BASIS San Antonio- Shavano Campus

Posted: February 6, 2026

Posted: February 6, 2026

Posted: February 6, 2026

Posted: February 6, 2026

Posted: February 6, 2026

Posted: February 6, 2026

Posted: February 6, 2026

Posted: February 6, 2026

Basis is all about school rankings and money. They push subjects and materials beyond the children’s comprehension just so they can post skewed accomplishments. Your child will become depressed, disappointed, frustrated and down on themselves. Administration doesn’t care. In fact they don’t even choose the curriculum. The curriculum is mandated by a panel disconnected from schools and students. In other words they only care about bragging rights.

Posted: January 18, 2026

i really wish i stayed at my previous school. this school prepares for college but most of the teachers are disengaged and the school is really hard on mental health.

Posted: January 18, 2026

Posted: January 18, 2026

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Posted: January 18, 2026

Posted: August 5, 2024

School is very disorganized. The teaching methods are all over the place and they push you out if they don’t think your child can handle their curriculum. Of the course of my child’s tenure at basis school’s (he’s joined at 5 grade through high school) multiple children pushed out even as high as senior year. They do this so their scores look great. They can rank higher this way. If your children go here please be careful and understand the rules the go by.

Posted: August 5, 2024

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Posted: February 22, 2024

We transferred into the school from another good school where our child was doing well expecting a more challenging curriculum. What we're seeing is high pace, low concern, with a heavy emphasis on acquiring tutoring outside of the school for success. If your child was not in Basis from the beginning, and is also not a genius, it will be an uphill battle with very few resources available to help.

I believe the staff cares, the head of the school, Bridgett Parker seems really nice and engaging. However, to a certain extent I believe the staff is handcuffed to the "overload the kids with academics" style, with little flexibility to create an all around positive scholastic experience for the students. The teaching is more like college style, even for the middle schoolers that probably need more instruction and guidance, which is why a few other parents note the "sink or swim" environment.

Academically speaking, if your child can withstand the intense coursework, they will be more than ready for most colleges and universities. Socially your child may be at a disadvantage if they transfer in, or are not already highly advanced academically because there won't be much time outside of school available for them to enjoy. Expect homework daily, and too much of it.

Overall, I think Basis can be a great school for some students. The classes are challenging, but if they are fast learners it should be fine. If they have issues with anything, don't expect any worthwhile help to fill in the gaps at the school. Any child transferring in, you need to enroll them at a tutoring facility that covers the sciences and advanced math as soon as possible. Expect your child to be stressed out the longer they stay here. Beware of burnout as well.

Posted: February 22, 2024

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Posted: February 22, 2024

Posted: January 6, 2019

We have had 4 kids at Basis. Our older 2 kids do well, they began in 5th grade before the new Shavano campus existed. We knew our younger 2 would need a little more help so we were so excited for the primary school to open. We thought it would be a good ramp into the middle/high school. Unfortunately, they have the same sink or swim mentality the middle school has. They can either learn the singular style they use or they will slowly drown in homework, overly complicated tests and lack of engagement from teachers.

Posted: January 6, 2019

Worksheets of homework for Kindergarteners. Nothing they can do on their own it must be read by the parents and I had to google to find some answers... I had no ida what a phonogram was?

Posted: January 6, 2019

There is little to no communication from teachers unless parents email them and ask questions. No teacher conferences, nothing.

Posted: January 6, 2019

Develops student responsibility, no clue what kind of character lessons they discuss... because there is no real communication. They are only interested in grades.

Posted: January 6, 2019

Posted: January 6, 2019

If your kid is naturally bright and organized this school is great. If they are not the school does not teach strategies or help students learn. If your student has a diagnosed disability they may be more helpful? In general, they have a lecture style of teaching.

Posted: January 6, 2019

We have never had any bullying issues.

Posted: April 29, 2017

I have not heard of any instances of bullying so I cannot fully address this but the absence of bullying observed by my daughter portends it is effectively dealt with if it is occurring.

Posted: April 29, 2017

The school is designed to meet the needs of all forms of learners. In the case of my daughter, she is a dominant visual learner so the well-designed slides and excellent textbooks facilitate her particular learning style.

Posted: April 29, 2017

The administrators are single-mindedly committed to driving the school towards excellence and are accessible and highly competent.

Posted: April 29, 2017

The environment at BASIS Medical Center is very diverse and tolerant and this includes both teachers and students. My daughter has not encountered any form of bullying and respect and compassion are integrated into the school mission and environ.

