Parent reveals 'Why I (still) send my kid to public school'When your child goes to public school, some anxiety often accompanies your decision, writes Whitney Otto. Like many parents, Otto pondered what was right her son. The pressure was on from family members to place the boy in a "better setting" - in other words, a private school. This prompted the author to ponder the public vs. private school issue.
How could Otto and her husband leave their child in a system on the verge of cutting its academic year by five weeks? Leaving their son in a school district on the verge of laying off hundreds of teachers. The teachers, in turn, were contemplating a strike. The district already had overcrowded classrooms.
The parents elected to leave their son in public schools, even though they have the financial means to provide him with a private school education. So why choose public schools? Otto explains in her article for the Oregonian.
Via: Public Education Network
Tags: Public Education, Public Schools, Private Schools, K-12, Education, Education by Sistrunk
2 comments:
This article brought up many interesting points about choosing between public and private school settings. I can see many of the aforementioned issues in my daily setting.
I teach in a private school in Staten Island, NY. It is in a wealthy area that is brimming with caring and involved teachers and parents who spare no expense on tuition, uniforms, resources and after-school programs. That being said, we also have our share of issues.
Our class sizes are also quite large, most topping off at 40 students. Students here also run the risk of falling victim to teachers who are constricted by too many students in too few hours who "teach to the test."
Another consideration of our setting is that social interactions truly are limited and homogeneous. It really is challenging for me to teach students the way other people live without providing contact with those other people. I find this leads to much stereotyping and sometimes even criticism in the classroom. I often find myself lecturing about tolerance when my students make such harsh generalizations.
I guess what it really comes down to is the comfort zone of parents coupled with the needs their children have and which setting can best address them.
This article brought up many interesting points about choosing between public and private school settings. I can see many of the aforementioned issues daily.
I teach in a private school in Staten Island, NY. It is in a wealthy area that is brimming with caring and involved teachers and parents who spare no expense on tuition, uniforms, resources and after-school programs. That being said, we also have our share of issues.
Our class sizes are also quite large, most topping off at 40 students. Students here also run the risk of falling victim to teachers who are constricted by too many students in too few hours who "teach to the test."
Another consideration of our setting is that social interactions truly are limited and homogeneous. It really is challenging for me to teach students the way other people live without providing contact with those other people. I find this leads to much stereotyping and sometimes even criticism in the classroom. I often find myself lecturing about tolerance when my students make such harsh generalizations.
I guess what it really comes down to is the comfort zone of parents coupled with the needs their children have and which setting can best address them.
Kim, NY
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