Politically Incorrect Private School Thread What Do You Really Think?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Seriously? I went to private and public schools and I can assure you that A students in public typically weren't A students in private. In fact, my friends and I always joked that whenever a public school kid told us their GPA, we'd subtract .6 to get their GPA at our school..

Serious question: what percent of private school parents are as awful as this PP and the PP (troll?) with the snotty private school DD?

I haven't read this whole thread, but I think a not insignificant number. Some are overtly snobby, others are just so insular they don't know what public schools are really like.

I went to one of the Big 3 schools, my DC goes to public school (as I might add, do the children of many of my Big 3 classmates). I think my DC has gotten a better overall education than I did and has a much better world view than I did. There are certainly some downsides to public school with college counseling being at the top of the list but that's something you can get externally without much problem. At least at our public school there is a very large group of motivated students who go to top colleges. While the percentages might be lower, the sheer numbers are large. So maybe 20-30% of the class is going to top colleges - that's 150 kids. That's a pretty good peer group.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What do I really think? Your private school kid couldn't cut it in the competitive atmosphere of public school.

Like the PP said, her son was not competitive enough to get into advanced classes so she sent him to private school.

Nothing wrong with that per se, of course at some point in his life he will probably be competing against all these smart public school kids and it may come as a bit of a shock when his mom and dad can't "pull him out" of those situations as well.

Really? Every private school kid couldn't cut it in the public school world?

Of course not. Lots of bright super smart kids go to private school. But they round out the school with mediocre students whose parents can afford full tuition. I get it that a B student in public school may be an A student with lots of help, and that's appealing to a lot of parents. But don't kid yourself that your barely A student at private can compete with the AP/magnet students in public.

There are so many generalizations here that the mind fairly boggles. I have never understood why so many public school parents seem to spend so much time in this forum, but I think maybe I'm beginning to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are so many generalizations here that the mind fairly boggles. I have never understood why so many public school parents seem to spend so much time in this forum, but I think maybe I'm beginning to.

This public school parent reads the private school forum because I like the posts about how it's so hard to survive on a household income of less than $350,000 these days. I also like the ones that explain the difference between real rich people and fake rich people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:...At least at our public school there is a very large group of motivated students who go to top colleges. While the percentages might be lower, the sheer numbers are large. So maybe 20-30% of the class is going to top colleges - that's 150 kids. That's a pretty good peer group.

Could you please tell me which local public school has 20-30% of each class going to top colleges?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:...At least at our public school there is a very large group of motivated students who go to top colleges. While the percentages might be lower, the sheer numbers are large. So maybe 20-30% of the class is going to top colleges - that's 150 kids. That's a pretty good peer group.

Could you please tell me which local public school has 20-30% of each class going to top colleges?

I would like to know as well. I need to move to a better school district.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are so many generalizations here that the mind fairly boggles. I have never understood why so many public school parents seem to spend so much time in this forum, but I think maybe I'm beginning to.

This public school parent reads the private school forum because I like the posts about how it's so hard to survive on a household income of less than $350,000 these days. I also like the ones that explain the difference between real rich people and fake rich people.

My kids have been in public and private school. I read this forum
(1) To find out what's happening my kids' former private school (which we liked in many ways)
(2) This forum is a hoot! Yes, I met some really nice parents at our private school, but also some hyper-competitive, helicoptering, out-of-touch parents. I didn't laugh about it then (when one uber-competitive mom with a bully kid was making things up about other kids), but I can laugh about it now.

[Anonymous]

I think private school parents (and I am one of them) are just lazy and pay the big bucks to let the school do all the work for them in terms of their children's academic career and enrichment opportunities. In public schools parents have to give their children more guidance and often times they have to do more of the leg work involved in the process.

There is said it!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:...At least at our public school there is a very large group of motivated students who go to top colleges. While the percentages might be lower, the sheer numbers are large. So maybe 20-30% of the class is going to top colleges - that's 150 kids. That's a pretty good peer group.

Could you please tell me which local public school has 20-30% of each class going to top colleges?

Surely depends on how "top" is defined, right? Top 10? No way. Top 50? Absolutely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think private school parents (and I am one of them) are just lazy and pay the big bucks to let the school do all the work for them in terms of their children's academic career and enrichment opportunities. In public schools parents have to give their children more guidance and often times they have to do more of the leg work involved in the process.

There is said it!