Posted: April 29, 2017

BASIS teachers are hired based on their expertise in their subject and for their true commitment to teaching and they are rigorously mentored to be ever increasingly skilled educators. I am a professional educator at the college level and am incredibly impressed at the knowledge, skill, and commitment of all my daughter's teachers at BASIS. I have also found every one of her teachers to be responsive to my emails and calls and the same goes for the administrators.

Posted: April 29, 2017

There is a significant amount of homework but all is specifically targeted to develop learning skills and master the material and is never "busy work". The homework is also consistent and predictable such as having the same amount of math problems every night and the nightly task of outlining parts of book chapters prior to the lecture on that topic. In many cases, homework is a targeted review to prepare students for exams, both those in class and AP exams they will take at the end of the year.

Posted: April 29, 2017

My daughter attended 8th grade at BASIS Medical Center and is now a freshman there. The BASIS system of schools developed, and now utilises, an exceptional curriculum that is integrated across subjects and taught by teachers that are experts in their field and mentored to excel at teaching. There are ample resources available, including teacher office hours, peer tutors and academic support programs, to allow children to succeed. BASIS also provides students with excellent training in organisational skills, note-taking and study techniques that let them succeed as life-long learners. Teachers and administrators are available and receptive. My daughter has not experienced any bullying, nor has she witnessed any bullying, and the student body is diverse and tolerant. However, parents of prospective students need be aware that the school only has a "fast lane", and if students are not fully committed to meeting the demands of the very rigorous curriculum, wherein virtually every high school course is honours or AP, a given student, regardless of intellect or potential, could very well have a negative experience.

Posted: April 26, 2017

This is the first school my son has been challenged at. He was bored in reg public schools. If he didn't understand something or needed help he went to student hours and the teachers helped him a lot. We haven't seen a lot of bullying. We have seen A LOT of acceptance. This is a very diverse school. All religions and races coming together peacefully for education. It's a beautiful thing to actually see and have hope for their future.

Posted: February 1, 2017

Students are not cared for, very high rate of items stolen out of kids backpacks, school does not have cameras in the right places, teachers are very uncaring and expect the students to perform at a higher level of learning and much more...

Posted: February 1, 2017

There is no guideline on this at all. the bullied students are also held responsible...

Posted: February 1, 2017

Posted: February 1, 2017

Extremely poor handling of ongoing issues with total disregard towards students...

Posted: February 1, 2017

They only show videos and counsel students, no active correction involved...

Posted: February 1, 2017

Some teachers are very unprofessional venting their anger on kids...

Posted: February 1, 2017

Grading is inconsistent, not returning quizzes and tests in a timely manner...

Posted: February 24, 2016

Posted: February 24, 2016

Posted: February 24, 2016

Posted: February 24, 2016

No school is perfect but Basis Medical Center is pretty close to meeting my expectations of what an excellent school should be. I have a child with an IEP (special needs) and another who does not. Both children are doing very well (one has to work harder) and they both love it. For a school that has only been open 3 years there will be always be growing pains, but I see a huge improvement this year. I just wish they had grades under 5th. My caution to parents considering this school- do not expect to just dump your kids in this school. A child's success at Basis is directly related to the parent's assistance in their adjustment. Once their adjustment is complete the parent's work is not done, but is noticeably less. One observation I would like to share as sensitively as possible. If my child's special need was significant enough to hinder her success here, I would never subject her to the decreased confidence and stress failure would bring. We are blessed to have found this school!

Posted: November 25, 2015

All teachers are hired because they are subject matter experts in their subject area, however, some teachers are more effective with their teaching methods and support resources than others which becomes evident with how effectively and quickly their students are mastering the learning goals.

Posted: November 25, 2015

They do have more homework compared to public schools, but they also provide after school teacher student hours and tutoring to help support students.

Posted: November 25, 2015

What impresses us about this school is how it nurtures the youngest of scholars to reach their highest academic potential; teaching at the highest global academic standards and not limiting high aptitude learners from soaring through high level course content. Even allowing 5th and 6th grade students with high math aptitudes to take high school level Algebra 1 and earn high school credit. Also providing middle school scholars with AP infused courses. Other things about this school that make it extraordinary is its vast international student body diversity and student group traveling opportunities. My children have made many friends that are not only from outside of the state but many who have family ties outside of the US. This school has also provided student travel opportunities to such places as Canada, New York, and Big Bend National Park. This year they are planning a trip to Italy and several trips across the US to visit several top universities. What other schools offer that?

