Public vs Private schools

thatgirl85

I know it's early, but is anyone having this discussion yet?  DH and I have argued about it long before I was even pregnant.  He's set on private, and I'm set on public.  We're in a D district, but if we move 5 minutes away we'll be in an A district.  DH says it would be cheaper to send A to private school instead of buying a house in a much more expensive neighborhood.  Of course, cost is just the tip of the iceburg in why we disagree.

What do you think?  Have you decided?  If so, why are you choosing one over the other? 

tiff6041

We started having this discussion while pregnant also.  DH wants to send him to a Catholic school because he went to one.  I am a public school teacher though, so I'm pushing for public.  DH can't give me a real reason he wants him to go to private though other than just because he went to one.  Just to save us from continually arguing about it, I keep telling him that it will just depend on what school district we are in.  Right now we are renting so we will definately move before LO starts school.  I really like the idea of him going to the same school where I work though.

thatgirl85

tiff6041:

We started having this discussion while pregnant also.  DH wants to send him to a Catholic school because he went to one.  I am a public school teacher though, so I'm pushing for public.  DH can't give me a real reason he wants him to go to private though other than just because he went to one.  Just to save us from continually arguing about it, I keep telling him that it will just depend on what school district we are in.  Right now we are renting so we will definately move before LO starts school.  I really like the idea of him going to the same school where I work though.

I definitely think having LO at your school is great (public or private).  My SIL works at a Catholic school.  Now they're leaning more towards their sons going there instead of public, since she can take them to school and see them during the day.

RSClementine

We will be doing private religious school k-8 and then possibly public school for high school. It is prohibitively expensive, but DH and I both went to private religious school, and think that it is important for our son to receive the same education.

CFH79

I am a product of public schools. I was a public school teacher and I now work for the public school teacher's union. So I am obviously a proponent of great public schools. That being said, I am paying attention to school districts as we look at houses. But the area where we're moving to is growing so fast, we'll probaybe redistricted before H goes to school anyway.

JulietL129

We want to either find a house in the public district we'd send him to or do private school. The price bracket of homes is a big difference between the district we live in now and the one we'd want him to go to. It would be much cheaper to just do a private school, but we like the area more and it would put us within a few minutes of H's job which would be nice. Either way, there's only 1 public school we would want him to go to, so it's there or private.

KristieElizabeth

We're doing public school. The closest private school to us is about 20-30 minutes away. The public school that she will go to is an awesome school. I did some student teaching there years ago and I loved it there.

kat81

DH wants public and I want to just have a high standard of education. I can do public, though. His public school was really good. I went to private school myself, also somewhere really good. Not all privates are as good as the good publics, though.

I think we will try to live somewhere with a great public. And if we have a pretty good but not great public we will possibly still try our kids there and see if it works for them. But if it doesn't work out for them (i.e. not challenged enough, etc) then we will send them to private school. At least I'm pretty sure that is what the plan is. 

OP you might want to crunch those #s again...'cause I'm not sure school is cheaper than a house. I guess it depends on the size of the house, but if you go for a small one then you could win out and not have horrific taxes. Around here, the houses in the crappy school district have HIGHER taxes because it's a city, and the nearby towns have better schools & lower taxes. Odd. 

jillybean800

I am also a product of public schools and I teach in one now.  I made sure to move to a town with a great school system.  I pay so much in taxes that I would be an idiot not to take advantage and send him to the public school here!

Also, Catholic schools and private schools are not obligated to hire people with teaching degrees and I know that they often don't.  They are also non unionized, and I do believe that unions are important for teachers. 

thatgirl85

kat81:

DH wants public and I want to just have a high standard of education. I can do public, though. His public school was really good. I went to private school myself, also somewhere really good. Not all privates are as good as the good publics, though.

I think we will try to live somewhere with a great public. And if we have a pretty good but not great public we will possibly still try our kids there and see if it works for them. But if it doesn't work out for them (i.e. not challenged enough, etc) then we will send them to private school. At least I'm pretty sure that is what the plan is. 

OP you might want to crunch those #s again...'cause I'm not sure school is cheaper than a house. I guess it depends on the size of the house, but if you go for a small one then you could win out and not have horrific taxes. Around here, the houses in the crappy school district have HIGHER taxes because it's a city, and the nearby towns have better schools & lower taxes. Odd. 

You should see the house I'd like in the neigborhood I want to move to!  We own a house in a relatively cheap neighborhood with low propety taxes.  The area I'd like to move to is expensive, has high property taxes, and is in a flood zone so insurance is pricey (yet I still want to live there...).

[Deleted User]

We've had this discussion too.  I went to private school 1-12 and did very well, as well as enjoyed the challenge.  DH went to a public school, with parents that didn't pay much attention to what he was doing (a whole other large topic).  He also had to put himself through college, which was difficult due to the poor start he was given.  DH hated his schooling until college.

I would be more pro-public schools if we had better districts here.  That being said, I like the smaller class size and attention given to students in the private setting.  I recently looked at costs for private grade school, and it's not that much compared to some daycare costs.  

I like the accountability both to the parents and the students in the private setting, whereas the public schools here lack that.  