Again, I have had children at both a top public magnet, and top privates. I felt just the opposite about our Big private, our child had to take the initiative to develop their talents, seek out worthy enrichment opportunities, decide how to spend their summers working and/or learning. DH and I used to joke "for the tuition we pay . . . ", but our child and our household did the heavy lifting on the outside academic and enrichment opportunities -- especially as the girls grew older.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think private school parents (and I am one of them) are just lazy and pay the big bucks to let the school do all the work for them in terms of their children's academic career and enrichment opportunities. In public schools parents have to give their children more guidance and often times they have to do more of the leg work involved in the process.

There is said it!

Again, I have had children at both a top public magnet, and top privates. I felt just the opposite about our Big private, our child had to take the initiative to develop their talents, seek out worthy enrichment opportunities, decide how to spend their summers working and/or learning. DH and I used to joke "for the tuition we pay . . . ", but our child and our household did the heavy lifting on the outside academic and enrichment opportunities -- especially as the girls grew older.

I suppose it depends on which school you attend and each family.

[Anonymous]

Seriously? I went to private and public schools and I can assure you that A students in public typically weren't A students in private. In fact, my friends and I always joked that whenever a public school kid told us their GPA, we'd subtract .6 to get their GPA at our school..

Heh, this totally depends on the private school and the public school. Some of the magnet schools in this country are fantastic and extremely competitive--and on par with any private school (Thomas Jefferson and Styvusant for example). Some of the high performing suburban schools as well. And some independent schools are true rigorous college prep environments. But some private schools are not all that, and a lot of public schools in poorer neighborhoods are not very rigorous. DH went to a very non-rigorous rural school where he opted out of finals for testing proficient on state exams and was one of three kids taking calculus as an independent study (sat in the back with the textbook and taught himself, and the teacher had office hours for any problems they had). He then went to a no-name state school for undergrad. He is incredibly driven and bright (and had to be to get out of his small town rural community), and I'm pretty sure he would have thrived wherever. While what you said might generally be true for a top prep school versus a mediocre public school, it definitely depends on a lot of factors. You sound like a snob.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Seriously? I went to private and public schools and I can assure you that A students in public typically weren't A students in private. In fact, my friends and I always joked that whenever a public school kid told us their GPA, we'd subtract .6 to get their GPA at our school..

Heh, this totally depends on the private school and the public school. Some of the magnet schools in this country are fantastic and extremely competitive--and on par with any private school (Thomas Jefferson and Styvusant for example). Some of the high performing suburban schools as well. And some independent schools are true rigorous college prep environments. But some private schools are not all that, and a lot of public schools in poorer neighborhoods are not very rigorous. DH went to a very non-rigorous rural school where he opted out of finals for testing proficient on state exams and was one of three kids taking calculus as an independent study (sat in the back with the textbook and taught himself, and the teacher had office hours for any problems they had). He then went to a no-name state school for undergrad. He is incredibly driven and bright (and had to be to get out of his small town rural community), and I'm pretty sure he would have thrived wherever. While what you said might generally be true for a top prep school versus a mediocre public school, it definitely depends on a lot of factors. You sound like a snob.

Indeed. It's a school-by-school comparison. Nobody cares about that snob's experience in West Bumthing more than 30 years ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:...At least at our public school there is a very large group of motivated students who go to top colleges. While the percentages might be lower, the sheer numbers are large. So maybe 20-30% of the class is going to top colleges - that's 150 kids. That's a pretty good peer group.

Could you please tell me which local public school has 20-30% of each class going to top colleges?

Surely depends on how "top" is defined, right? Top 10? No way. Top 50? Absolutely.

Thanks, yes I meant more like top 25 on each list (SLAC and University). I have a possibly more expansive view of "top" than the private school crowd? Of course we don't have 20-30% going to Ivy League schools. If that's what you want you probably need to get your kid the heck out of Dodge and go to Andover or Exeter. Keep in mind the number one college destination for last year's Sidwell class was University of Michigan.

[Anonymous]

Blair or TJ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:...At least at our public school there is a very large group of motivated students who go to top colleges. While the percentages might be lower, the sheer numbers are large. So maybe 20-30% of the class is going to top colleges - that's 150 kids. That's a pretty good peer group.

Could you please tell me which local public school has 20-30% of each class going to top colleges?

Surely depends on how "top" is defined, right? Top 10? No way. Top 50? Absolutely.

Thanks, yes I meant more like top 25 on each list (SLAC and University). I have a possibly more expansive view of "top" than the private school crowd? Of course we don't have 20-30% going to Ivy League schools. If that's what you want you probably need to get your kid the heck out of Dodge and go to Andover or Exeter. Keep in mind the number one college destination for last year's Sidwell class was University of Michigan.

What is wrong with U of MI?! It has some great programs. People forget that some state universities have top programs (better than Ivy).