Are you at a $40k+ LS/MS that doesn’t offer much beyond public?

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:All of the $40+ schools have more playtime, art, music, and science than public school, but likely does not have more math and reading instruction. That may or may not be valuable to you.

There are only so many hours in a day. If you want more art music and play, then that time has to come from somewhere.

In public school my kids spent a LOT of time waiting for teacher to help the rest of the class. Did homework. Read a novel a day. Doodled. Fine to give that up so the core 6 hrs are doing SOMETHING, and homework is for home.

And you think that doesn’t happen in private? The teacher should be helping the kids in class.

There are fewer kids and they are more closer to on level within the class. This is what my kid reports.

Same at my private but the academics are not as good. So going back to public where he will get a better education with more kids in class without the tuition.

No one goes to a religious school expecting the academics to be good

Like NCS? STA? I would add SFS but no one really believes it’s Quaker anymore.

No I mean schools that boast about their religious Bible-based curriculum

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As PP said, core instruction isn't necessarily better than in good publics. You are paying for manicured grounds, extensive athletic facilities, plush seating in the library and the connections you might or might not make with influential families.

I don't think that's true. You are also getting:
- much smaller class sizes (10-15 v. 23-26)
- disruptive kids kept out- this is huge in my opinion
- more consistent quality for teachers- many public school teachers are great, but others are not; we have only seen high quality in private
- no/less standardized testing

If you aren't getting these things from your private, then I would question whether the cost is worth it.

Disruptive kids kept out? Can I come work at your school? Or better yet, send my kids to your school. I left public thinking this was true in private and it’s false. It takes years to “counsel out” a disruptive kid.

Sure years to counsel out, versus in public that’s called graduation

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As PP said, core instruction isn't necessarily better than in good publics. You are paying for manicured grounds, extensive athletic facilities, plush seating in the library and the connections you might or might not make with influential families.

Disagree. The instruction is the reason to pay, not the ancillary benefits. If your private isn't providing (1) small class sizes; (2) tailored instruction for your child; (3) focus on and achievement of love of learning for your child; and, (4) acceleration in *writing* and math, you're at the wrong private.

PP you replied to. I'm comparing the top privates to my children's Bethesda-area public schools, where the acceleration is solid, the core teachers are wonderful and foster love of learning... but the classes are larger and some schools are overcrowded. It's the overcrowding that bugs me. Yet it works for us, because my child with ADHD and who needs accommodations has had very attentive IEP teams in elementary, middle and high school, and all the accommodations he needs, which he would definitely not have received in a private school setting, because they are not set up for it. My other child is highly functional in any setting.

I'm not saying privates are not worth it for very wealthy parents who don't mind paying 50K a year per child for things other than academics. It's really nice to have luxury touches on a daily basis in one's school! I'm saying that certain public schools are academically very competitive, and if that's what matters to you, then you have to ask yourself whether the rest is worth that amount of money.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:LOL, she hijacks the threads where people like us are posting on-topic content, and those who call her out on it are the "stalkers" here?

Okay, you do sound like a stalker. I’m just saying.

And you do sound delusional, I'm just saying.

(hint: it's not stalking when all the content is out there in plain view on every other thread, with the same telltale catchphrases...stalking implies having to dig and hunt, which isn't at all necessary here)

Stalker.

Sociopath.

Stalker’s gonna stalk.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:I really wish this pointless weekly thread required every poster to state the name of the schools they’re discussing first hand. It’s otherwise useless.

+1. A lot of people in my neighborhood like to brag about how they’re sending their kids “private” but they end up being $15-20k crappy parochial or Christian schools. Um, no one is envious of that

Parochial are well known to not be better in academics. It is ironic that people brag about sending their children to one.

But they don’t like to say that it’s parochial (or Christian). They just say “private”. As if there’s any comparison between those and the actual top independents. The schools proudly state that their curricula are based on the Bible!

What school has a math curriculum based on the Bible?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All of the $40+ schools have more playtime, art, music, and science than public school, but likely does not have more math and reading instruction. That may or may not be valuable to you.

There are only so many hours in a day. If you want more art music and play, then that time has to come from somewhere.

