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

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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.

You obviously have a broken sarcasm meter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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.

I actually made that up to solicit a comment from you. Your responses and motives are bidding behind a vail, just trying to prove

[Anonymous]

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

Agree this is weird topic during covid. LOTS of people moved to private last year for in person instruction, including my family. We were previously big fans of our local public. I had attended Catholic school (elsewhere) and thought it was not a great education until HS.

Anyway, we moved to private so that DD could be in person all of 2020-2021. Stayed because things in public still looked messy for the current year. Probably will stay at least one more year for the same reason, plus we love the small classes, early instruction in music and foreign language, and emphasis on arts and public speaking. I don't want to pull DD out of an environment where she's thriving; if she stops thriving we'll go back to public.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Seriously yawn.

Clearly there is some insecurity you are dealing with as a result of this question being posed? Care to share, or prefer to move on to another post?

Wow, you’re not even a clever sh*t stirrer.

[Anonymous]

You should scroll through the MD, VA, and DCPS public school forums on here. Theyre all dumpster fires. One glance and you'll see why a lot of us flock to private.

[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?

I have some questions for you. Which “school system” are you referring to? And if indeed the “school system” is great why are parents in the “school system” continually jockeying and hustling to get their kids into specific schools in that “school system” or paying millions of dollars to buy homes in boundary for specific schools?

Shouldn’t you be asking them why they are doing that if it’s a “top ten school system”? Right?

[Anonymous]

I think the better question is why are the public schools in this area not meeting the needs of our kids? Why has FCPS had a reading curriculum for the last 15+ years that doesn’t actually teach kids to read? Why are class sizes so insanely large? Why are parents prepping 6 year olds to get them into AAP? Why doesn’t FCPS teach kids how to spell?

For many families that choose private at least in VA, the goal isn’t exclusivity or prestige—it is finding a school that meets the needs of our children. My dyslexic child could not do virtual learning. So we switched to a private that serves kids with language based learning differences and was in person all last year. It is a great fit for my child and we will stay at least through the end of elementary school.

Believe me, I am incredibly disappointed that after spending what we did for a house in our school district we have to spend a small fortune for private school. I am grateful that we have the resources to do it.

[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?

I think you have some misconceptions. 1. You assume there is something bad about privilege. There is not. 2. Also, why would people care what other people thought? 3. For most people in privates that are just not that expensive relative to income. 4. Not aware of any stress going to a private. A lot less stress actually.

Actually, I don’t have any issue with privilege, but AOs and recruiters do. It’s of societal pressure, just like folks who move with the herd on privates feel as they keep up with Jones.

Maybe that is what is in vogue right now, but admissions trends are fickle. I have a kid in pre-K and one in 1st. I’m not going to stress out about a current preference in college admissions when my kids won’t be there for more than a decade. My kids have parents who are millionaires. They were always going to stink of privilege. They have to make their way in the world as who they are and not be embarrassed about it. They will go to college somewhere and they will be fine in whatever they do in life because they have an enormous safety net. I don’t think most people who have privilege are terribly concerned about people knowing they are privileged. It is just what they are and have always been. Why worry about it now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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.

+1 so many posters clearly don’t have kids

[Anonymous]

Because I have a ton of money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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?

I think you have some misconceptions. 1. You assume there is something bad about privilege. There is not. 2. Also, why would people care what other people thought? 3. For most people in privates that are just not that expensive relative to income. 4. Not aware of any stress going to a private. A lot less stress actually.

Actually, I don’t have any issue with privilege, but AOs and recruiters do. It’s of societal pressure, just like folks who move with the herd on privates feel as they keep up with Jones.

Maybe that is what is in vogue right now, but admissions trends are fickle. I have a kid in pre-K and one in 1st. I’m not going to stress out about a current preference in college admissions when my kids won’t be there for more than a decade. My kids have parents who are millionaires. They were always going to stink of privilege. They have to make their way in the world as who they are and not be embarrassed about it. They will go to college somewhere and they will be fine in whatever they do in life because they have an enormous safety net. I don’t think most people who have privilege are terribly concerned about people knowing they are privileged. It is just what they are and have always been. Why worry about it now.

“Millionaires” - cracks me up! Very middle class of you

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not again…

I think this is a good question - will await responses

no need to wait. There are literally dozens of threads on this board about whether the cost of private is worth it in neighborhoods that have public school with good reputations.

[Anonymous]

Because I do not think publics are good enough

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s money. People in this areas have a ton of it. Why do they buy their kids $1200 sneakers? Same answer. They can.

Many can, and don't. Because they are secure in themselves.

May can, and do. Because they aren’t ideologically or philosophically committed to publics, and they buy the better product for their kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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.

I literally had to check the date on the thread because I know we’ve had the same question asked multiple times in the not-too-distant past.