Poll: Public School Or Catholic School

[*Fantasia*]

For the Catholics..

Would you rather send your kids to very good public school and save some money?
OR
Would you rather send them to Catholic school but on a very tight budget?

 

[disykat]

I'm not Catholic, so I won't answer the poll but rather just give input. If the public schools are very good, I would save the money and commit to doing their religious education seperately.

In our area, the only advantage I can see to the private schools is the religious education aspect. I think that can be accomplished through church attendance, religous ed programs like Sunday school, catecism (sp?), participation in youth groups, home study, etc.

The biggest thing for me that would be a deciding factor is peer groups. Since you said "very good schools" I assume there would be positive peer interaction for them in the public schools.

 

[Christine]

I'm going to answer this even though I'm *not* Catholic.

We live in a county where the public schools are okay. Some of the elementary schools are excellent, mostly all the middle schools suck, and several of the high schools are VERY good.

Both of my children went to public elementary schools. It was close to the house and was one of the best in our county. I was very happy with what went on there. Then came middle school. When DD was going into 6th grade, I knew our middle school was horrible. It had a police officer there every day, there were incidents every day. I sent my DD for 45 days and it was terrible, although she came home with straight A's on her interim report. a friend of mine knew I was unhappy and heard that there was an opening in the 6th grade at one of our local Catholic schools. Now, I had previously tried to get her into this school a few years before but I couldn't. I jumped on it. It was the best thing I ever did. Unfortunately, she no longer got straight A's, but the discipline and camaraderie among the students was wonderful and she had a very good 3 years there. In the meantime, while she was in the school, I got my son in there with a "sibling preference" so I wouldn't have to deal with the middle school crap with him. As much as I liked our public elementary school, I knew I needed to take the chance and put him in the Catholic school. He has been there since 4th grade and is going into 6th grade now. As good as our public school was (and my son was in "gifted" in the public school) they both had to work much harder in Catholic School.

Fast forward to high school. My DD "begs" me to go to public school. She's tired of the whole uniform thing and wants to go into a fine arts program which one of our public high schools offer. She also manages to get accepted into all three of our Catholic high schools (even the elite one). But, against my better judgement, and in hopes of saving $13,000 a year, I let her do public school. Biggest mistake for us.

Now, I want to say that you definitely CAN get a good education in our public high schools here. In fact, my best friend's daughter did great and she is currently attending a very good state university. My DD didn't fare well. She is the type of student that requires structure and discipline and a school that does NOT give her the option to learn or not. The public school did not care. They were always goofing off in class (teachers letting them listen to iPods, apply makeup on each other, etc.). All of this was extremely distracting for my DD. I don't 100% blame the public schools for this. It is my DD's personality. At the end of the year she told me that she just didn't have the internal discipline (and maturity--my words) to keep her studies up. She went from an A/B student to a solid C student with a D here and there. Not good.

In 3 weeks, she will start her sophmore year in Catholic school. I really believe that the classroom environment will be more conducive to her buckling down. It's a real shame I had to do this. I told my DD, "Think of all the Abercrombie&Fitch we could have bought for $13,000!!"

 

[Cool-Beans]

Regardless of religion, I would put my kids in the best school I could afford. Giving them a good head on their shoulders is more important than video games or a new car. Of course, my kids are a bunch of doofuses and need a good school!

Seriously, I have a great deal of respect for people who sacrifice to put thier kids in a better school, whatever religion (or non-religion) it is.

 

[Laurajean1014]

A good accredited Catholic school is a better learning experience than a good public. If you can spare the cost, it will be well worth the input.

Currently, my son has 16 kids in his class, which is ideal for teaching. The teachers are extremely committed to the school and study and can give a lot of one on one with the children. We are also very personal with the teachers, so at the mere nuance of an issue, it is taken care of. I don't know too much about public schools, but from people I know, issues seem to go un-noticed longer.

If my son keeps up his grade average, he could go to the best PRIVATE (not Catholic) school in the region. If so, then any college, including ivy league would want him. I'm not saying he will go to IL school, it's a great option.

