Are you jumping ship to private and why?

[Anonymous]

We started the kids in private and jumped ship back to mcps for an elementary and a high schooler. Tuition was not not sustainable for us with multiple kids and tuition increases.

Quality wise, we miss the extra specials, the field trips, but the elementary child enjoys the bigger neighborhood friend network with all the kids they met at neighborhood school. So we’re very happy with the elementary school. Will see how it goes for middle & high school.

[Anonymous]

For us private was mostly great in ES since public these days just ignores kids at grade level or higher. We felt at least our kids were learning, but with public, we had to do all the teaching or hire tutors.

By MS and HS public steadily improves because students get more options, so we transitioned back to public.

[Anonymous]

Public for elementary, private for MS, and public magnet HS for my kids (but they’d have attended the public DCC HS even if they hadn’t been accepted to the magnets). This has worked very well for us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Public for elementary, private for MS, and public magnet HS for my kids (but they’d have attended the public DCC HS even if they hadn’t been accepted to the magnets). This has worked very well for us.

moving around so much like this seems kind of hard for the kids to be able to make close friends.

I say this from experience.

We moved when DC was early ES. Went to magnet, then went to home MS, then went to public magnet. It was hard on DC's social life. DC's social life only got better two years into public magnet HS. I thought it was fine for DC to move around for education, but DC was not a social butterfly, so it was hard for DC to make close friendships moving around so much.

[Anonymous]

Private for ES is the best option. In MCPS ES only kids below level get any attention or teacher time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Private for ES is the best option. In MCPS ES only kids below level get any attention or teacher time.

This is the age the lack of diversity in private schools would bother me the most though, personally. For older kids I could kind of see it if there were specific education gaps we were trying to address for our individual kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Private for ES is the best option. In MCPS ES only kids below level get any attention or teacher time.

Have to agree. My kid tells me they get a reading group once every month or two. It's gotten pretty bad in ES these days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Private for ES is the best option. In MCPS ES only kids below level get any attention or teacher time.

This is the age the lack of diversity in private schools would bother me the most though, personally. For older kids I could kind of see it if there were specific education gaps we were trying to address for our individual kids.

Why don't you research specific private schools to look at their "diversity" before making assumptions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Math in private k-8 won't be anywhere close to MCPS. Private HS might have legit math teachers...or not. It's a gamble.

Catholic elementary schools provide a solid foundation on all subjects...which mcps cannot.

Hindsight being 20/20: K-8 in private school equips kids for success in advanced classes in HS.

+2. We went from mcps to private and now back to mcps. The level of academics at k-5 in private was years behind public - especially for advanced students. My kid went down reading and math levels. It may be different in later grades.

Certainly not in math

Not in math for an advanced student. K-5, Catholics offer more in terms of the foundation, especially if they still teach spelling, grammar and more but come MS, they don't have enough students to offer multiple classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Math in private k-8 won't be anywhere close to MCPS. Private HS might have legit math teachers...or not. It's a gamble.

Catholic elementary schools provide a solid foundation on all subjects...which mcps cannot.

Hindsight being 20/20: K-8 in private school equips kids for success in advanced classes in HS.

+2. We went from mcps to private and now back to mcps. The level of academics at k-5 in private was years behind public - especially for advanced students. My kid went down reading and math levels. It may be different in later grades.

Certainly not in math

Not in math for an advanced student. K-5, Catholics offer more in terms of the foundation, especially if they still teach spelling, grammar and more but come MS, they don't have enough students to offer multiple classes.

Seems private is great at teaching to the majority of average to above average students but not as good at teaching to very advanced or very behind students.

At the least, large publics around here have magnet type programs. IMO, one of the only good things about large publics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Private for ES is the best option. In MCPS ES only kids below level get any attention or teacher time.

This is the age the lack of diversity in private schools would bother me the most though, personally. For older kids I could kind of see it if there were specific education gaps we were trying to address for our individual kids.

Why don't you research specific private schools to look at their "diversity" before making assumptions.

My kid went to Seneca Academy upcounty. This is about 10
years ago so I can’t speak to it now. But while white students were the plurality, his specific class was mostly BIPOC. Obviously there wasn’t much income diversity. But in terms of race, ethnicity, religion, and language, it was wonderfully diverse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Private for ES is the best option. In MCPS ES only kids below level get any attention or teacher time.

This is the age the lack of diversity in private schools would bother me the most though, personally. For older kids I could kind of see it if there were specific education gaps we were trying to address for our individual kids.

Why don't you research specific private schools to look at their "diversity" before making assumptions.

I have. You can’t possibly be suggesting that private schools are as diverse as public?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Private for ES is the best option. In MCPS ES only kids below level get any attention or teacher time.

This is the age the lack of diversity in private schools would bother me the most though, personally. For older kids I could kind of see it if there were specific education gaps we were trying to address for our individual kids.

Why don't you research specific private schools to look at their "diversity" before making assumptions.

I have. You can’t possibly be suggesting that private schools are as diverse as public?

What is the advantage to education of the level of diversity in most MCPS schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Private for ES is the best option. In MCPS ES only kids below level get any attention or teacher time.

This is the age the lack of diversity in private schools would bother me the most though, personally. For older kids I could kind of see it if there were specific education gaps we were trying to address for our individual kids.

Why don't you research specific private schools to look at their "diversity" before making assumptions.

I have. You can’t possibly be suggesting that private schools are as diverse as public?

What is the advantage to education of the level of diversity in most MCPS schools?

My kids are pretty privileged, and I want them to grow up understanding that. The idea of immediately putting kids on a track (from a young age) that isolates them from families who cannot afford the same has always concerned me. That said, I do recognize there are other advantages to private education such as smaller class sizes.

[Anonymous]

I went to private my entire life.

Both of my children are in public school ES and they and we absolutely love it. We can't say enough good things about MCPS, the curriculum, and the support they get among other positive factors. Again just our experience.

Interestingly, many of my friends I grew up with in private school now also have their children at MCPS and sing the same praises we do.

To each their own I guess.