BASIS San Antonio Primary - North Central Campus

"Cons (Maybe): My son is in 1st grade and has attended Basis since kinder. This school is definitely for the parents that continuously encourage and work with their kids on the homework and cover other material outside of school. I am a licensed engineer and find that some of the math he is being taught in 1st grade is quite advance for his age. Fortunately, I've been practicing mathematics and reading with him ever since he started talking so the course work for him is manageable (it takes him about 30 mins to finish his homework every night). However, if you are the type of parent to let your kids "figure it out" they will most certainly fail at this school, the curriculum is just too challenging. Pros: He has gained so much knowledge in the past two years it's a little scary and I am confident that if he finishes his years at Basis he will be a leader in life and not a follower. This school will NOT limit your child."

"Interesting to see that the reviews here either love the school greatly or hate it immensely. Let's not even get started on the little things like spelling and grammar of the reviews :-) Seems that there's always room for improvement. Often in very unexpected ways. Submitted for public flame wars: Abolish all homework of any kind immediately. Consider that if this were a job employing the children to learn, they could not legally work them that many hours per day/week. "Empty your purse to fill your mind, and your mind will fill your purse." B. Franklin"

"Excellen school, challenge and advance curriculum. My kids love it there. Happy parent!!"

"Hopefully I can respond to Sincerely A Parent's post without rating. I am a parent of a student at Basis Medical center, but I know that the work load and standards are the same. Two academic years ago my daughter came to Basis in February in the 6th grade. This meant that she came in during the 2nd year of Latin and well into the second semester. It was a killer and we were told more than once not to be surprised if she failed a few classes, due to how late we came in. Based on the fact that she was undiagnosed with ADHD type 1 at the time, we were struggling, to say the least (she was officially diagnosed after the school year ended). It was primarily the effort of the teachers during student hours and their coaching that led to her successfully completing the year. She worked hard but when her report card was handed to her, so many of her teachers sought her out to congratulate her on passing all of her classes. They genuinely cared and rooted for her. I'm very surprised this parent had this issue, but after 3 academic years at Basis I have consistently seen kids who, like most kids, don't take this academic rigor seriously. The world is passing us by in academic standards and Basis sets the bar in a nurturing environment. I am not saying there haven't been crappy teachers, but, at least at my campus, they are shown the door pretty quickly. There is a lot of homework and it's hard but my kids (her sibling joined her the next year) are supported by their teachers and by me, as their parent. And, honestly, when I ask them every summer if they want to do it again the next year, they say yes. They have a lot of pride in their school and in their own accomplishments. What more can I ask for! * I cannot submit without a rating, so my rating is for the San Antonio Basis Texas (BTX) Charter Schools."

"Our kids came from the public school system. We enrolled our students last year, and have found that if you have kids that do not come from an already advanced status at their previous school they can have a VERY hard time with the curriculum at Basis. THE HOMEWORK IS INSANE! It is done usually by 10:00 PM each night, and this is supposed to be where they are taking it easy on the kids. From what I was told a few weeks from now they are going to increase the work load. I agree Basis has a very challenging and rigorous work routine, and this can be very beneficial for the students who were already on that level, but what happens with the ones who need more help? Who love this school environment, but can't keep up? Well I'll tell you what happens. The teachers eventually lose interest in your kid. They send you email after email of their concerns and suggest to re-evaluate your presence at Basis. When the students ask for help in class they are told to put their hand down. Per the teachers they will not be taking any questions as they expect your child who not only already spends the entire evening on homework at home they are also expected to come to the afterschool hours with their questions (which they have to recall by memory as they are not given enough time to write them down) The most ridiculous response so far this year that I have heard was when my son rose his hand and asked the teacher “Can you please repeat that?. You’re speaking way to fast.” was then told “Well…this is a college prep school” and she moved on WITHOUT repeating… As far as my questions in my responses back to their emails they end up offering a pretty generic solution. Eventually they try to get you to move your kids out of Basis. "Why?" you ask? It's because Basis prides itself on a 100% success rate. If your child hinders that success rate they’d prefer you move on. We felt like every teacher/staff member was rooting for us to leave the school. The sad part is I wondered if we were the only ones. Well, we weren't. It turns out after talking to about a handful of other parents they too were struggling with these same issues. I however have been the only one to comment or bring it to anyone’s attention. I just wish Basis did more to keep all their students, and not just the ones who get them a shiny gold star. We didn't rate this school a 1 star because of curriculum. Our rating was based on how the school has responded to our kids needs, how they have made us feel, and how they really could careless if you leave... Word to the wise: Research this school first before registering!!"