Home School vs. Public school vs. Private school

[sparks19]

I can see the benefits of all three.

how do you feel about it?

Frankly, I am least fond of public school just because it's so scary these days. What with kids killing other kids, teachers having sex with students... etc etc. while I am sure these things have always happened to some degree... it seems to be on the rise.

My little brother goes to a private school but it is VERY expensive.

As for home schooling... i don't know anyone personally that has been homeschooled but it is something I have looked into.

I got curious because I saw a bumper sticker today that said "love+nurturing+caring= homeschooling" I thought that was a little wierd.. like people who don't homeschool don't love, nurture or care for their kids. Seemed kinda silly.... but I have heard from people on other forums who have been homeschooled and love it.

What is your take on the three? what would you prefer?

[carole]

Both my children have never been to anything else but public school, infact none of my extended family have entered private schooling, even though some of them could well afford it, even my doctor sent his children to public school,i do believe there are alot my options available at private schools here in NZ,but whether the actual education is any better i seriously doubt it,of course things are not nearly as scarey down under in schools yet, but you do have to pick your schools,although we have zoning and that is not always possible.

So far i am more than satisfied with the public system,as for home schooling well i have nothing against it, if you can handle it,personally i could not,and for my daughter who is miss social butterfly it would be a serious disadvantage to her,anyhow just my thoughts on the subject.

[Karen]

I think it truly depends on the quality of public school where you live, and the needs of your child. Homeschooling, when done right, can be great, but it can aslo be a disaster for the child if not done well.

[Vela]

I homeschooled my kids until my oldest was in 5th grade, my next in 4th, and my youngest in 2nd. I started when they were 4 and 5. I ended up sending them to public schooll because I work now and also because as they get to higher grades they have the ability to have a broader range of subjects, etc. I know I couldn't really teach arts, dance, foreign language, etc, but I gave them a good base, made sure they know how to read, spell, etc etc. So I think that helps them out.

Honestly, it doesn't matter if a kid is homeschooled or public schooled, parents have to teach their kids morals. With good morals it can really help them fend off peer pressure, at least a lot, and eventually they will encounter kids and people of the world, and I wanted mine to be able to have an understanding of how to deal with them. Depending on how much the parent does or doesn't try to work on socialization with homeschooled kids, some are very backwards when dealing with others as they get older because they didn't learn how to develop social skills. That's easily compensated for by making sure to take them places where they can interact with other kids.

[Miss Z]

I go to a private school and am very happy there. We do so much more outside the curriculum and have more educational opportunities than I believe the state schools receive. The whole atmosphere is different ; everyone there is intelligent (to some degree ) and people actually want to learn and do well, which is much more than can be said for a lot of other schools.

Also, private schools have excellent reputations and top universities will be very interested in a pupil from a top private school, as are potential employers.

Yes, private schools are very expensive. I was fortunate to win a scholarship for my school which knocks off a third of the fees, but my family is currently paying £7000 a year and it goes up a couple of £100 each year. It can be tough for some people to find the money, but I can say from my experiences it is worth it.

[cmayer31]

Well here are my experiences:

I was in private school K-2nd and then public 3rd-12th. I was too young to notice the difference between private and public, but according to my mom my second grade teacher just about ruined the entire year for me. She was a terrible person and teacher and that's why I was moved to a public school. I did fine through public school and have had no issues with colleges or careers due to my base education.

I've had a few friends do home school and I personally wasn't too impressed with the work they had to do. It seemed more of a joke to them than anything else. I think for K-6 home school would be fine, or with the proper parent. However, what I saw from my three friends was that the parents didn't really teach and the students didn't really learn. They're doing fine now, but had to work a bit harder at junior college than I did to keep up.

My brother went to private school from K-6th and then public school from 7th-12th. He was offered scholarships in multiple fields from many different colleges. He has earned many degrees including his PhD. He teaches at the university level and receives grants on a regular basis for his research and written journals. He's only 29.

So I guess the best way to sum up the examples is that it depends more on the school and staff than on the actual category that it falls into. I'm sure home schooling is the right answer for some. For others private school might be the best, but in my situation it almost set me behind a year because of a bad teacher (edit - I wasn't the only student that had issues due to this specific teacher ) For others public school is just as good if not better than the other options. Who knows, maybe a mix of all or some is the right way to go.

There is good and bad in everything, and I think it is up to the parents to do the research and determine what the best option is for their children.

[ramanth]

I went to a private Catholic school from grades K-3 because my mom didn't like the public school in the area (inner city). When we moved, my parents enrolled my sisters and I in public school. I loved it a lot more. More people to connect with, more flexible (I hated uniforms), more subjects and lots of extra curricular activites (I was on the swim team and golf team).

I have nothing against private or home schooling, but like Karen said, if the area is nice, then I'd rather go for a public school.

[sparks19]

HMMMM a mixture... that is interesting and something I never even thought of.

My little brother goes to a private school. He went to public during elementary school and then his mother decided that she did not want him in a public highschool so she actually FIRST sent him to military school for grade 9. He learned A LOt there. Most importantly he learned a lot of discipline and structure but the teachers were fantastic. and there was always a teacher available for after school study help and participation in school sports was promoted heavily... even if you were not good at the sport you were still on the team if you wanted to be.... they thought that teaching kids how to work and play as a team and other things they can learn from a sports team was much more important than winning... I agree. it was a good school for his first year.

