Paying for private k-8 schools vs suburb schools

[okusooner]

I was talking to a couple buddies over drinks and I was in the minority. My kids are 3 and 2 years old. We all live in a good school district but one of them sends his kids to private school and the other one plans on doing the same.
Both think im cheap for saying that the only reason they send their kids to private schools for is social status and because it makes them feel good. My point is that as long as a school is safe and has good teachers then kids can thrive no matter where they go. Their kids will be succesful because of them as parents, not the private school with the nice marketing material.
I just dont see the benefit of sending elem. age kids to a private school paying 1000-1200 per month. Any of you have any info supporting either arguement.

 

[Sangre Naranjada]

Parental involvement trumps everything during the child's elementary age. That tends to become less true as they hit Jr High, though the patterns and attitudes towards school established by the family early on still impact on the adolescent child.

Private schools work because those parents who are willing to pay upwards of $1000 per month are almost certainly going to be supportive and involved in the schooling of their children. This is not true in public schools, and those kids whose parents display a lackadaisical attitude towards schoolwork, regular attendance, etc. will almost certainly be enrolled in the free option. Nevertheless, your young child will take his/her cue primarily from you and your wife, and whether or not you choose to pay for private school will not matter to the kid.

 

[okusooner]

That was my point exactly. They were telling me all the stats about public schools vs their schools and i told them the stats were meaningless because you are comparing kids from stable homes to ones from stable and broken homes and different levels of parent involvement. Take the same parents and kids and I don't see much of an advantage at private school.

One thing if you are talking about inner city Detroit public school but another comparing an a pretty good school district in the Tulsa suburbs to a elementary private school. I just wish i had some studies that i could show them. They think i'm being cheap but i told them that even if i won the lottery i'm not going to send my kids to a private school if there is a good safe alternative. I think kids need to exposed to different types of people from different backgrounds which is something a public school will do alot better.

 

[Wild Bill]

As a parent who is on his 3rd child (now in MS) it all depends on the school district. Check out the schools carefully. Ask to see how many go on to college, test scores, and just look around on a school day. I have 4 sisters who all live in Austin, and their kids went to public all the way through HS because the schools were very good. I live in SA, and while my district is decent, I could afford private school. After comparing the two, we went the private route and have been happy with that choice. All cities are different, and all school districts are different. Do your own research.

 

[bradford702]

My kids, 1st and 2nd grade, are both in private school. The reason is the public schools in my city are not to my liking. I would much rather use the money to pay for a college fund but it is not an option at this point. Hopefully the housing market will recover in the next two years and then we can move to a better school district.

 

[iamtigerwoods]

For me, it really is all about the mandatory testing that has changed the mission of Public Schools. My little girl starts school in 2 years and we are seriously looking at private school, even though our neighborhood school is rated exemplary.

Based on this current lege session in Texas, I see things only getting worse.

 

[wolfman]

Im in a similar situation. My daughter is 2 and we are in the DISD (Dallas) which has mostly gone to crap. Im looking at either paying $1000-1500/mo for a private school or a move to a better district. Im thinking of moving to the Coppell school district because it is supposed to be one of the better ones in the area and frankly I would rather put that $1000-1500/mo. toward a mortgage.

 

[YoLaDu]

In reply to:

---

---

 

[Smurfette]

The Far West area schools-- Doss, Murchison, Anderson; Westlake's schools and Lake Travis's school are all just as good as any of the private schools in Austin. You get out of your education exactly what the parents expect you to get.

 

[general35]

Their kids will be succesful because of them as parents, not the private school with the nice marketing material.
__________________________________________________

I disagree, i went to private school up until high school in which i decided i wanted to experience something different and play 5A sports. my junior high was much more difficult than public high school which was a joke. i believe i succeeded in college because of my early education, i cant imagine what i would be doing now if i had gone to public school all the way through.

i would say that private school early on is the most important period.

 

[bradford702]

Wolf,

We are looking at Flower Mound (FM 3040 and FM 2499) but Coppell is also an option. The only thing holding us back is the sell of our current house.

 

[Seattle Husker]

Public School is important in terms of diversity and exposing your kids to all the life has to offer (affluent and not so affluent). With that said, I'd move to a good school district where the diversity is still there but the schools are also good. We moved to a nice suburb of Seattle for this reason.

 

[NBMisha]

Don't overanalyze it. If you feel strongly about private, and can afford it, go there. If you strongly value what a good public school brings, do that.