Posted: September 22, 2015

Posted: August 19, 2015

My child loves this school. She feels she is being challenged, but not overwhelmed and has made many new friends. My son is also looking forward to attending in a couple years.

Posted: August 19, 2015

The teachers work hard to make sure the students understand the material. Each teacher has at least one hour a week after school they are required to be present in case any students need help or have questions. Some teachers have more than one. They also have hours set aside to meet with any parents who request a meeting. In addition, there is an academic advisor program where students who are doing poorly meet at least once a week to get study skill help and make a plan to improve.

Posted: August 19, 2015

I think each student is different, but there are usually about 30 problems or so of math a night, plus a couple other subjects. My child usually spends an hour or two on homework. She still is able to attend sports practice at night, eat dinner, and get to bed by 8:30-9. Usually she also has time to relax or read as well. Again, each child is different.

Posted: August 19, 2015

They are strict, but they expect kids to be responsible for themselves ans their actions. If they forget homework, they don't get credit for it. If they are late after the first 3 weeks, they have to attend a study hall and make up the class work later so they don't disrupt the rest of the class coming in. I feel this teaches a lot of responsibility for the kids at a time when the consequences are less severe. That way when they are in jobs later, they will already have these values. As for the bullying another poster mentioned, you are going to see some of that in any middle school environment, because they are growing. I do not believe that the administration lets it go however, as I have personally witnessed a class of 6th graders being lectured on bullying and having the consequences outlined to them (including being removed from the school). I just happened to be waiting for my daughter when this occurred.

Posted: August 5, 2015

Posted: August 5, 2015

My child cannot do anything but homework, she comes home and does homework, eat dinner and goes back to homework and sleeps.

Posted: August 5, 2015

This school has much bullying, and the faculty does not care about it at all.

Posted: August 5, 2015

Too much work for my fifth year old, she cannot do any of her extracuricullar activities, including soccer. We will withdraw her for sixth grade.

Posted: May 31, 2015

This is the second year for us at BASIS. There have been many changes since last year from an admin point. Response time to parent emails has improved 100% percent, and there seems to be better delegation of responsibilities.
We are losing some amazing exceptional teachers this year which has concerned many of us. We are told this is not cause for concern, but one can't help but wonder.
My son is very happy at BASIS. He has learned over the past two years how to better manage his time, but there is definitely no shortage of homework.
He will enter 7th grade in the fall and already has completed two years of Latin, Algebra 1, as well as Chemistry, Physics and Biology. He's found great satisfaction in the past two years of band as well.
The school is a challenge and definitely not for everyone. Our reason for choosing BASIS was the lack of challenge in our "exemplary" public school. He was bored, making all A's, and we felt his potential was being stymied.

Understand it's not as convenient as public school. There is no school bus (although a group of parents has banded together to charter daily service that we pay a nominal fee for). There is also no cafeteria, but our Boosters program has a daily menu that you can buy (ahead of time) for your child at about $5-$6 per day.
There is a misconception that there are no sports, or after school activities and that is absolutely not true.

We have been very happy with how engaged he is at school and so far, we have no regrets.

Posted: September 3, 2014

I'm am a 6th Grader Here. It is my 2nd yr. overall not the school for everyone. You must be able to take around 2hrs of hw each day. Teachers are great here!

Posted: June 21, 2014

This school has outstanding teachers and administrators. The whole system works together to demand high performance from students. This year (their fist here in San Antonio) our child learned high-school level material in 6th grade and was motivated to achieve honor roll status all year. We are impressed and so glad we found them.

Posted: June 12, 2014

BASIS is just completing its first year. Like any school, it has had its ups and downs. It also has more than its fair share of outstanding teachers. The negative... 1st, admin at the school is minimal by design. Policy is to respond to student emails first, and parent emails as time permits. It's tough for parents that are used to scheduling their children's lives for them. Make use of parent-teacher hours. 2nd, students need to come to class well prepared. Stories of 3-4+ hrs/nt workloads are true, as are the stories of kids averaging under 20 mins. The difference is preparation, organization, and time management. Your child has to want to be in this school. The positive... 1st, teachers are AMAZING. They aren't restricted to TEKS, so are free to teach at incredible depth, in subjects they have degrees in (many PhD's!). 2nd, though we aren't fond of Saxon Math, the acceleration options are unmatched. 3rd, it's nice that the school values academics/service over sports/cliques. Our son is the happiest he has ever been. He loves the content, the teachers, and the friends he has made. The school isn't perfect, but it is hands-down the best free education in SA.