In public school my kids spent a LOT of time waiting for teacher to help the rest of the class. Did homework. Read a novel a day. Doodled. Fine to give that up so the core 6 hrs are doing SOMETHING, and homework is for home.

And you think that doesn’t happen in private? The teacher should be helping the kids in class.

There are fewer kids and they are more closer to on level within the class. This is what my kid reports.

Same at my private but the academics are not as good. So going back to public where he will get a better education with more kids in class without the tuition.

No one goes to a religious school expecting the academics to be good

Bigot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As PP said, core instruction isn't necessarily better than in good publics. You are paying for manicured grounds, extensive athletic facilities, plush seating in the library and the connections you might or might not make with influential families.

Disagree. The instruction is the reason to pay, not the ancillary benefits. If your private isn't providing (1) small class sizes; (2) tailored instruction for your child; (3) focus on and achievement of love of learning for your child; and, (4) acceleration in *writing* and math, you're at the wrong private.

PP you replied to. I'm comparing the top privates to my children's Bethesda-area public schools, where the acceleration is solid, the core teachers are wonderful and foster love of learning... but the classes are larger and some schools are overcrowded. It's the overcrowding that bugs me. Yet it works for us, because my child with ADHD and who needs accommodations has had very attentive IEP teams in elementary, middle and high school, and all the accommodations he needs, which he would definitely not have received in a private school setting, because they are not set up for it. My other child is highly functional in any setting.

I'm not saying privates are not worth it for very wealthy parents who don't mind paying 50K a year per child for things other than academics. It's really nice to have luxury touches on a daily basis in one's school! I'm saying that certain public schools are academically very competitive, and if that's what matters to you, then you have to ask yourself whether the rest is worth that amount of money.

If your kids are in high school they were in elementary long ago when things were much better and they weren’t squashing accelerated study and GT because of equity. Our school used to have pull out GT, but now does some worthless push in which is just more busy work so the teacher can spend more time teaching those who are behind.

Public school for a smart kid is baby sitting with a chance for independent study. My kid was doing fine but bored to tears and fairly lonely as more and more of their peers moved to private. It’s a zero sum game, I think that’s the phrase, where the teacher only has so much time in a day, and her incentives are such that if she gets more kids passing state standardized tests she and her school benefit (high test scores, great schools, etc) vs if she spends time on the smartest kids to actually grow and challenge them, maybe by high school it will change the college matriculation outcomes (which is not tied to state funding or accreditation).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Depends on how easily you can spend $40K+ annually/child. It's not worth it if you have to make hard sacrifices. I'm not talk about having to fly coach instead of business; I'm talking about not being able to save for your own retirement. You'd be better off renting an apartment in a good public school district.

If you can easily afford the tuition, it's a very nice luxury to have. We've had no impactful teacher shortages (vs public schools, where students are going without teachers in critical subjects), small class sizes, lots of arts and music and PE actually built into the curriculum (don't need to rely on afterschool for this instruction), teachers and admin respond to emails in a timely manner, teachers spend a lot of time with students outside of class, facilities are great, etc. Parents and alum are very involved and willing to help out with everything from hosting class parties to offering high school internships.

It's basically this for us. The $$$$$ for private was worth spending to us this year, as our kid moved into K and there were still tons of COVID-related teacher shortages, over-enrolled schools, etc., in our public system.

At the private, we had no staffing shortages, got lots of "customer-focused" service, small class sizes with 2 teachers per class, lots of enrichment, arts, hours daily of outdoor time on a lovely playground, outdoor lunch, etc. All of that was worth it for the first year of school during this weird transitional post-COVID lockdown time.

We'll be moving to public for 1st because those things have shaken out mostly now, and the $$$$$ for private is no longer worth it. The private, with all its pros, came with a weird insular, homogenous population, outdated educational philosophies, teachers who are undercompensated (and therefore the school can't be very selective), etc., etc.