After his first year she transferred him to a private school (this school costs over $30,000 a year :Eek he has REALLY thrived at this school. His marks are excellent... the teachers are great... and he has done some things through the school that he probably would have never experienced otherwise. They went on a trip to Kenya last year and climbed mount kenya... they were supposed to go to Napal this year to climb Everest but the guide in Napal had to give up climbing for a while becuase of a very bad lung infection. Just a lot of really neat experiences that he wouldn't have gotten otherwise. he is now preparing to head off to university for either sports medicine or sports management.... he isn't sure which one he wants to major in yet.

I am not totally confident that he would have achieved all this through public school.... he needed that more personal attention to keep him focused.

My neice goes to public school. she is in 5th grade. she goes to a French immersion school. she is VERY bright but she doesn't really like school too much anymore. BUT if there is anyone that would benefit from homeschooling I really think it would be her. Her mother is WONDERFUL and if she didn't have to work I have no doubt that she would successfully make use of the homeschooling system. My neice is so bright and most of the stuff she knows she learned at home. their favourite past time is watching the bird feeders in their backyard and finding the birds in their bird book and reading up on them. all of those kids are very smart and I REALLY attribute it to their great family life and the wonderful teachings of their parents.

I went to public school myself and back then (lol like it was so long ago) it was OK. I also lived in a vry small town at the time. but now it seems to be getting worse and worse (depending where you live I suppose) there are just too many kids and not enough teachers... there is no personal attention what so ever. Kids seem to spend more time trying to avoid fights than they do learning. Public school seems to be on a slippery downhill slope. But there are plenty of public schools that are excellently run as well.

I really like the idea of multiple schoolings throughout their school "career" that is an interesting idea and I never would have thought of that, really.

I really understand what others are saying about homeschooling though. it can REALLY be done incorrectly. I think if it is done properly it can be very beneficial... but you're right it is A LOT of work.

I have heard that there are often homeschoolers societies in some towns... where groups of parents that do homeschooling get togther with other homeschoolers and they do field trips and the kids get to socialize etc etc. and there are always community sports... which I am sure our child/children would be into if they are anything like us LOL... especially hockey hahahaha. I think sports outside of school are also a good way to mix and mingle with other children from different backgrounds that they might not meet at school. I have heard those can be VERY helpful. WOW I am glad I have a few years to think about this before a decision HAS to be made LOL.

[Freedom]

I attended public schools grades 1 through 8. I hated it, and the thought of the high school actually terrified me. I insisted I was NOT going there, and I attended a private all girls high school. My parents weren't thrilled with the cost, natch, but I was a good student and they listened to me. I knew which school I wanted to attend, and that was the only one I applied for. It was great for me.

I LOVED having a uniform and not worrying about what to wear each night (I would get my school clothes ready the night before.)

My brother really didn't give it much thought. My parents arranged for him to attend a private high school too. An all boys school. It didn't seem to make much difference for him one way or the other. He didn't have much preference, or interest in the matter, so my parents put in applications for him at several. That school didn't wear uniforms, just dark slacks, white shirt, tie. He did well in school all the way through, also. But he had no cares where he went to high school, and I have always wondered if maybe he should have stayed at the public school.

I have a local friend who home schools all her children. She works part time afternoons, 12:30 to 6 PM. She spends the morning with them, taking them places. She figures she spends half of what she would spend on a private school tuition, and they get to go to lots of places they might not otherwise. They go in to the local public schools twice per year for the national testing, and they are always the high scorers for their grades. The 2 oldest (she has 5 children) are now in Ivy League colleges.

[BC_MoM]

I've been to both public and private schools. I hate private schools. While they are relatively smaller than public schools, they tend to be EXTREMELY cliquey and I can't stand that. Everyone knows everything about everyone.

Which is why I switched to public school. And I love it.

[sparks19]

I've been to both public and private schools. I hate private schools. While they are relatively smaller than public schools, they tend to be EXTREMELY cliquey and I can't stand that. Everyone knows everything about everyone.

Which is why I switched to public school. And I love it.

Wow... that is actually how I felt about public school... very cliquey. but I guess it depends where you live too

[BC_MoM]

Yeah, I guess it does. My public school now is fairly large, so you recognize faces, but can't place names. I'm lovin' it! haha

[critter crazy]

My son goes to public school, and it is a great school. But I think he would be more suited in Private school. He needs more one on one attention, and I think a private school could offer that better. Not realy all that sure tho, as I havent realy looked into it, cause I know darn well we could never afford it.

[IRescue452]

In our town the private school goes up to 8th grade and then the students go to public with the rest of us or go to another district. The private school kids were incredibly far behind us in everything but math. It seems math is the only thing they could learn completely in a private school without any controversy. I would never send my own kids to private school.

Another thing, kids in private school are in more danger of messing up in the real world. They barely learn about drugs, much less how to avoid them. They believe myths about sex that could get them in bad situations. They just aren't prepared for the real world. Also, more kids in the private school in our town did drugs and drank than those in public school. Had they gone to public school, they'd have learned that we make fun of the kids who do drugs. Instead, they were sheltered and learned that those kinds of things are "rebellious and cool". Take something away from kids, and they'll want it more.

[Karen]

I forgot to mention that my parents moved to my hometown because the public schools there were better than in their own hometown. As a parent, you can choose what school district and what public schools your child will attend by "voting with your feet" - a.k.a. moving. And there are things to look for in researching a town's schools as well, like whether they encourage parental involvement, how long people have been teaching there, etc. It should always be a conscious decision on a parent's part. I went to public school K-12, Paul went to private all but two years around junior high.