Douglas MacArthur Elementary School

Posted: March 17, 2022

Posted: March 17, 2022

Posted: March 17, 2022

Posted: March 17, 2022

This school is focused on the lowest performing students. If your child is average or above average then you can expect that their day will be filled with worksheets. The staff also don't work together well. Students aren't grouped for instruction at their. The classroom instruction is what the lowest students are able to do.

Posted: March 17, 2022

Posted: March 17, 2022

Posted: March 17, 2022

Posted: March 17, 2022

Posted: February 13, 2022

Posted: February 13, 2022

Posted: February 13, 2022

Posted: February 13, 2022

Posted: February 13, 2022

Posted: February 13, 2022

Posted: February 13, 2022

Posted: February 13, 2022

Exceptional experience across multiple children. Outstanding caliber of teaching with great support resources available for students. Responsive administration.

Posted: September 15, 2021

Posted: September 15, 2021

Posted: September 15, 2021

Posted: September 15, 2021

Douglas Macarthur is great school . My daughter is going there. They have a great team .

Posted: September 15, 2021

Posted: September 15, 2021

Posted: September 15, 2021

Posted: February 28, 2020

My child is physically assaulted almost weekly by some of his peers. Nothing is changing. I want to remove my child from the school but he loves what he is learning about and he keeps hoping things will change.

Posted: February 28, 2020

3 & 4 th grades were good, because the teachers were very good, and had a firm grasp on how to teach neurodiverse children. 5th grade has been a nightmare. ACPS needs to step in.

Posted: February 28, 2020

Bullying is not dealt with effectively. If you have a special needs child, this is not a safe place. My autistic child is repeatedly physically assaulted almost every week. His teacher brushed it off for months. Found out she was clueless about his IEP and I am so mortified at the damage done and what we suffered through.

Posted: February 28, 2020

We had a wonderful principal, and two wonderful VPs and they all resigned last year. No decent hand off. The people who are replacing them are nice, but they've inherited a mess.

Posted: February 28, 2020

They want to cut any accommodations down as much as possible. They think that talking about differences and being comfortable with this is not permitted. Since when?

Posted: September 4, 2018

This is a wonderful school, full stop. The fact that DMES is rated a "3" is offensive, and says much more about Great Schools' silly algorithm than anything else. My family has been thrilled with the teachers and staff, and we have made great friends with other families. My son (first grade now) is thriving and couldn't be happier. For any prospective families put off by the score: please know there are MANY families at Macarthur who could easily afford to send their children to private school, and much prefer the excellent education they are receiving.

Posted: September 4, 2018

Posted: September 4, 2018

Posted: June 24, 2017

Posted: June 24, 2017

Posted: June 24, 2017

Posted: June 24, 2017

Posted: June 24, 2017

Posted: June 24, 2017

Posted: June 24, 2017

My daughter just finished 1st grade, so we have two years of experience with Mac, and we have had such a wonderful experience! So pleased with this school. The teachers are just top notch. She had Ms. Hellmuth this year, who is amazing. Absolutely incredible in terms of reading/writing. I couldn't believe how much she'd improved by the end of the year. We also had the BEST kindergarten team we could ask for last year.

When I asked my daughter what she'll miss about MacArthur this summer, she said "the teachers." Most kids are super excited for summer break, but not my girl. She already misses school and wishes it would be back in session!

Posted: July 18, 2016

I believe they would be more effective if they were given the opportunity to teach holistically rather than to the test.

Posted: July 18, 2016

Homework cannot be graded so children are not always required to do anything. This is frustrating for teachers and parents.

Posted: July 18, 2016

Honesty and compliance is drilled into the children. Most children are naturally this way and the families are good that have their children attend. We love the new AP as of the last year and 1/2.

Posted: July 18, 2016

If you are an average or above average student with no special needs or behavior challenges, this is a good school. Not great...good.
If your child needs anything special...a 504, IEP or just individual attention...not so good. The administration has not been proactive or even up to date on laws and regulations. Good news is that there will be a new AP that will hopefully have more knowledge.
School atmosphere is kept cool and orderly...no talking in the hallway and all straight lines...not child friendly.
Teachers are mostly good or Great! There is too much pressure on them regarding testing and keeping the kids under "control". We have LOVED our teachers:-)

Posted: July 15, 2016

Posted: July 15, 2016

Posted: July 15, 2016

Posted: July 15, 2016

My daughter just completed Kindergarten at Douglas MacArthur and we could not be happier with our experience at this school. Teachers care, parents are involved, the principal is present, and the encore classes are incredible.

My daughter had Mr. Jackson as her teacher and he was amazing. Very great at teaching each child at their individual level. His communication to parents was great as well.

She highly enjoyed her PE classes. They introduced different exercise routines to the kids including rock climbing and yoga. She ran laps each day and really learned how to take care of her body.

I am so pleased with this school. I never want to move away! When I asked my daughter what she'll miss most about school at the completion of the year, she quickly responded, "The teachers." I'm so grateful for all the wonderful teachers at our school.