I saw my parents scrimp, save & do without so that we could have a better education.  I appreciate that too, so I didn't feel like I was entitled or anything.  I also had to work in HS to help pay for sports & gas & insurance etc. so I felt like I contributed to the cause, and I wanted to succeed in my education.  (Not saying that public school kids don't)  I do wish the public schools were better here, but they just aren't. 

[Deleted User]

OK, I looked up the tuition costs for here. 

              Yearly tuition         Monthly cost

1 Child       $ 3,677.00             $ 310.50
2 Children     6,069.00                510.00
3 Children     6,803.00                571.00
4 Children     7,540.00                632.50

So, I think the cost here is worth it.  Heck, that's some people's car payment!!   When you get to HS though, it's about 2-3 times that much so we will have to save up for that for sure.  

missliz01

DH wants her to go to Cranbrook (if accepted), a very reputable private school in our area. I'm on the fence. While I think she would definitely benefit from the education she'd get there, I think there are also benefits she'd get from public school. DH and I both went to public schools and I think we turned out fine. My mom was a public school teacher before becoming a children's librarian and I think part of a child's education comes from home as well. She was always working with us to make sure we were understanding the material and encouraging us to learn more outside of school as well through activities and trips to the library, etc. I know sending her to public school would definitely save us a lot of money. We'll have to see how things are when she gets closer to that age.

rainydayluck

Where I live the city schools are notorious for being terrible. If we still live in the city, we will be doing private. If we move to the county in a good school district, we will do public.

melissa4252008

If we still live where we do when LO is school age, there is no question he will go to our parish school and then private Catholic high school. If we live in a different district, he may go to public through 8th grade, and then private Catholic high school. Either way, it is unlikely he will go to public high school. Elementary and middle all depend on where we live. 

CFH79

jillybean800:

I am also a product of public schools and I teach in one now.  I made sure to move to a town with a great school system.  I pay so much in taxes that I would be an idiot not to take advantage and send him to the public school here!

Also, Catholic schools and private schools are not obligated to hire people with teaching degrees and I know that they often don't.  They are also non unionized, and I do believe that unions are important for teachers. 

Annndddd..Jilly is my new favorite bumpie

ReneeDear

chornback79:

jillybean800:

I am also a product of public schools and I teach in one now.  I made sure to move to a town with a great school system.  I pay so much in taxes that I would be an idiot not to take advantage and send him to the public school here!

Also, Catholic schools and private schools are not obligated to hire people with teaching degrees and I know that they often don't.  They are also non unionized, and I do believe that unions are important for teachers. 

Annndddd..Jilly is my new favorite bumpie

Me too... I'm a teacher.

 Here in BC the public system is different.  Your school district covers an entire cities or several small towns. You can go to any school in the district you want provided you can get yourself there or they will bus you (if necessary) to the school of your catchment area.    Here I would definitely choose public.   The only value to a private school are the networking opportunities.  If you go to university, you can network there instead

babyonthebrain2010

for us it is a choice between private, public, or homeschooling.  H was homeschooled,  I was public schooled.  I think we're leaning toward public.  I am a firm believer that the more involved the parents are in the schooling the better no matter which you choose.. and vise versa.  you can't just spend big bucks to send your kid to a nice private school and then check out and hope for the best, that doesn't work either.

our school district isn't great but it's the same one I went through and I throughly enjoyed my public school experience.  H liked being homeschooling but I think kids need the social aspects of actually "going" to school just as much as the 3 R's, ya know?  my husband turned out surprisingly normal but I have met enough of his socially retarded homeschooled friends to be turned off by the idea.

also I think there are good and bad teachers everywhere, at every level.  sometimes you get lucky and have great ones sometimes you get unlucky and get crappy ones... but I do believe there are just as many crappy ones in the private school systems as in public or home.

awagner122210

we're doing public schools...we haven't really discussed it but I know that's what we're going to do...the school district we're in now is a GREAT! area & school system...but DH doesn't want Bryson going there because that's were DH went to school plus now the area is know for being the "rich kid school"...in the last several years there's been new neighborhoods popping up left & right and their NICE homes so alot of Doctors and sh!t moved to the area....and the school has probably doubled in size since DH went there....we want to move to another area around here that's much smaller maybe 150 class size average and more of an "average family" income status and homes

cupcakes710

DH and I would love to send LO to Catholic school (especially jr high/hs) but don't know if we're going to be able to afford it.    The reason is that we want her to be brought up in the Catholic faith.  

I was a Catholic school teacher (until my school got closed) and LOVED it!  I also really liked not being forced into a teachers union.  I strongly disagree with many aspects of both the NEA and AFT and don't like the fact that if you're a public school teacher you have to join one.  You don't need to be a part of a teachers union to be a great teacher.  

We'll see what we can afford.  Public schools have very good educational programs too, but I want my daughter immersed in the faith.   CCD is great, but IMO it kind of makes one's religion separate from the rest of life.  I was a CCD teacher too so I'm not trying to downplay it, I would just rather not go that route...

cupcakes710

laura101:

My DH and I both went to public schools growing up, and now we both work in a Catholic school. My faith is very important to me, and we love incorporating our religious beliefs into school SO Koen will be going to a Catholic school.

My Catholic faith is very important to me too!