Private v.s. Public school

[MAC3]

Originally posted by CEDmom
I won't congratulate you. I wouldn't worry about the other parents though. Private schools attract a very diverse student body. Many students receive some type of financial aid so it really isn't all richy rich. I think the pros and cons Peg2001 listed are what I'd say as well.

I agree, I am far from ritzy(and my DD has been in Private Catholic since Kindergarten). That said I would add 1 con that my DD hasn't experienced (this may not apply to all Privates Schools though).

When other kids mention the Gymnasium(ours fails terribly) but they still do things equivalent.

Also what my DD refers to as specials like Home Ec. (if they even still call it that) they have some but choices are limited.

But my DD wouldn't trade her school for the world!

 

[MAC3]

Oops

 

[arminnie]

I don't live in Florida nor do I have kids in school, but I do have many friends who are teachers in public and private schools and I hear them talk. Don't just make an assumption that private schools are better.

There's a huge variation in private schools just as there is in public schools. If it's an area of any size and the economic demographics are at least okay there is probably at least one really good public school at the elementary, middle and high school areas. You just need to find it.

I am very glad that I went to school with people from all walks of life. Children learn that there are really nice, good people at all economic and educational levels. I came from an economically disadvantaged family, and I learned about higher education at school not at home.

For students that are trying to get into a state college that bases admission off of being in the top 10% of the class - being in a private school can actually hurt. If it's a really tough academic program a fantastic student may only be in the top 15% of the class and not be admitted.

I have friends that could not believe that their high achieving children at top private schools could not get into the University of Texas when they went to that type of admission. I remember one saying "I paid $20,000 a year for my child NOT to get into college - he would have been at the top 10% of a public school" .

 

[taylor1293]

We just moved from Illinois to Florida. In IL my girls (preschool and 4th grade) attended a private christian school. Now the 4th grader is attending a public school.

I picked this neighborhood because of all the raves I heard about the school and the school district. Her teacher is great, and I'm very happy with her. That is where my satisfaction ends.

Let me start out by saying that my disappointment is magnified by the fact that Florida schools have a sole focus on the ridiculous FCAT exam. That has been 50% of what she has worked on since we started school almost 4 weeks ago. Basically they aren't teaching for the children to learn, they are teaching them to do well on a test. Thankfully that will be over soon.

Public schools here are overcrowded. There are 27 children in her class. They don't even have enough books for everyone. In their old school there were only 15- - 18 avg in each class. In the private school we are considering here, there are only 16- 19 in each class.

We are hoping to put her back into a private school soon. Unfortunately, the wages down here aren't as high as where we came from, yet the cost of living is the same. In addition, we were paying $1500 a year for a church supported school in the Midwest. Down here, even church members pay a minimum of $3,800 a year. Other private schools I have checked into are $7,000 each child.

No need to worry about the parents at a private school. You will encounter all types of personalities and persons of all beliefs just as in a public school. I consider myself to be very liberal and my husband isn't even a believer and we fit in just fine at our Christian school.

Good luck with your decision

Teresa

 

[Kallison]

Teenee I didn't mean to offend either, I just know from our previous visits I was not impressed with the secondary schools we visited, plus all the people we know in that county have their kids in private and keep telling us how bad the schools are. As for the trees every housing development looked like a cookie cutter Stepford development with a long line of palm trees. I kind of made the don't congratulate me post because of exactly what B.Barb said, it seems all you read on here is a northerner dying to move to Florida. I'm really happy here and would much rather stay here. I don't mean to dis where you live, it's just not of my choosing. Just like I'm sure some wouldn't be happy to live here with the snow and melting muddy mush right now. I appreciate your point of view immensely, it makes me feel a bit better.

BTW Bichon are you near Lanesville? We visit there a lot on the weekends.

