Maybe I'm just crazy, but...

Fuzzy8252 · February 2011

I was just talking with a friend of mine. She's got two boys, ages 4 and 6. They live in a decent area with decent schools, but send the boys to private school. The combined tuition is $14,000 a year! Maybe I'm crazy, but I just think that's a lot of money for kids so young, especially a 4 year old. They're not even in school all day! The school is where her DH works, which is about 20 miles from where they live. He drops them in the morning and she picks them up at 11:30.

She's totally one of those people that believe that our schools can do better, and I would agree... except that they really do have decent schools where they live. I don't know. I just don't get it. DH and I are the product of a public school system that sucks monkey balls and we turned out okay.

LaurelBee · February 2011

My aunt and uncle have sent their kids to Catholic school since pre K. My uncle works 3 jobs to afford their tuition fees! I personally wouldn't do that, but that's their decision, kwim?

IrishBrideND · February 2011

we will more than likely send DD to private school (I have one in mind) and she will start at 3 or 4.

I want the best education for DD and we hope to be able to afford it.

Heck, I'm a public school teacher and I still want DD to go to private schools IF they are what happens to be best in our area (and in my area they are by far the best)

robinsokj · February 2011

I went to private school and I'm very glad I did.

If the school system isn't the best, I think it's a good idea.

memali26 · February 2011

We have decent schools where we live and will still choose to send our children to the private (parochial) school where my husband teaches. I'm sure my kids would still turn out great if they went to public school, but we prefer the community of the private school and we want our children to have religion as part of their daily lives at home and school. I'm sure people will judge us for spending the money on tuition when they can go to public school for free, but it's not like we're asking them to pay for it. I don't expect everyone to understand our choice, but I would hope they wouldn't think we were crazy for wanting what we feel is best for our kids.

Pamela_B · February 2011

I am going to be sending DS to a private Jewish school, at least till high school. For high school he can choose. Having been in a private Jewish school my whole life, i know all the stuff you would learn is in elementary and middle school. It is a lot of money but it is what i am used to so it is not too bad.

KRMac · February 2011

I went to a private (Catholic) school in an area with good schools...and then to a public high school. I had a good experience, but I don't really think that I would have turned out differently if I had all public school education. And it was quite a culture shock to go from a class of 30 in 8th grade to a class of 600 in 9th.

We'll be sending DS to public schools unless we find a reason not to, KWIM? My DH is a public school teacher, so technically our kid(s) could go to any school in the district if we wanted.

bakedlaurabean · February 2011

I agree that it's crazy. We will definitely be sending DS to public school. Even if we didn't live near good schools, I don't think it matters much until middle school. I think a huge part of a kid being successful in school is the patents and our DS will have that support. I don't want him to bee sheltered in private schools.

IrishBrideND · February 2011

bakedlaurabean:
I agree that it's crazy. We will definitely be sending DS to public school. Even if we didn't live near good schools, I don't think it matters much until middle school. I think a huge part of a kid being successful in school is the patents and our DS will have that support. I don't want him to bee sheltered in private schools.

This is a pet peeve of mine as a teacher in public schools and someone who attended private. Not every private school shelters a kid. In fact, some public schools do. Every school is different.

In fact, where we will live, if DD went to public school, she would be surrounded with all the same types of people, but the private school has tons of different ethnicities, religions, and socio-economic classes.

Don't make assumptions! Every school is different. Not all public schools are the same, and all private schools aren't the same.

Starfish113 · February 2011

my stepbrother is in 3rd grade at a private school that costs $22,000/year. insane. riley will be in private school, but it won't cost that much! however, we pay about $12,000 a year for daycare, so i can justify that when she is in school.

bakedlaurabean · February 2011

IrishBrideND:
bakedlaurabean:
I agree that it's crazy. We will definitely be sending DS to public school. Even if we didn't live near good schools, I don't think it matters much until middle school. I think a huge part of a kid being successful in school is the patents and our DS will have that support. I don't want him to bee sheltered in private schools.

This is a pet peeve of mine as a teacher in public schools and someone who attended private. Not every private school shelters a kid. In fact, some public schools do. Every school is different.

In fact, where we will live, if DD went to public school, she would be surrounded with all the same types of people, but the private school has tons of different ethnicities, religions, and socio-economic classes.

Don't make assumptions! Every school is different. Not all public schools are the same, and all private schools aren't the same.

My assumptions are based on what I have seen, but I suppose there are always exceptions. I don't think the cost of public schools isnt worth it. I think DS could benefit more with that money spent elsewhere, like traveling as a family. Some people can probably afford both, but we can't.

bakedlaurabean · February 2011

IrishBrideND:
bakedlaurabean:
I agree that it's crazy. We will definitely be sending DS to public school. Even if we didn't live near good schools, I don't think it matters much until middle school. I think a huge part of a kid being successful in school is the patents and our DS will have that support. I don't want him to bee sheltered in private schools.

This is a pet peeve of mine as a teacher in public schools and someone who attended private. Not every private school shelters a kid. In fact, some public schools do. Every school is different.

In fact, where we will live, if DD went to public school, she would be surrounded with all the same types of people, but the private school has tons of different ethnicities, religions, and socio-economic classes.

Don't make assumptions! Every school is different. Not all public schools are the same, and all private schools aren't the same.

My assumptions are based on what I have seen, but I suppose there are always exceptions. I don't think the cost of public schools isnt worth it. I think DS could benefit more with that money spent elsewhere, like traveling as a family. Some people can probably afford both, but we can't.

memali26 · February 2011

bakedlaurabean:
I don't want him to bee sheltered in private schools.

