Private = Love of learning?
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Anonymous
| DH and myself both went to mediocre public schools out-of-state. We've done well, but we both hated school and have a very pessimistic view of public education. We are committed to sending DS age 5 to private, partly because I think he would turn out differently than us - more motivated, have a love of learning, engaged with school, and have incredible ambition - due to pressure to be like his peers and meeting the expectations of the school. Do you think this is an accurate 'culture' at private, or is this wishful thinking |
Anonymous
| I don't know if it's accurate or not yet, but it's certainly what private schools are selling. We bought it and are starting DC in private for K next year. |
Anonymous
| May be. Depends on the kid. School is hard for my children (LDs) and so they struggle. They are smart though and I think private is the best place for them for a host of reasons. They do not do well with the homework load, however, but any good public in the area has similar homework load so not sure what the solution is there. I think they will love school in college, as I did. |
Anonymous
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I work at a private that focuses on this love of learning. I have experience with myself and my own kids at both public and private schools. I would say that *in general,* a high quality public school will offer the same opportunities to develop a love of learning. A low quality public school will not. Your average private school will probably have more freedom to structure the curriculum and school day to encourage a love of learning. But be aware that the highest ranking private schools can put children under such tremendous pressure (even in elementary school) that they can become risk averse and come to think of themselves as unintelligent.
In sum, it's about the individual school, not whether it is public or private. You shouldn't (and can't) force a kid to love anything. And beware schools that brag about the extraordinary colleges their students get into. These days it's hard to both love learning and also knock yourself out doing the schoolwork and sports and extracurriculars necessary to get into the Ivy League. |
Anonymous
| Wow...my 2 kids are in private and I think that you are asking way too much of any school to instill "love to learning." That is actually part of our jobs as parents and not the school. Having said that, I grew up going to all sorts of schools (private and public) because my father moved abroad a frequently. Anyway, I did private for high school here in DC and I'd say that you will run the entire spectrum....kids in public who are thriving and go to Ivies and then also entitled brats in private who end up dropping out or wasting their potential or "leg up." Nothing shocking about that. The private route is nice if you both work and one is not home to "supplement" what they may not be getting, you want more individualized attention, and you have more than one kid at home so your attention is divided. But special ed kids (mild to mod) actually may you better in public because there is so much funding and extra support. So just keep an open mind....plus if you are in the district, there are many charters that are doing REALLY well and on par with privates. |
Anonymous
I think this is accurate. FWIW, our DC's "Big 3" did fine on the love of learning front until about 8th grade. I wanted to pull DC out at that point, but DC resisted (had been there since PreK/K and didn't want to leave). HS was as bad as I anticipated -- basically schoolwork became more of a chore than a pleasure. DC still excelled, but the light's gone out. Kid's pissed off enough about that that, hopefully, it'll reignite in college (got into fave school -- chosen for nerdiness, which is probably a good omen in this context). Meanwhile, we're counting the days. |
Anonymous
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Our DD absolutely loves (private) school, and seems to enjoy learning.
Having said that, in my own childhood in public school, my enthusiasm for school fluctuated -- loved elementary school, liked high school, was in terror most of middle school. And yet I would say my love of *learning* probably was greater than DD"s is -- I read insatiably after school, which DD does not do. |
Anonymous
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I picked our private school for just that reason. It is inquiry-based learning, lots of hands on projects, lots of field trips, and the curriculum leaves a lot of room to inspire curiosity. They focus on the effort and not the result (meaning no real grades although they expect mastery of certain age/grade-appropriate concepts). And it's worked fairly well.
Since I have no experience with public schools other than my own, 40 years ago, I can't compare. |
Anonymous
What school is this? |
Anonymous
| It's definitely what they are selling. My kids love learning, and love school and they go to a public school. I don't think it's a trait that only kids from private schools have. Can a school monopolize "love of learning?" No. It can happen lots of places, any place actually. Promising it as a marketing tool seems a little reaching. |
Anonymous
| I think you can get love of learning when there is a good match between the child, the culture of the school, and the way the school teaches (ie progressive/hands-on, more traditional, etc). Sometimes you luck out and get it in your public by sheer coincidence. If you want to guarantee it, you have to make an active choice, and that means private. |
Anonymous
| Mom and dad were private and Catholic with total love of learning. Charter for the kids; so far so good on that, which is the number one goal... |
Anonymous
| I think this is based on your personality and less about your school (assuming a safe, decent environment). I went to public schools and did well there, as well as in college and grad school. I am motivated by my own personal success, supporting my family, and helping those around me rather than a true "love of learning", despite being in a very intellectual field and looking great on paper. Dh on the other hand has a true love of learning, but it started when he was a kid all on his own (and his parents supported it). He also has done well in the same type of college, grad school and work as me, though I am more motivated to move up in the system while he is more motivated to learn a ton about his field. Anyhow, my drawn out point is that this is less about private versus public and more about the kid and home. |
Anonymous
. +1 |
Anonymous
| It depends on the kid, not the school. But don't let anyone stop you from throwing your money away, if that's how you want to delude yourself. |