Posted: July 11, 2016

Posted: July 11, 2016

This was our first year at MacArthur and we have been so pleased. My daughter's kindergarten teacher has been wonderful and the assistant principal, Ms. Itzkowitz, was very responsive when an issue came up. It's so comforting to know that we have leaders in the school who are there to support us and make the transition to elementary painless. Parents that I speak to really love the community and active PTA involvement. Highly recommend!

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 25, 2016

MacArthur is a wonderful school and community. It is the only school that uses responsive classroom model. Our children love the morning meetings -- when all students meet to share about their day. The teachers and staff are helpful and responsive. My 2nd grader loves her teacher. The teacher is so great that she even made learning Economics and taking math tests fun! We love the school and the community.

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 25, 2016

The teachers and staff are caring and very responsive. The parent community is engaged and supportive. We've been extremely pleased with the school for both the classroom activities and after school offerings.

Posted: April 25, 2016

Excellent school with a very strong principal and fantastic and dedicated teachers. Communication is excellent. My kids love their school and I love it too.

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 25, 2016

Kind, hardworking, engaged staff and parent community! My children are happy and are learning. There is effective use of technology, art, movement & exercise, community building, which enhance and enrich a rigorous curriculum.

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 25, 2016

Posted: April 18, 2016

Posted: April 18, 2016

Posted: April 18, 2016

Posted: April 18, 2016

Responsive classroom training has allowed our teachers ample ways to be effective for our students in all areas.

Posted: April 18, 2016

Homework has been just right per grade level, it has increased according to get students ready from Middle School.

Posted: April 18, 2016

Our teachers and staff are some of the best and brightest in ACPS. Our leadership team has high expectations for honesty and integrity for all students, teachers and staff..

Posted: April 18, 2016

Douglas MacArthur Elementary is a wonderful school and our experience has been fantastic with both of our children. Our teachers are trained in Responsive Classrooms which makes our learning environment one of the best in ACPS. Our school community and PTA are extremely active and engage. Some of the highlights this year, our Family Dance, 1st annual Science Fair, our amazing Book Fair, our learning Gardens, just to name a few highlights. Absolutely love our school!

Posted: April 17, 2016

The teachers and administrators are dedicated professionals. There is a great responsive classroom program. Extras like th family dance, multi cultural events. Great kids and families.

Posted: August 18, 2015

There is a strong current of racial disparity and school-sanctioned segregation and discrimination at this school.

Posted: August 18, 2015

My daughter attended MacArthur for K-5 until transitioning to GWMS. I found the teachers were generally good (although some were hit or miss) and administrators are supportive. However, the school is extremely racially stratified. My very friendly, sociable daughter was never invited to birthday parties, sleepovers, or social events held by the White girls in her class, despite being good friends with them in the classroom, starting in kindergarten. All the parents of color I spoke with recounted similar experiences. I'm a Georgetown professor and my husband is a lawyer, so I have to assume the exclusion was based on race, not class. By fifth grade, most of the White students in the class were placed in TAG, which meant they were on a separate track and not a single student of color in the fifth grade was in TAG (MacArthur had 50 students in TAG, 49 of whom are non-Hispanic White and 1 of whom is Black, in her fifth grade year), which means that each block was either entirely White or entirely students of color. My daughter was never recommended for TAG at MacArthur despite testing in the 96th percentile on her standardized tests in all subject areas, but in middle school maintained a 4.0 in all honors classes for the duration (and is now preparing for TC Williams). The curriculum at MacArthur was not very challenging and the teachers would consistently yell at the blocks with all Black and Latino students and praise the blocks with all White students. My daughter and her friends were constantly complaining that they thought the fifth grade teachers were racist. However, other than the fifth grade teachers, my daughter experienced a succession of excellent teachers.

Posted: May 26, 2015

Posted: May 26, 2015

Posted: May 26, 2015

No accountability exhibited by the teachers or the administration, and a complete lack of oversight from the superintendents office.

Posted: May 26, 2015

Horrible experience with this school. A teacher displayed incompetence, bullied the students, and called them names and the administration defended her on multiple occasions. She kept her job. The administration blocked our attempts to move out child out of the class, and made it difficult to get concrete answers to hold them accountable. We were greeted by the same lack of accountability when we brought our concerns to the superintenden's office. The district has many layers of obfuscation and denial to prevent anyone for suffering repercussions for their actions. Avoid this school and district if at all possible. If you can't avoid it, stay alert and be prepared to fight.

Posted: March 23, 2014

The level of education is very high, but the softer side of education (recess, social time, etc) is somewhat lacking. There is a strong socio-economic divide exemplified by the after-hours care.

Posted: April 23, 2012

D.M. exemplifies the type of personalized education our son needed. Our home school is Samuel Tucker but due to overcrowding we chose to send our son to this elementary school. Best decision ever!! Douglas MacArthur is run like a private school. I moved to NOVA from New Orleans for the school system and I am very pleased with this school.