I don't think my kids will be sheltered in a private school. They will still be exposed to a very diverse group of people, in both teachers and students. Also, just because they are in private school doesn't mean they won't participate in the community outside of school. They will probably play sports or take swim lessons or dance classes or whatever in the city rec league. They don't need to go to public school to be exposed to diversity and the world at large.

IrishBrideND · February 2011

bakedlaurabean:
IrishBrideND:

bakedlaurabean:
I agree that it's crazy. We will definitely be sending DS to public school. Even if we didn't live near good schools, I don't think it matters much until middle school. I think a huge part of a kid being successful in school is the patents and our DS will have that support. I don't want him to bee sheltered in private schools.

This is a pet peeve of mine as a teacher in public schools and someone who attended private. Not every private school shelters a kid. In fact, some public schools do. Every school is different.

In fact, where we will live, if DD went to public school, she would be surrounded with all the same types of people, but the private school has tons of different ethnicities, religions, and socio-economic classes.

Don't make assumptions! Every school is different. Not all public schools are the same, and all private schools aren't the same.

My assumptions are based on what I have seen, but I suppose there are always exceptions. I don't think the cost of public schools isnt worth it. I think DS could benefit more with that money spent elsewhere, like traveling as a family. Some people can probably afford both, but we can't.

Oh I am not in any way saying that people need to send their kids to private schools. Like I said, every school is different and private is not inherently better one bit. In fact, there are a fair number of crappy private schools. Its just what we hope to do based on the schools in our area.

Its just the sheltered thing is something that amazes me as a stereotype since I've taught in some public schools with VERY sheltered kids (like none of them have every left the city they were born in or met someone of another religion). Sheltered comes in all shapes, sizes, and socio-economic classes

memali26 · February 2011

bakedlaurabean:
I think DS could benefit more with that money spent elsewhere, like traveling as a family. Some people can probably afford both, but we can't.

Some people can't afford both, but still think private school is worth it. Just another example of how everyone makes the decision that is best for their family and their particular situation.

FWIW, I'm not against public schools at all, so I hope my comments don't sound that way. I just feel strongly about the benefits of private school for my kids, and tend to get up on my soap box about it.

bakedlaurabean · February 2011

memali26:
bakedlaurabean:
I think DS could benefit more with that money spent elsewhere, like traveling as a family. Some people can probably afford both, but we can't.
Some people can't afford both, but still think private school is worth it. Just another example of how everyone makes the decision that is best for their family and their particular situation.
FWIW, I'm not against public schools at all, so I hope my comments don't sound that way. I just feel strongly about the benefits of private school for my kids, and tend to get up on my soap box about it.& nbsp;

Ikewise, I'm very vocal, even IRL, about how anti private schools I am in *most cases.

Fuzzy8252 · February 2011

Sorry... internet went down for a bit.

I'm not against private schools, but I think $14,000 is excessive for that age group. I went to private school for a few years and graduated from public. My gripe would be that this friend of my is all for making our schools better, but she sends her children to private school.

Plus like I said, she lives in an area that has pretty decent schools. We live in an area with excellent public schools... one of the main reasons we moved into this area.

bakedlaurabean · February 2011

Fuzzy8252:
Sorry... internet went down for a bit.

I'm not against private schools, but I think $14,000 is excessive for that age group. I went to private school for a few years and graduated from public. My gripe would be that this friend of my is all for making our schools better, but she sends her children to private school.

Plus like I said, she lives in an area that has pretty decent schools. We live in an area with excellent public schools... one of the main reasons we moved into this area.

Good schools tend to be in good areas, though, so maybe she has always wanted her kids to attend private schools, but also wanted to live in a good area and living where there are good schools doesn't change that, kwim?

IrishBrideND · February 2011

Fuzzy8252:

My gripe would be that this friend of my is all for making our schools better, but she sends her children to private school.

I don't get this. I have devoted my life to improving public schools. I'm a public school teacher who is now back in school because she wants to be able to improve the system as a whole from an admin level.

But, thats the point: the schools in my area are horrible. I want to improve them. Right now, they aren't good enough. I'm not going to send my kid to a bad school. I want to make them better so hopefully by the time my grandkids are ready, they will be fantastic.

I'm not going to send my child to a school I know is horrible if I can afford not to....that doesn't negate the fact that I devote my life to making the public schools in my area better.

lpstl · February 2011

H and I both went to stellar private schools for 10 years, and mediocre public schools for 2. Without a doubt, there's absolutely no way our son will ever step foot into a public school classroom. If for some reason we fall on financial hardship and can't afford it, our parents and grandparents would insist on paying. Education is our number one priority and if we had to sell our house to afford the best schools, we would.

I'm sure it's possible that our child, and any future children could do well in public school. However, as far as we're concerned, private is the best option. Where I went to school, failure was literally not an option. If you were struggling, the teacher came in early to privately tutor you, and if need be, they stayed late. Hell, I remember in 7th grade I was struggling in molecular biology and went over to my teachers house on Saturdays for help. I had the home phone number for every single teacher I had, and if I needed help at 9pm I probably would have gotten in trouble for not calling. Every single teacher I had was dedicated to the max. I know there are teachers like that in the public school system too, but every teacher in the entire school is probably exceedingly rare.

My experience in public school was the polar opposite of my private education. There were seniors taking the same trigonometry classes I aced in the 8th grade. There were students who treated the school and teachers with no respect. There were teachers who read a book quietly at their desk for an entire class and told the students to stay quiet and they'd all get an A. There were parents who didn't give a flying fvck about their kids education. This, was all at a "decent" public school.

Incidentally, 14k a year at that age group isn't too shocking. My parents paid 8k per child starting at 6 years old for 3 children, and that was in the late 80s/early 90s. By the time we were all in highschool I think they were shelling out 35k+ per year. You don't even want to know about college.

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