The $$$$$ was a big stretch for us (= no savings this year), and it was worth it for what we needed it for. Now it's no longer worth it, and I'm glad we will have room in our budget to save + splurge occasionally, along with a more diverse group of families. I'll certainly miss the outdoor time and the customer service, but my kid is old enough now where those things don't bother me as much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Depends on how easily you can spend $40K+ annually/child. It's not worth it if you have to make hard sacrifices. I'm not talk about having to fly coach instead of business; I'm talking about not being able to save for your own retirement. You'd be better off renting an apartment in a good public school district.

If you can easily afford the tuition, it's a very nice luxury to have. We've had no impactful teacher shortages (vs public schools, where students are going without teachers in critical subjects), small class sizes, lots of arts and music and PE actually built into the curriculum (don't need to rely on afterschool for this instruction), teachers and admin respond to emails in a timely manner, teachers spend a lot of time with students outside of class, facilities are great, etc. Parents and alum are very involved and willing to help out with everything from hosting class parties to offering high school internships.

It's basically this for us. The $$$$$ for private was worth spending to us this year, as our kid moved into K and there were still tons of COVID-related teacher shortages, over-enrolled schools, etc., in our public system.

At the private, we had no staffing shortages, got lots of "customer-focused" service, small class sizes with 2 teachers per class, lots of enrichment, arts, hours daily of outdoor time on a lovely playground, outdoor lunch, etc. All of that was worth it for the first year of school during this weird transitional post-COVID lockdown time.

We'll be moving to public for 1st because those things have shaken out mostly now, and the $$$$$ for private is no longer worth it. The private, with all its pros, came with a weird insular, homogenous population, outdated educational philosophies, teachers who are undercompensated (and therefore the school can't be very selective), etc., etc.

The $$$$$ was a big stretch for us (= no savings this year), and it was worth it for what we needed it for. Now it's no longer worth it, and I'm glad we will have room in our budget to save + splurge occasionally, along with a more diverse group of families. I'll certainly miss the outdoor time and the customer service, but my kid is old enough now where those things don't bother me as much.

I was following you until you said your kid doesn't need the good things now that they're 6.

I absolutely understand not having the money, but it seems a bit off to say your kid no longer needs the good things they have been taught are part of "school" because they are now in first grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Depends on how easily you can spend $40K+ annually/child. It's not worth it if you have to make hard sacrifices. I'm not talk about having to fly coach instead of business; I'm talking about not being able to save for your own retirement. You'd be better off renting an apartment in a good public school district.

If you can easily afford the tuition, it's a very nice luxury to have. We've had no impactful teacher shortages (vs public schools, where students are going without teachers in critical subjects), small class sizes, lots of arts and music and PE actually built into the curriculum (don't need to rely on afterschool for this instruction), teachers and admin respond to emails in a timely manner, teachers spend a lot of time with students outside of class, facilities are great, etc. Parents and alum are very involved and willing to help out with everything from hosting class parties to offering high school internships.

It's basically this for us. The $$$$$ for private was worth spending to us this year, as our kid moved into K and there were still tons of COVID-related teacher shortages, over-enrolled schools, etc., in our public system.

At the private, we had no staffing shortages, got lots of "customer-focused" service, small class sizes with 2 teachers per class, lots of enrichment, arts, hours daily of outdoor time on a lovely playground, outdoor lunch, etc. All of that was worth it for the first year of school during this weird transitional post-COVID lockdown time.

We'll be moving to public for 1st because those things have shaken out mostly now, and the $$$$$ for private is no longer worth it. The private, with all its pros, came with a weird insular, homogenous population, outdated educational philosophies, teachers who are undercompensated (and therefore the school can't be very selective), etc., etc.

The $$$$$ was a big stretch for us (= no savings this year), and it was worth it for what we needed it for. Now it's no longer worth it, and I'm glad we will have room in our budget to save + splurge occasionally, along with a more diverse group of families. I'll certainly miss the outdoor time and the customer service, but my kid is old enough now where those things don't bother me as much.

I was following you until you said your kid doesn't need the good things now that they're 6.

I absolutely understand not having the money, but it seems a bit off to say your kid no longer needs the good things they have been taught are part of "school" because they are now in first grade.

