Are the private schools (particularly elementary schools and pre-k) really necessary in DC?

[Anonymous]

Hi,

I am not from the DC area and went to a well funded public school back in Washington state and felt that my public education was pretty good, I performed well, and had excellent options for colleges. I recently had a baby and am starting to think about schooling options here in DC. While we are lucky enough to afford the best schools (albeit, some sacrifice will be required) and assuming that our child could get in, I'm wondering if it's really worth it to basically dedicate your whole life to trying to get your kids in these prestigious schools?

I was also wondering what the most prestigious schools in the DC area were and what people thought about them? I want the best for my child, but balance is important to me as well.

[Anonymous]

since you just had your baby, you have lots of time to contemplate, discuss with friends, visit schools. as your child gets older you can start to visit your public elementary schools, the private ones, the pre-schools and decide for yourself what the differences are and what appeals to you.

there are tons of threads on this topic, and you might want to take a look at those.

[Anonymous]

That is a hard question OP, because as you can see on DCUM, some parents go private and some go public in DC, mostly in elementary, but some into middle school and high school. Some believe that it is necessary to go private in elementary to make sure you have a highschool spot, while other parents do not. Others choose private school because it better fits their child and vice versa.

Here is my own personal observation:

When you control for parental involvement, education levels, and loving family atmosphere, you CAN NOT pick out the private school kids versus the public school kids at the elementary level (which is where my children) currently are. I see this dynamic at playgrounds, at playgroups, in our neighborhood, at church, etc., etc. I've met smart, curious, kind children in both systems.

[Anonymous]

It just seems that navigating the school system here is so much more complicated than what I grew up with. For me, you went to the school that was assiged to your district.

Here, there's public schools, waiting lists, charter schools, private schools, private schools that require you to get your child tested at age three to get into pre-k to get into the high school you want etc. This variance in the quality and cost of education is foreign to me.

*sigh* I guess it's easier in the suburbs, but we live in the city so that my husband doesn't have to make a long commute.

OP

[Anonymous]

You don't say where you live, OP, but one thing to consider is the prospects for your local elementary school by the time dc is old enough to go to school. Some people are "adopting" their local school and supporting it early on before they have kids of school age in an effort to improve by the time dc is of age.