I don't understand why parents waste so much money on private schools in this area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a public school in the 90s, it was one of the top public high schools in California. When I went to university, I noticed very little difference between those who went to public vs private schools. The SAT scores in DC private schools are basically comparable to the top publics. I don't get it, i mean if you got millions to burn, so be it. I rather give my kids a house.

Yep. MCPS runs circle around the private schools.

If your measure of a school is SAT scores, you don't really care about the education anyway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Combination of many things - you want people to think you are rich (even if you are on FA or barely getting by every month; you want people to believe your kids are too smart for public; you want to believe privates offer something publics don't; you want to believe private will give you advantage applying to top tier colleges...etc. It's all misguided egotistic approach to kid's schooling. Nothing more.

+1000 I don’t have many friends with college aged kids yet but from what I see of colleagues who paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for their kids’ educations I’m not impressed by the outcomes at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a public school in the 90s, it was one of the top public high schools in California. When I went to university, I noticed very little difference between those who went to public vs private schools. The SAT scores in DC private schools are basically comparable to the top publics. I don't get it, i mean if you got millions to burn, so be it. I rather give my kids a house.

School has changed. I’ve taught in both FCPS and a private. Those private kids are getting a much better writing curriculum.

And those public kids are getting much better math and Science curriculums.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People pay for private school for the privilege of excluding certain groups of people like those with a lower socioeconomic status or less of a focus on education. Most of the private schools in the DMV were founded as a way for white people to get around anti-segregation laws.

Read the post right above yours. Your assumptions about why people switch to private are wrong.

a lot of people pick private for the smaller class sizes, too.

But there is always a DCUM poster who needs to baselessly accuse people of racist intent where none exists. Most people want or give their children the best education that they can afford. And that sure as heck isn’t a public school in the DMV.

Well the best schools in the DMV are publics. The MoCo magnets, TJ, the Ws etc...only the top 3 or so privates are comparable to the Ws, none comes close to the MoCo magnets or TJ.

[Anonymous]

Depends on how you define best. My special needs kid was being screwed by a public you’d put on the best list. So yeah, we went to a private that met DC’s needs. But of course those sorts of issues don’t enter your calculus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a public school in the 90s, it was one of the top public high schools in California. When I went to university, I noticed very little difference between those who went to public vs private schools. The SAT scores in DC private schools are basically comparable to the top publics. I don't get it, i mean if you got millions to burn, so be it. I rather give my kids a house.

Because they don’t want their kids to go to school with black kids.

The private school I send my kids to has a higher percentage of black kids than our local public. Nice try though.

Interesting. That is not the usual, but I’m sure you know that. What school?

I don’t think it’s as unusual as you think. They would normally go to Whitman which is less than 5% black. Langley HS in VA is less than 2%.

So barely any black kids at either school. Got it.

No one seeks our private school for more diversity.

You read it wrong. Both of these schools are public schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a public school in the 90s, it was one of the top public high schools in California. When I went to university, I noticed very little difference between those who went to public vs private schools. The SAT scores in DC private schools are basically comparable to the top publics. I don't get it, i mean if you got millions to burn, so be it. I rather give my kids a house.

School has changed. I’ve taught in both FCPS and a private. Those private kids are getting a much better writing curriculum.

And those public kids are getting much better math and Science curriculums.

You are absolutely dreaming.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a public school in the 90s, it was one of the top public high schools in California. When I went to university, I noticed very little difference between those who went to public vs private schools. The SAT scores in DC private schools are basically comparable to the top publics. I don't get it, i mean if you got millions to burn, so be it. I rather give my kids a house.

School has changed. I’ve taught in both FCPS and a private. Those private kids are getting a much better writing curriculum.

And those public kids are getting much better math and Science curriculums.

You are absolutely dreaming.