 

[Pigeon]

I would take a good public school over a Catholic school any day of the week.

 

[Christine]

I don't know too much about public schools, but from people I know, issues seem to go un-noticed longer.

I can personally vouch for this. My DD was "slipping" and, with the exception of her Biology teacher, they DID NOT CARE. The Biology teacher was the only one who would talk with me personally about it, made arrangements to move her seat in class, and had a talk with her. The other teachers I could never get in touch with and her guidance counselor was a joke. I was told before my DD went into public school that "kids like her fall through the cracks." I was a little insulted, I remember, at the time. But it turned out to be true.

 

[lovmy2girls]

Choose the school that has the better education PERIOD!!! Our public schools here stink!!! and that is being nice. We are notorious in Florida for a sorry school system here is Escambia county FL. I know you said your public school is a good one, so you have to choose which one is better I would think.
Our girls go to a Christian school, not because we are Christian, because were not, but for the education. Its hard because they get taught more than just bible stuff, and we have to explain to them that its what the people at the school believe. So many different types of religious kids go to this school, Catholic, 7th day Adventist, Baptist, Mormon, etc... but their parents send them there because of the education. It's worth every penny to us.

 

[DisneyfeverTN]

I have attended both private schools and public schools. Two out of my three children have attended both. The private school is much better. We have very good public schools in our neighborhood. They just aren't as good as the private school. Here are a few of the reasons the private school is better for us:
1. They are able to give more attention to the students because of the teacher/student ratio.
2. There are more rules, so the children have a very structered learning environment.
3. The teachers are wonderful. They care about the students. I think it makes a big difference because the private school is so much smaller.
4. More of the parents are involved in the school and take a huge interest in their child's education. One of my DS's teachers told us that when she was a teacher at a public school, many of the parents didn't even show up for the parent/teacher night. All of the parents show up at our school. She was surprised at the difference.
6. Higher morals. My children attend a Christian school. We don't practice any religion.

I'm not saying that all public schools are bad. There are just so many children that attend them. In our private school, you can get suspended or expelled for certain types of behavior. Public schools don't have as much power.
I have learned this by experiencing both. My DD went to private from K through 7th. She then wanted to try public. It was the worse decision I ever made. My DS went to public from K through 4th. We enrolled him in private as of 5th and he told me that it was so much better. My youngest DS has always attended private.
This is all just my opinion based on my personal experiences. I know there are wonderful public schools. We just prefer private.

 

[Sammy]

Here's the comparison in my area: DD is going into 6th grade which is middle school here. The average class size in that middle school is 28 to 30. She attends private Catholic school and her 6th grade class size this year is 16. Big difference. I think it's just a matter of giving your children the best education for them. I had no problem whatsoever sending DD to the neighborhood public elementary school....it was wonderful! However, I knew that a class size that big was not good for her, so we made the decision to send her to private school for the middle school years.

 

[Pop Daddy]

It depends on how good the public schools are in your area, and also your views on the Cathloic schools.

 

[stinkerbelle's mom]

I am Catholic and was raised in public schools with Sunday school and catechism classes on the side. Never wanted to go to Catholic Schools and never wanted my kids too.

Well that all changed when I had kids. The public schools in our area are horrible. Started my son in public schools because he had dyslexia and adhd and the public schools were supposed to be better equiped for that giving him an IEP (Individualized Education Plan). My dd went to Catholic school from the beginning. My son stayed in public school until middle school when we thought it was too unsafe for him. We actually yanked him out of the school after speaking to the principal about something else. Best thing we ever did. The private school classes were smaller and just what he needed. He just graduated from their & will be attending a Catholic High School. Unfortunatly the school closed this past year so my dds will be attending a new Catholic school. The more we find out about this school the more excited we are for them to attend.

The teachers are very committed to the schools. The classes are smaller. The best part is everyone knows everyone. The older kids help the younger kids out, the parents all know each other and each others kids. Everything is so much more personalized and its a great feeling of warmth and comfort for the whole family. Our school that closed got together and had a goodbye picnic since people were going seperate ways. Everyone enjoyed themselves so much and were so sad to say goodbye that we've decided to do it every year. Teachers included.

