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OK, so how can you identify a school's culture, values?
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Anonymous
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A well-known consultant recently acknowledged that in the lower grades, almost all the independent schools around here offer the same curriculum and extracurriculars, in similar facilities. Surprising she said this, but I can see her point. She went on to say that in choosing an independent school for elementary, parent should compare the cultures of the schools.
This thread got me thinking, and I didn't want to hijack it, how DO you somewhat accurately assess the culture and values communicated by a school you don't attend? Frankly, with two notable exceptions, the spiels all sound the same at the core. http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/37272.page |
Anonymous
| I feel like "culture" and "values" are code words in this context. Anyone want to hand me a clue? |
Anonymous
| Which are the two notable exceptions? |
Anonymous
| Green Acres and Lowell |
Anonymous
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I guss you have to ask a lot of probing questions abotu how schools will handle various situations.
The problem is no one wants to ask these questions in the application process, right? Because asking too many questions will not get your chlid admitted? |
Anonymous
| I think the culture and values of the school are reflected to some degree by the parent populations (hair bows vs. whole foods.......). |
Anonymous
abuse, harrassment, bullying, stalking, unwanted sexual overatures[touching] male-female-female, pregnancy, drugs, alcohol Huge instance of bullying now by group of older to younger girls in my DD's high school. |
Anonymous
ahhh, yeaaahhhh. Girls who wear hairbows eat food from Whole Foods. In fact, probably more than not. They actually go pretty well together. 
What is this beef with girls in hairbows? Its a common theme on this forum. Hairbows are not a political statement. It is just cute, if you like that look. Nothing more, nothing less. |
Anonymous
| male-female-female? What does that mean? |
Anonymous
Unwanted attention should not be OK or public displays of affection not OK if between girls. Bluntly the attitude of the school is preposterous. |
Anonymous
| IMO, the culture of the school is hugely influenced by the families that attend--attitudes of parents are generally mirrored by children. So if you personally know someone whose DC goes to the school, your feelings about that family is a good indicator--are they humble, involved, social climbers, tolerant, aggressive, generous, friendly, snooty, ... (no value judgments on which characteristics are better or worse!) It is much harder to get a good read by just attending a tour because you will only encounter a small subset of parents and they will tend to be of a certain type ... the quieter, involved-but-in-less-conspicuous-ways parents may not be as visible. |
jhuber
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If the schools' websites and literature didn't make explicit their culture and values (or their statements were too generic) and I were a prospective parent, I would look for things like this -
* what gets placed in positions of prominence around the school? art? academic plaques? sports awards? annual fund charts? character words / value words / mission statements? * are parents actively involved in the building? if so, where? * what are the students permitted to wear? * how much care is given to keeping the facility clean? what does the boy's bathroom look like at the end of the day? * where has the school most recently spent its money on facilities? * what are the rituals that are considered to be important - so important that they're taken as assumed? * how does a student behave as s/he passes you in the hallway during a tour? * where is the Head's office located and what does it look like? * most basic of all - what does the mission statement really say? I think these hints can give insight to a school's hierarchy, influence of wealth, embrace of diversity, etc. John |
Anonymous
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I agree with a lot of the things 13:45 said, and I would really, really emphasize watching student behavior when you are at the school. How do the students treat one another? How do they respond to you if they pass by you in the hallway during a tour? What are they like when you see them on the campus or in the neighborhood?
If you are applying to a lower school, you might even want to consider touring the upper school to get a sense of the behavioral norms that result from the culture at the lower school level. |
Anonymous
| I think the quality of the teachers/administrators is huge...the impact they have on the children as well as how they interact with parents. Let's face it, in this affluent area you're going to have parents all over the map in terms of attitudes. Nothing overrides this like an expereinced teacher who can politely but firmly stand up to some of these parents. |
Anonymous
I think judging a school by the one or two families you know would be a mistake - but if you know 8 or 10 families, that could give a better idea. A sample of one could be very skewed. I also would avoid judging a school by the posts you read on DCUM. There are a lot of posts about my sons' schools, and I rarely find much overlap with their realities. |