Pro Private School by Alysa

August 12th, 2010 in Private Public Homeschool Series

Alysa is a fun friend of mine that I met through Wee Sing when our kids were younger! When this posts I might actually be on a hike with her. Today Alysa is helping me by writing about why she is PRO private schooling:

Choosing how to educate your children can be a very hard decision and one that should not be taken lightly. I have chosen private school for my children and have loved every moment of their education. The choice itself was one that I sort of fell into.

Shortly after having my first child I started researching different preschools. I never considered doing home school. I knew I couldn’t do it. I simply don’t know enough about childhood education to think that I could ever do a good enough job. Education requires building blocks of knowledge and I don’t know where all the building blocks fit perfectly together to make an educational tower. I knew I needed outside help to educate my children, and that they would have to go to a preschool. I knew that if I was going to spend time apart from my children I wanted their time in school to be well spent and completely academic. I did not want to send them to a preschool in a day care type setting with most of the day’s activities consisting of play since they get to be kids and play with me. I researched all kinds of preschools: from religiously based to the neighborhood stay-at-home mom. I even found the preschools that told me I was too late and should have called before I even conceived my first born to be put on the list. I was then put on the waiting list with a number twenty-five slot.

I ended up choosing a private school for the preschool years. I was immediately impressed with the curriculum and how much my children learned. I felt their time away from me was well spent and they were having so much fun while learning.

As time got closer for my oldest to start kindergarten I didn’t even think twice about keeping her in private school. She had learned so much in preschool and was academically ahead of her public school counterparts. In talking to other moms I learned that those children who left and went to public school were bored, and sort of checked out until they started to learn new material, which was some time during the later part of first grade. I also learned that those who stayed in the private school continued to be ahead of their public school counterparts. I simply couldn’t take that kind of learning away from my kids.

I have now learned so much more about some of the benefits of keeping my kids in private school. First there is funding. The public schools are in a financial crisis. Simply put, they don’t get enough money. I am willing to pay that extra amount for my kids to get the funding they need for school. There has never been an issue of my children not being able to do some educational activity in the classroom due to a lack of funding. In the private school system the state does not regulate how much time is spent on any given subject. Simply put, my children’s teachers can move them along at a pace that is set by the class’s ability. Due to enrollment testing, the ability of the class is high, therefore keeping kids with high academic achievement together.

I love seeing my children’s class in action. Their peers are celebrating their academic achievements. There is no one making fun of someone for being the smart kid. They are all such smart kids and they challenge one another, raise the bar a little higher, and then all work to go beyond the bar again and again.

Another aspect I love about private school is that they don’t have to adhere to the “no child left behind” act. Children are expected to excel and do. Children are not passed around from grade to grade and teacher to teacher with poor learning habits and bad grades. The school wants the children to succeed. If a problem starts to develop, the school works with parents to solve the problem and help the child to succeed. If they do not, they may not be re-enrolled the next year. Grades must be maintained so the rest of the class does not suffer. During the latter part of the school year the children take national standardized academic tests. I am always so impressed at the high scores that come from my children’s school. It truly is amazing.

Private school is definitely not for everyone. It is very expensive. In some private schools parents are expected to do so many hours of volunteer service to the school. The children most often travel quite a distance to get to school with no help of a bussing system. As with any decision there are pros and cons. It is not an easy decision, as it is one with life long consequences, good or bad, for our children. I feel I have made the right decision for my children and hope they will always be able to attend the school we have grown to love.