My middle dd is thinking about going to a public high school because she wants to take a course in marine biology, but after reading comments from others on this board I'm thinking she may just stay in private school. It can be very expensive, but it is sooooo worth it.

 

[SadieDog]

I would take a good public school over a Catholic school any day of the week.

Absolutely!

 

[kbkids]

Choose the school that has the better education PERIOD!!! Our public schools here stink!!! and that is being nice. We are notorious in Florida for a sorry school system here is Escambia county FL. I know you said your public school is a good one, so you have to choose which one is better I would think.
Our girls go to a Christian school, not because we are Christian, because were not, but for the education. Its hard because they get taught more than just bible stuff, and we have to explain to them that its what the people at the school believe. So many different types of religious kids go to this school, Catholic, 7th day Adventist, Baptist, Mormon, etc... but their parents send them there because of the education. It's worth every penny to us.

I never realized you were from Pensacola - remember seeing your picture in your signature all the time - but you are so right about the schools in Escambia County. We moved over to Santa Rosa County when the kids came along for that reason, and we've been more than thrilled with the education they are receiving here. If we had not moved, no way would my kids be in the public schools in P'cola.

I'm taking a guess at the school your girls go to - it's probably the same one I grew up going too. You're right - they're getting a great education.

 

[Hedy]

For the Catholics..

Would you rather send your kids to very good public school and save some money?
OR
Would you rather send them to Catholic school but on a very tight budget?

Honestly, if the public schools are "very good", why waste the money? I'd say your kids are prone to finding good friends or bad friends at either, so if the education quality isn't an issue, save the money for college.

 

[NAB]

Your school systems in the U.S must be different from Canada because we have Public schools and we have Catholic schools. If you are Catholic you go there. We do have private schools but they are not just Catholic.

I would still send my to a Catholic school. Do you know how hard it is to teach even the Lord's Prayer to a child. Teachers can do that so much easier then a parent at home could. They have ways of teaching them. Plus they get all there sacrements done with all the class. First Communion with your class is a big deal to a child. And just over all teaching morals and stuff in Religion class. Now I don't know how or if they teach this in public school so if I am wrong about this sorry.

 

[Laura]

A good accredited Catholic school is a better learning experience than a good public. If you can spare the cost, it will be well worth the input.

That's not my experience. I did both public and Catholic school, and it definitely depends on the school district as to which is preferable. Sometimes public school is a better option, sometimes not. In my family's case, our public school district was far superior.

 

[georgina]

I went through 12 years of Catholic school, including an all-girls high school, where I got decent education, and we lived in a city where the public schools were bad. Also, practically everyone in the neighborhood went to my school.

My kids go to our local public schools, and as long as they are in the honors and AP programs, I am happy with the education they are receiving. They seem to have the best teachers in the advanced classes. I will say some things I hear about the regular classes bother me. Our church does not have a school and the kids would have to be bused or driven a long way to Catholic schools. I was very happy with our elementary school, OK with the middle school, and satisfied with the high school. You have to look at your own school situation. I think public schools are fine for my kids, I am an involved parent and keep on top of the situation at school.

 

[Buckalew11]

Also not Catholic but we do private Christian school and we do it for a few reasons. Ours is just a better school experience, a better learning environment, smaller classes, teachers who really know students and have time to care to go the extra mile, better education and one reason is because there are no grants or whatevers to a "try this method or that method". So often those new ways don;t work but *whoops* a whole class or two slips through the cracks while finding out it doesn't work.

The big reason for me is the religious aspect of it all. Classes are taught revolving around Biblical principles. It makes history so interesting, it makes science more interesting etc. It is a wonderful way to learn and see all the pieces fit together. That is the main reason we do Christian school. What DD gets at home and at SS are great but having it at school is so much better.
It is worth every penny we have spent so far and for us, it IS a sacrifice.

 

[DaisyD]

We made sure to check out the schools before buying. There is no way I'd move to a place that had terrible schools. The schools were the first priority when house hunting.