We do not allow our son to fall behind. Algebra does not come easily to him. We encourage him to complete his homework. My other 2 children who attended Muirlands did not experience any humiliation from any teacher. My son does not either. Teachers work very hard and oftentimes do not get the respect they deserve. In fact they are humiliated at times and the parents do nothing about it. As for administration and counselors I have never had a negative experience with them.

My daughter is in the 9th grade now and is doing well in school with the exception of algebra admittedly a difficult subject. Math is an extremely important subject and needs to be taught well. My child is now a year behind in math which really becomes a problem with UC school requirements. The math teacher needs to retire! The school needs to hire someone who will teach effectively and actually help struggling students not care about just the "smart" students. She does however excel in humiliating the struggling students. The principal and counselors did nothing to intervene. We hired a great tutor but it our daughter was so far behind it didn't really help. The staff also needs to check the bullying problem especially against the special needs students.

I am a student at muirlands going into 8th grade. Muirlands is a hard school. You have lots o homework and big punishments for little actions. The school focuses too much on the bussed in kids who dont even want to be there. The principal isnt very nice the campus is very dirty and smells very bad. There are a few really great teachers (mainly 6th grade teachers) such as Ms.Latta Mr.Best Mr.Heinze and so on. Coming from a super amazing Elementary school muirlands was terrifying the first year. But now I do understand the real world. I have made a lot of friends this year and we have a lot of fun during classes so in a way it's worth it. Muirlands IS a glimpse of the real world which every kid needs to experience before being thrown into the real world.

THis is the greatest school ever. the teachers principal the classes are so great that words cannot describe it.

Muirlands is a fantastic school. I was really worried that my child would be lost there but that was completely unfounded. Not only is the quality of teaching excellent but also there are also so many opportunities for fun. All the new kids (and their parents) who were worried about going to Muirlands all agree it is a great school. I am frankly wonderfully surprised--because I was so worried about Middle School. However at Muirlands the teachers are EXCELLENT the communication between teachers and parents is clear and helpful. The staff are cheerful parents are engaged. Yes there is alot expected of the students (and their parents for that matter--e.g. signing off on homework and being involved in their kids' academics) however there is help always available. Also at Muirlands they take every opportunity to keep kids socially happy and busy having fun during lunch. Great school!

During the first week of school one of the staff coordinated a meeting for all of our students teachers to attend to coordinate our efforts to make sure the school year would be the most beneficial possible. That was unsolicited. All of the teachers were great happy to be there and caring educators. It does not get better than this.

Muirlands is not such a great school well in my opinion. I am currently in the 7th grade and the homework asiignments and the test and quizzes are really frustrating. If you don't take my word for it ask any student! That is why i give Muirlands 2 out 5 starts.

I am a student here and i enjoy being one because this school has great education and great teachers that make learning easy.

I am a student and I quite enjoy this school. It is one of the only in SDSU that has lockers and the balance of fun and learning is great. Teachers contantly encourage students and the field trips are once-in-a-lifetime experiences that few people could even dream of attending. The punishments we feel are fair and the assignments are neither difficult nor rigrous if a child understnads time management. And that is why I give Muirlands a 5 star rating!

Murilands is short on inspiring kids and long on punishment. I call it the school of hard knocks. The overall culture is to punish them for minor infractions like giving them zeros on assignments when they are sick or if they forget to get a parent to sign a reading log. My 7th grader was intimidated by her teachers and the teachers mostly unwilling to meet with us the parents to discuss academic problems. Had to get the principal to intervene. Looking around for other options.

teachers seem to run around afraid of the principal. There is little school spirit and my sister used to do all sorts of stuff that is not longer available to us.

We had Mr. Heinze in the sixth grade for social studies and he is the best! He took time for my child and worked tirelessly to make it an exciting year for the kids. Mrs. Latta is also a good teacher for science.

This school is ok not great. My daughter is a 8 grader. She liked Mr.Best Mr. Stephens Mrs Bixler Ms Allor and Mr.Gray. The Principal doesn't have the leader ship skill. The school cares and spends only on the bussed in kids and Seminar kids. The seminar kids have small class and The bussed in kids have extra after school class until 4 PM. Local GATE kids are left to fend for themselves. My daugther's math class has 40 students.

Having the second of my two kids is now halfway through 8th grade at Muirlands I give a 'thumbs-up' with an asterisk. My older child is a junior at LJHS and still counts his most influential teachers from Muirlands (Brown Lawrence & Fleck). He has a 4.4 GPA and credits the advanced math progress to Paula Brown. Mr. Fleck was just darn inspirational and what middle schooler doesn't need that? Jack Lawrence is a great teacher as the high school knew as that's where you'll find him teaching history now. Our younger child doesn't find academics as easy as the older one did but has established a remarkable work ethic to have a superlative GPA. So here's where the asterisk comes in... middle school is a challenging time for a student. They need positive support from the school and the home. If one is missing the other will suffer.

Mr Best is a great teacher he really cares and I am very lucky to have him. The school is dirty on the grounds.

School LOOKS better on the outside however many academic programs that were present when my older son went there have disappeared. The focus seems to be on the kids who are low or bussed in. Local GATE kids are left to fend for themselves. Principal is behind this focus and not responsive to her local parents. Principal ignores the demographics of La Jolla and runs the school as if it were in the middle of Clairemont.