 

[AspiringCindy]

I couldn't have said it better myself!
My children attend private school...and I happen to be a public school teacher! I know I should endorse public school, but I want to give my kids the best education I can!...keeping safety in mind! While the public school in my town is good, The school that they attend is just a bit more academic, they score higher Nationally and they are a bit more sheltered than public school(which can be a good thing and a bad thing). They have class sizes of 14-18 kids, they have a great Science dept. and as others have said," great parent involvement"! I just don't like being nickeled and dimed every 2 minutes for donations and fundraising!
I don't mean to offend anyone but Florida schools don't have a great reputation amongst Jersey Educators! Not to generalize: I know there are probably Great Districts in Florida as well as bad ones. You really need to research and form a comparison chart to see how your child would benefit from each! Go to the local library and look up the demographics. There you will find: SAT score averages for every district and percent of students graduating and moving on to college! Good Luck!

Originally posted by peg2001
Let's see what I can come up with:

pros- smaller class size, fewer discipline problems, more parental influence, religious instruction (depending on choice of school and if you would consider this a pro)


cons- it costs more, may not be as close as the local public school, transportation not provided, you may not agree with the religious instruction provided (if applicable)

Peggy

 

[goodstarr]

AspiringCindy, sounds like our kids go to the same school except, my DD's school claims to have great test scores (which they did), but once I really researched my local public school, their test scores were just as good .

 

[AspiringCindy]

PM me with the school! I know there are many private schools in the area that are very good!
QUOTE]Originally posted by goodstarr
AspiringCindy, sounds like our kids go to the same school except, my DD's school claims to have great test scores (which they did), but once I really researched my local public school, their test scores were just as good . [/QUOTE]

 

[minnie56]

Not sure what part of Florida you are going to but here's my 2 cents worth

My daughters have gone to a Private School here in Canada for the last 15 years and all in all it has been a positive experience.Sure, I have come across the occasional snobby 'nouveau riche' type but all in all the parents are making some sort of a sacrifice to send their daughters there, be it big or small.

We did have an interlude approx 5 years ago where we moved to Florida. The Sarasota area..
We decided to try the public school system as our home was in a very nice neighbourhood and it was our understanding that the higher the taxes...the more went to education and the school facilities.We were very much disappointed and after 6 weeks sent our girls to The Out of Door Academy on Siesta Key.The school itself was somewhat of a disappointment but the teaching was certainly better. It was not on par however with what they had been used to here and at the end of the day after much evaluating...we moved back to Canada and the school they had always attended.

If I were to move again...I would start off in Private School. It is the only decent start to a good education in the state of Florida as far as I'm concerned. Good Luck to you all!

 

[Mouseteacher]

There are excellent, adequate and poor schools in all categories - public, religious private and secular private schools.

My DSs attended public schools in our town and received a good, solid education. My local public system works very well most of the time.

I am in a New England regionally accredited Catholic elementary school that also provides an excellent education to its students. Our teachers are all state certified (primary grades have certified teacher assistants), resource teachers, and our curriculum is very strong particularly in math and reading scores. We have many services: nurse, athletics, specialists (art, foreign language, library classes, music, instrument lessons, etc.) including the integration of technology in the curriculum and a school adjustment counselor. The extra contributions that are asked are to make up the difference for what is charged for tuition and what it actually costs to educate.

I believe you must do research in choosing the school that best fits your family and your child... and that could be public or it could be private. Choice is a wonderful thing!

 

[Bichon Barb]

Kallison, I had to go to mapquest to find out where Lanesville is. Looks like it is in the Catskill's (north of NYC, south of Albany).

No, Syracuse is in the middle of NYS. It's slogan is "the heart of NY". If I go a couple hours east, I'm in Albany. If I go a couple hours west, I'm in Rochester/Buffalo. If I go a couple hours south, I'm in Scranton, and if I go a couple hours north, I'm in Ontario. It really is a nice location. I'm close to Lake Ontario, the Adirondacks, the Finger Lakes, etc. All these things we take for granted.