Why do so many folks pay for private school in this area?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So curious, as this area is recognized as a top 10 public school system in the nation. In this climate of social change, where as diversity / inclusion / anti-privilege is more driving change, why subject yourself to the perception (whether right or wrong) of privilege, especially when AOs are now pivoting towards more socially well-rounded experiences and stories of struggle / perseverance. Is it worth the price, stress, dealing with the Jones, etc?

1) Recognized by whom as "top 10 public schools in the nation?" Very school dependent. In many, many cases, the public schools in this area are a disaster.

2) I could not care less if someone else has a "perception of privilege" of me. They are right. So what?

3) Yes, it's worth the price. Many times over. And I love the Joneses; many of them have become close friends.

Any other questions?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Reduce tuition? Our school made lots of modifications, upgrades and structural improvements due to covid. Even the high tech cameras in every room come at a price. No, tuition was not reduced. But anyone was free to enroll in public school and then have zero instruction.

You mean public education is free. You paid for cameras.

And paid for my son’s public school cameras as well

NP. Yes, our tuition paid for cameras. It also paid the salaries of the dedicated teachers who taught hybrid all year. They held extra office hours. They held seminars with students contributing simultaneously from the classroom and individual homes. They led club meetings, including my daughter’s STEM club. When it wasn’t her turn in the classroom, her teacher sent materials to our house so she could do the same experiments at home. They held social events (virtual trivia nights, parking lot chalking, etc.). They did the best they could in a terrible situation. If the school had reduced our tuition, these teachers would have suffered.

Sounds like a good value and very altruistic

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So curious, as this area is recognized as a top 10 public school system in the nation. In this climate of social change, where as diversity / inclusion / anti-privilege is more driving change, why subject yourself to the perception (whether right or wrong) of privilege, especially when AOs are now pivoting towards more socially well-rounded experiences and stories of struggle / perseverance. Is it worth the price, stress, dealing with the Jones, etc?

1) Recognized by whom as "top 10 public schools in the nation?" Very school dependent. In many, many cases, the public schools in this area are a disaster.

2) I could not care less if someone else has a "perception of privilege" of me. They are right. So what?

3) Yes, it's worth the price. Many times over. And I love the Joneses; many of them have become close friends.

Any other questions?

Why do you say a disaster and why better at private to counter?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do so many folks pay for private in this area? Because they can.

I think it must be deeper than that! Most smart and financially astute folks don’t do something just because they can. Lots of folks struggle to pay for it, and lots spend son much time and energy striving for it. It’s got to be deeper than, the blanket statement that the eduction is better? Is it $100k+ better? Why can’t their child strive in publics? Or do parents just think their kids can’t navigate an environment that simulates the real world?

I have one in public and one in private, and I can assure you neither DH or I are insecure. We do want our children to succeed and they have different needs that can best be addressed by different academic settings. I’m surprised you find this concept so confusing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So curious, as this area is recognized as a top 10 public school system in the nation. In this climate of social change, where as diversity / inclusion / anti-privilege is more driving change, why subject yourself to the perception (whether right or wrong) of privilege, especially when AOs are now pivoting towards more socially well-rounded experiences and stories of struggle / perseverance. Is it worth the price, stress, dealing with the Jones, etc?

1) Recognized by whom as "top 10 public schools in the nation?" Very school dependent. In many, many cases, the public schools in this area are a disaster.

2) I could not care less if someone else has a "perception of privilege" of me. They are right. So what?

3) Yes, it's worth the price. Many times over. And I love the Joneses; many of them have become close friends.

Any other questions?

NP - didn’t look hard but here is something:
WalletHub ranked each state's public schools for "Quality" and "Safety" using 33 relevant metrics. Metrics included high school graduation rate among low-income students, math and reading scores, median SAT and ACT scores, pupil-teach ratio, the share of armed students, number of school shootings between 2000 and June 2020 bullying incidence rate, and more.

Based on these metrics, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Jersey have the best public schools in the United States. Virginia 4th, Maryland 10th. MCPS is largest in MD with lots of publics amongst the nations top 100 in another study. 2010 Malcolm Baldrdge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I used to be very pro-public school but I’m starting to change my mind after the last 2 years.

Same here. We’re in a “good” public school in the area, but if we could afford it I would rather go to private. The public schools are huge bureaucracies that don’t meet student needs very well. Our friends in private school got to attend in-person for most of 2020-2021 while we had no choice but to do virtual. Even this past week FCPS just closed for the whole week because of “snow” and our friends in private actually got to go to school for a couple of days.

[Anonymous]

We are in private because we (1) don't want to send our kid to a FCPS public high school ranked a "1" of 10 on Great Schools ranking system.

We also wanted a religious foundation to our kids teaching. Is there a public high school that offers a religious foundation to its teaching?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are in private because we (1) don't want to send our kid to a FCPS public high school ranked a "1" of 10 on Great Schools ranking system.

We also wanted a religious foundation to our kids teaching. Is there a public high school that offers a religious foundation to its teaching?

No, they get that at home - it’s free and often!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are in private because we (1) don't want to send our kid to a FCPS public high school ranked a "1" of 10 on Great Schools ranking system.

We also wanted a religious foundation to our kids teaching. Is there a public high school that offers a religious foundation to its teaching?

Are you serious with that question? Sounds like you need to go back to school, preferably one that will teach government and civics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I thought Covid put this tiresome topic on hold for a bit.

You are not required to read or comment. The title says it all so move on if you're tired.

[Anonymous]

Because our FCPS is ranked a 1 or 2 in great schools and we make a lot of money so the tuition isn’t a big deal. Yes, we could move to a better school pyramid but we love where we live.

[Anonymous]

Catholic education is a priority for many. The public schools don’t have classes on the teachings of the Church.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Catholic education is a priority for many. The public schools don’t have classes on the teachings of the Church.

I never thought about that. I always associate privates with non-secular families trying to gain and edge or put their kids in a bubble.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Catholic education is a priority for many. The public schools don’t have classes on the teachings of the Church.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So curious, as this area is recognized as a top 10 public school system in the nation. In this climate of social change, where as diversity / inclusion / anti-privilege is more driving change, why subject yourself to the perception (whether right or wrong) of privilege, especially when AOs are now pivoting towards more socially well-rounded experiences and stories of struggle / perseverance. Is it worth the price, stress, dealing with the Jones, etc?

1) Recognized by whom as "top 10 public schools in the nation?" Very school dependent. In many, many cases, the public schools in this area are a disaster.

2) I could not care less if someone else has a "perception of privilege" of me. They are right. So what?

3) Yes, it's worth the price. Many times over. And I love the Joneses; many of them have become close friends.

Any other questions?

NP - didn’t look hard but here is something:
WalletHub ranked each state's public schools for "Quality" and "Safety" using 33 relevant metrics. Metrics included high school graduation rate among low-income students, math and reading scores, median SAT and ACT scores, pupil-teach ratio, the share of armed students, number of school shootings between 2000 and June 2020 bullying incidence rate, and more.

Based on these metrics, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Jersey have the best public schools in the United States. Virginia 4th, Maryland 10th. MCPS is largest in MD with lots of publics amongst the nations top 100 in another study. 2010 Malcolm Baldrdge.

The fact that "share of armed students" and "number of school shootings between 2000 and June 2020" are even a criterion for your measurement tells me all I need to know about public schools.