Not sure how you got "my kid doesn't need the good things" from that. I'm just saying we are willing to have fewer "luxuries" at school because the cost is no longer worth it to us. There's a scale that's constantly tipping. At some point things are worth paying for--at another point, they are not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Paying just under $40,000 and returning to public after this year is up. Not better than public and in fact, some core subjects are lacking.

Where are your kids now and where are they moving to?

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:I really wish this pointless weekly thread required every poster to state the name of the schools they’re discussing first hand. It’s otherwise useless.

+1. A lot of people in my neighborhood like to brag about how they’re sending their kids “private” but they end up being $15-20k crappy parochial or Christian schools. Um, no one is envious of that

Parochial are well known to not be better in academics. It is ironic that people brag about sending their children to one.

But they don’t like to say that it’s parochial (or Christian). They just say “private”. As if there’s any comparison between those and the actual top independents. The schools proudly state that their curricula are based on the Bible!

What school has a math curriculum based on the Bible?

They’re out there - usually with “Christian Academy” or similar in their name. They’re also often unaccredited (but accredited by God Almighty!).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All of the $40+ schools have more playtime, art, music, and science than public school, but likely does not have more math and reading instruction. That may or may not be valuable to you.

There are only so many hours in a day. If you want more art music and play, then that time has to come from somewhere.

In public school my kids spent a LOT of time waiting for teacher to help the rest of the class. Did homework. Read a novel a day. Doodled. Fine to give that up so the core 6 hrs are doing SOMETHING, and homework is for home.

And you think that doesn’t happen in private? The teacher should be helping the kids in class.

There are fewer kids and they are more closer to on level within the class. This is what my kid reports.

Same at my private but the academics are not as good. So going back to public where he will get a better education with more kids in class without the tuition.

No one goes to a religious school expecting the academics to be good

Like NCS? STA? I would add SFS but no one really believes it’s Quaker anymore.

No I mean schools that boast about their religious Bible-based curriculum

But that’s not what you said the first time. Revising your BS statement?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All of the $40+ schools have more playtime, art, music, and science than public school, but likely does not have more math and reading instruction. That may or may not be valuable to you.

There are only so many hours in a day. If you want more art music and play, then that time has to come from somewhere.

In public school my kids spent a LOT of time waiting for teacher to help the rest of the class. Did homework. Read a novel a day. Doodled. Fine to give that up so the core 6 hrs are doing SOMETHING, and homework is for home.

And you think that doesn’t happen in private? The teacher should be helping the kids in class.

There are fewer kids and they are more closer to on level within the class. This is what my kid reports.

Same at my private but the academics are not as good. So going back to public where he will get a better education with more kids in class without the tuition.

No one goes to a religious school expecting the academics to be good

Like NCS? STA? I would add SFS but no one really believes it’s Quaker anymore.

No I mean schools that boast about their religious Bible-based curriculum

But that’s not what you said the first time. Revising your BS statement?

I guess I don’t consider NCS and STA to be religious schools. In the same way I don’t consider Georgetown to be a religious school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:All of the $40+ schools have more playtime, art, music, and science than public school, but likely does not have more math and reading instruction. That may or may not be valuable to you.

There are only so many hours in a day. If you want more art music and play, then that time has to come from somewhere.

In public school my kids spent a LOT of time waiting for teacher to help the rest of the class. Did homework. Read a novel a day. Doodled. Fine to give that up so the core 6 hrs are doing SOMETHING, and homework is for home.

And you think that doesn’t happen in private? The teacher should be helping the kids in class.

There are fewer kids and they are more closer to on level within the class. This is what my kid reports.

Same at my private but the academics are not as good. So going back to public where he will get a better education with more kids in class without the tuition.

No one goes to a religious school expecting the academics to be good

Like NCS? STA? I would add SFS but no one really believes it’s Quaker anymore.

No I mean schools that boast about their religious Bible-based curriculum

But that’s not what you said the first time. Revising your BS statement?

I guess I don’t consider NCS and STA to be religious schools. In the same way I don’t consider Georgetown to be a religious school.

So, yes, you are revising.

Is someone forcing you to send your kids to a religious school? No, didn’t think so. So what do you care what they do?

And you’re a bigot.

- not a religious school parent