Off to School

Why choose private school over public school? The debate of private vs public school is a topic that can be a bit sensitive and competitive, but the truth is that we should all be having this conversation about the privatization of education.

Having children and building a family with the right fundamentals is a beautiful and challenging journey. As kids grow up, they learn more and more about the world around them, and not just from within their own home – they need to go to school and experience life outside the four corners of their safe households.

Sending your child out into the big world can be scary, which is why the education systems we choose for our children are crucial to their development. At the end of the day, they will be spending more hours per day in school than doing anything else. Crazy, isn’t it? To think that a big part of developing the characteristics of your child is in the hands of someone else is pretty frightening. Thus, when it comes to education you want the choice to be in your hands.
The public school system is great for people who live in good school districts, but for those who find themselves in neighborhoods with less-than-stellar schools, there is a genuine risk of your child’s education being compromised. Now comes the difficult but very real question. Shouldn’t something as crucial as our child’s education be a choice that we as parents should be able to make? Just because we can’t afford to live in the top neighborhoods does that mean that we have to worry about our children’s values and safety 10x more than someone who lives in a good neighborhood? Life isn’t fair, I know. But you know what, when it comes to the development of a child these kind of huge decisions should be something we are able to make.

Public School

Thanks to private schools, we are now able to have that peace of mind of knowing that we are sending our precious children into a system filled with all the right things. Whether it is religious reasons, or just moral values, private education has been a concept that has widely expanded over the years.

At the end of the day each family will develop their own dynamic with their own set of rules. What’s great about most private schools is that they will take certain children based on values and religion. Meaning, if you want to go to a school full of strictly Catholic children, the option is available. You wouldn’t have to worry about them “losing their faith” to the public school system. If you want no religion in your child’s education but do want certain strict policies to keep your children in line, that option is available as well.

Here’s the question that everyone wants to know: why would someone choose private school over public when weighing public vs private school?

Private School

Private schools offer the following:

• Quality academics
• An education that focuses on the “whole” person
• Spiritual and ethical values
• Caring teachers
• Safe environment
• Supportive communities
• Individualized attention

In the educational world, something that is often spoken about is having kids focus most on reading and math. These two subjects are extremely important and are focused on a great deal in the private school system along with the public schools. But something I want to shine light on is that learning math formulas and decoding words are not the “main goals” of education, but rather paths to the goal. What is the goal, then? The goal is the formation of the whole person, which consists of moral, spiritual, cultural, academic, aesthetic, and physical. When constructing a beautiful puzzle, it’s always best to have the full picture in mind. That’s how we need to look at the development of our children.

These days, most schools are losing sight of the full picture. They choose to obsess about particular pieces of education. I have a few friends who teach in the public school systems, and from what they tell me, the decision to send children to private schools is becoming a much easier solution. Why, you may ask? There are a few simple reasons. To start with, it’s no secret that public schools are often underfunded. The school’s survival is based on its students’ AYP (abdicate yearly progress) reports on standardized tests in two subjects. Can you take a guess which two? Reading and math. Surprise! There you have it. It is for this reason that teachers put all of their energy into these two topics. It’s as if they put their soul into one part of development while watching the rest of the picture float away due to personal agendas of the school.

Private schools do more than just teach children math problems and pronounce words in English. Why? Because a fully rounded person is more than the sum of those two skills alone. Of course in private schools math and reading is taught as well, and not only that, but their standardized test skills show that students tend to exceed the national average in these areas. But the schools also put just as much emphasis on art, music, science, social studies, physical education, and depending on the school, religion. For example – why are we here? What is our responsibility to others and society? Take a look a private school’s mission statement, and I promise you’ll be convinced.

ACT scores

There’s not much to argue about when it comes to this subject. Children who go to private schools are no “better” than children who are in public schools. However, studies do show that private vs public school education standards are reflected in the students, and that children who attend private schools do tend to exceed the national average – that’s just the facts. Yes, getting children into these kinds of schools might be hard to do, but isn’t your child’s future worth the extra effort? Wouldn’t you rather see your child strive to be the greatest kid they can be? That is the difference that many others and I have experienced. When comparing the options there’s really no question.