It's true

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Other than price, why aren’t we all using the English governor/governess model, supplemented with private tutoring for specific math and science subjects? Reducing the student to teacher ratio to 1:1 (or 2:1, maybe a bit higher if you have 3 or more children) is clearly going to overcome nearly any advantage a school might otherwise offer, at least in terms of educational tailoring and outcomes for specific students. Homeschooling can (emphasis on can) use the same reduction in student to teacher ratios to achieve desirable outcomes. Worries about “socialization” are kind of silly—parents of means are going to make sure their kids are appropriately socialized. So really, by focusing on public v private, folks are missing the true difference making opportunity.

because if haven't figure it out, the modern education system is not about learning anything. It is an endless competitive tournament for your kids to compete for ever smaller slices of professional jobs eroded by by ever more sophisticated automation/software/AI, pushed by parents ever so desperate to hold on to the wealth created by past generations. Get with the program.

There’s no program to get with. Which kids start businesses? Who does it more often - public school kids, private school kids, or very affluent kids taught to be entrepreneurs? What skills do you want your children to have. You may be thinking too small.

Zuckerberg and Bezos are products of public schools.

WTH are you talking about: Zuck went to PEA! Bezos did go to Miami Palmetto, but FL Science Scholar and NMS before Princeton. He did work at McDs, too!

Zuckerberg did MOST of his schooling in Ardsley public schools and went to Exeter only for the last 2 years. He is a public school kid for all practical purposes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a public school in the 90s, it was one of the top public high schools in California. When I went to university, I noticed very little difference between those who went to public vs private schools. The SAT scores in DC private schools are basically comparable to the top publics. I don't get it, i mean if you got millions to burn, so be it. I rather give my kids a house.

School has changed. I’ve taught in both FCPS and a private. Those private kids are getting a much better writing curriculum.

And those public kids are getting much better math and Science curriculums.

You are absolutely dreaming.

It's true

likely true for science. much less so for math.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a public school in the 90s, it was one of the top public high schools in California. When I went to university, I noticed very little difference between those who went to public vs private schools. The SAT scores in DC private schools are basically comparable to the top publics. I don't get it, i mean if you got millions to burn, so be it. I rather give my kids a house.

School has changed. I’ve taught in both FCPS and a private. Those private kids are getting a much better writing curriculum.

And those public kids are getting much better math and Science curriculums.

You are absolutely dreaming.

It's true

likely true for science. much less so for math.

DP
When it comes to math, the area private schools cannot hold a candle to the public schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a public school in the 90s, it was one of the top public high schools in California. When I went to university, I noticed very little difference between those who went to public vs private schools. The SAT scores in DC private schools are basically comparable to the top publics. I don't get it, i mean if you got millions to burn, so be it. I rather give my kids a house.

School has changed. I’ve taught in both FCPS and a private. Those private kids are getting a much better writing curriculum.

And those public kids are getting much better math and Science curriculums.

You are absolutely dreaming.

It's true

likely true for science. much less so for math.

DP
When it comes to math, the area private schools cannot hold a candle to the public schools.

In what way? What does that mean?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a public school in the 90s, it was one of the top public high schools in California. When I went to university, I noticed very little difference between those who went to public vs private schools. The SAT scores in DC private schools are basically comparable to the top publics. I don't get it, i mean if you got millions to burn, so be it. I rather give my kids a house.

Let's translate:

I don't understand why everyone doesn't think exactly the way I do.

So true! And it is always entertaining when someone mentions their experience that is decades old as if it correlates in any way to current times.
Sure, OP, look back fondly on your school days in the 90s, but that is some old data upon which to be making comparisons!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to a public school in the 90s, it was one of the top public high schools in California. When I went to university, I noticed very little difference between those who went to public vs private schools. The SAT scores in DC private schools are basically comparable to the top publics. I don't get it, i mean if you got millions to burn, so be it. I rather give my kids a house.

Let's translate:

I don't understand why everyone doesn't think exactly the way I do.

So true! And it is always entertaining when someone mentions their experience that is decades old as if it correlates in any way to current times.
Sure, OP, look back fondly on your school days in the 90s, but that is some old data upon which to be making comparisons!

How are things any different now though? One of my kids is in a private school and his same aged cousin is in public. There is very little difference in what they’re learning and the Math curriculum at the public is more rigorous.

[Anonymous]

I have multiple advanced engineering degrees and I wasn't impressed with the STEM curriculum at our local public all. Transferred my kids out.