Norwalk High School

23 Calvin Murphy Drive

School District

Norwalk
Grade

9-12
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:11
Type

public

GreatSchools Rating

The school rating calculation is based on four ratings: the Student Progress Rating or Academic Progress Rating, College Readiness Rating, Equity Rating, and Test Score Rating each designed to show different facets of school success. Learn more about GreatSchools Ratings

Reviews

Submitted by other on August 27, 2023

Just recently graduated in 2023, I had a good overall experience at Norwalk being very engaged in sports (Golf and Baseball Teams) and social events. At a school like Norwalk there’s definitely a mix of good and bad things and people which is why you need to surround yourself with good groups of people. Teachers really care and if you are a good student they are always willing to give you that extra push to get a better grade. Despite some low ratings the school teachers and staff do a really good job giving plenty of opportunities to help you succeed however these rating come from kids who decide to not take those opportunities. Be involved and surround yourself with good people and Norwalk High can be a really nice place to be.
Submitted by parent on April 20, 2021

My son graduated from NHS in 2020 and he was accepted into all of the colleges he applied to. I attribute this our involvement within his education planning and the activities that are available at NHS. Like every high school, there are the good, bad and ugly. So will start with the good - NHS has a wide variety of classes and pathways that are available. Although my son did not attend P-Tech, this is a fantastic partnership with NCC and IBM. It really is the wave of the future for STEM related classes and is highly sought after in the Norwalk School district. Their Band program is also one of the best in the nation - Arts are where this school is heading, so will be interesting to see where the aforementioned P-Tech lands. The bad - This school has a reputation of not providing good math and foreign language programs. I witnessed this first hand not only with my child, but many friends who had students struggled with teachers who seemingly could not connect with students. The Ugly - Parent involvement in both educational discipline and in school related functions has dropped off throughout the years. The only places where I see parent involvement come through is in athletics and their Nationally ranked Marching Band. The school caters to the lowest common denominator, so instead of moving forward at a more aggressive pace, they slow down the entire class for those who are lagging. I believe this is one of the top reasons Norwalk Schools are failing their students. Though this may sound heartless, I know of students at New Canan, one of the states highest rank schools, who tell me that the approach is exactly opposite. The school pushes forward and the slower students are left behind.
Submitted by other on January 03, 2020

Five stars overall based on what I’ve seen and heard
Submitted by student on January 17, 2016

Norwalk HS suffers from a combination of bad-teaching and just plain bad students... i asked a teacher recently why Norwalk is rated 4/10 an her answer was "minority students"... i was offended & appaled that a teacher would blame minorities at NorwalkHS for the deplorable school rating. Teachers are just as bad as the students. Birds of a feather flock together, avoid Norwalk schools if you want your child to succeed. The good reviews on here are clearly written by treachers, Lol
Submitted by student on October 08, 2012

I went to Norwalk High School and let me tell you I am glad I did. NHS is a place where students who want to succeed can. It offers an honors version of almost every core class, wonderful art (dark room etc) and music classes, and tons of AP classes with more every year(English,Spanish(language and literature), French, Physics, Biology, Chem, US history, Comparative Politics, Euro History, Art, and more). It offers programs to expand students horizons with trips to China(which I did and was one of the best experiences of my life, I still talk to both my home stay "Chinese friends" and those of my fellow NHS students after 3 years), Spain, Rome, France, as well as trips to the tropics for biology. I loved many of my teachers and still talk to them. Most importantly the diversity in this school prepares students for the world. You learn about people, not just how to write a good essay (although you learn that too). I'm glad I didn't go to a "better" high school. I learned everything I need to know about academics and people. I can prove it with the acceptance of colleges: UConn, Northeastern U, U of Washington-Seattle. Waitlist: Vassar and Whitman College. Don't overlook NHS.